Tips for Carpet Care

Helping you better maintain your carpet, furniture, and other surfaces in your home or business is one of our highest priorities. This section is dedicated to providing you with “tips” and suggestions on how you can keep your carpet and furniture looking its best!

How Often Should I Clean My Carpet or Furniture?

This question is asked often, especially about carpets. Today’s carpet is designed to hide soil and it’s easy to let your carpet go too long between cleanings. Carpet manufacturers recommend that your carpet be professionally cleaned every 12 to 18 months. Some manufacturers have now made regular professional cleaning a requirement to maintain the warranty. The common-sense answer is…when your carpet begins to look dirty, then it’s time to have it cleaned. Remember, carpets and furniture act as big collectors of dust, pollen, and other airborne soils and they need to be cleaned on a regular schedule. Another important reason for regular cleaning is HEALTH. If any members of your household have allergy issues, regular cleaning of carpet and furniture will help.

Vacuum, Vacuum, Vacuum

Regular and thorough vacuuming is the single most important thing that you can do to extend the life of your carpet and furniture. Some additional “tips” are:

  • Use walk-off mats at entries.
  • Take shoes off in the house.
  • Rotate the location of furniture to change traffic patterns.

Removing Spots and Stains

Today’s carpet and furniture fabrics are designed and treated to resist most food and beverage spills and stains. When you have a spill or stain, the following procedures can help.

  • Remove any excess spill or stain by scraping or blotting.
  • Flush the area with warm water and blot with absorbent toweling.
  • Use an appropriate spotter. Be sure to follow the label directions.
  • Always rinse the spotter with warm water and blot with absorbent toweling.
  • Place folded paper towels on the spot and cover them with a heavy book to finish blotting.

Some spills, such as Kool-Aid, can cause permanent stains and require a trained professional to remove them.

For additional tips on how to remove stubborn spots or stains, simply call our office or send us an email.

Furniture Care Tips

Like carpet, today’s furniture fabrics are designed to provide years of enjoyment when properly maintained. Most furniture fabrics are a “blend” of several fibers. This means that they have different cleaning characteristics. Some “designer” fabrics require specialized cleaning. SUNRISE CLEANING technicians are trained and certified to properly clean even the most delicate of furniture fabrics. Here are some tips for caring for your furniture.

Rotate Cushions and Vacuum

Oftentimes, people forget to rotate the cushions of sofas and chairs. Rotating cushions helps extend the time between cleanings and also helps with the wear on the cushion foam.
It’s also important to vacuum your furniture to remove the soil and skin particles from routine use.

Cleaning Arm Covers

If your sofa or chair has arm covers, they should be cleaned periodically. We recommend hand washing them in a mild dish detergent and rinsing in warm water. MACHINE WASHING CAN CAUSE DAMAGE. Once cleaned, they can be dried on a low heat setting.

Removing Spots and Stains

Removing spots and stains from furniture can be more difficult than carpet. However, the same techniques apply.

  • Remove any excess spill by gently scraping or blotting.
  • Flush the area with warm water and blot with absorbent toweling.
  • Use an appropriate spotter. Follow bottle directions. Always test for color fastness.
  • Rinse any spotter with warm water and blot with absorbent toweling.

Preparing to have your Carpet Cleaned

SUNRISE CLEANING is dedicated to providing you with the BEST cleaning experience. Here are a few suggestions on how to prepare for our arrival.

  • Before we arrive, vacuum the traffic areas in the rooms we are scheduled to clean. This will remove any dry soil and open the pile up for better cleaning.
  • Pin up any full-length drapes so they are at least 6 inches from the floor.
  • Pin-up or tuck skirts on bedding and sofas.
  • Remove breakables from furniture that needs to be moved. Also place small items such as lamps, tables, plants,…etc in another room. This will allow the service technician to properly process the room. Items that we do not normally move are pianos, china hutches, entertainment centers, heavy dressers, Grandfather clocks, antique furniture, and appliances.
  • Please be mindful that children and pets may be at risk while we are cleaning. We recommend they remain in another area while we are cleaning.
  • If possible, have the driveway accessible for our technician to park close to the entry. We will also need to use your outside water faucet.
  • Be sure to point out any problem spots or areas to the cleaning technician so he can give them special attention.
  • A SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT PET ODORS: Routine cleaning will not eliminate pet odor issues. In fact, it may cause an increase in odor after the carpet has been cleaned. Refer to our section on Pet Odor Treatments. Be sure to inform the Service Technician of any pet odor concerns.

Some Tips To Speed Up Drying

  • Keep the room temperature at 72 degrees.
  • Airflow helps with drying. Open windows to allow for cross ventilation. Ceiling fans will also help.
  • On most jobs, we will use our AIRPATH fans to help start the drying process. The Service Technician may also leave fans to finish the drying process.

Cancellation Policy

Please be mindful, that there are considerable costs associated with your cleaning job. If you find it necessary to cancel, we ask that you please call our office 24 hours in advance so that we might schedule another job in your time slot. Second cancellations are subject to a cancellation fee.