Keeping carpets fresh and clean can be a challenge for pet owners. Pet accidents, fur shedding, and tracked-in dirt from outside can quickly make carpets look dingy. Regular professional carpet cleaning is key to extending the life of carpets and keeping your home smelling fresh. Read on to learn how often you should have your carpets cleaned if you have pets.
The Benefits of Regular Carpet Cleaning
Having your carpets professionally cleaned on a regular basis offers many benefits:
- Removes embedded dirt, debris, pet hair, and allergens
- Lifts out stains from pet accidents
- Brightens appearance and extends carpet lifespan
- Eliminates odors from urine, feces, vomit etc.
- Creates a healthier home environment
How Often Should You Clean Carpets With Pets?
Most carpet manufacturers and cleaning experts recommend professional cleaning every 6-12 months. However, pet owners may need to clean as often as every 3-4 months. Frequent carpet cleaning is worthwhile because:
- It prevents buildup of pet dander, hair, and allergens
- Stops urine odor if pets are not fully housebroken
- Lifts out ground-in dirt from high traffic areas
- Keeps carpets looking clean and pleasant
Key Areas to Clean
Pay special attention to heavy soil areas like:
- Entryways and hallways
- Under furniture and dog beds
- Stairs and high traffic areas
- Rooms or spots your pet frequents
Your local carpet cleaning service can give extra passes in soiled zones to lift out pet messes.
Best Carpet Cleaning Method for Pets
Hot water extraction cleaning, also called “steam cleaning”, is the #1 professional method recommended for pet households by the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI).
Hot water extraction uses powerful equipment to spray heated cleaning agents into your carpet at high pressure. The solutions and dirt are then extracted into a holding tank with strong suction. This deep cleaning method is the most effective way to lift out all traces of pet stains, embedded soil, bacteria, pollen, and dust mite allergens from carpets.
Other Cleaning Tips for Pet Owners
Follow these extra tips to keep carpets clean between professional cleanings:
- Vacuum high traffic areas daily to remove surface hair and debris
- Blot urine accidents immediately with an absorbent cloth
- Use an enzymatic cleaner to break down pet waste odors
- Clean up vomit, feces, or mud right away
- Restrict pets from areas until carpets are completely dry
- Pretreat spots and stains to avoid set-ins
By regularly deep cleaning carpets and staying on top of daily pet messes, you’ll enjoy fresh, clean carpets without worrying about lingering odors or permanent stains setting in. Your local carpet cleaning service can help remove built up dirt and allergens, leaving your floors healthy and clean.
Key Takeaways:
- Clean carpets every 3-4 months if you have pets at home to prevent buildup of hair, dander and stains.
- Focus cleaning on high traffic zones like hallways, stairs, and your pet’s favorite spots.
- Hot water extraction is the best and deepest cleaning method recommended for pets.
- Blot urine stains right away and pretest spots to avoid permanent set-in stains.
- Vacuum daily to pick up surface debris and hair in high traffic zones.
- Use an enzymatic cleaner to eliminate odors from pet accidents.
- Restrict pets from cleaned carpets until fully dry to prevent re-soiling.
Preventing Pet Urine Damage
Pet urine can cause permanent damage to carpets if not cleaned properly. The uric acid in cat and dog urine can dye carpet fibers and degrade backing materials over time. It’s critical to have any urine accidents professionally cleaned to sanitize carpets and prevent issues. If not addressed quickly, urine can seep into carpet pads and subfloors underneath.
Using a blacklight detection flashlight, an experienced carpet cleaner can easily spot old or recurring pet urine stains. Through hot water extraction cleaning, they can target the contamination, lift it out from carpet pads and floors, and apply deodorizers and antimicrobial treatments. Routine professional cleanings greatly reduce lingering odors while protecting your carpet investment and home.
Animal Feces and Health Concerns
Many common pet parasites like roundworms, hookworms and tapeworms can be transmitted through contact with infected feces. Bacteria like Campylobacter and Salmonella can also be spread through animal waste. Children playing on floors and carpets are especially vulnerable.
Thorough cleaning and sanitizing of all pet messes is crucial. Professional carpet cleaners use truck-mounted steam cleaning equipment that reaches up to 230°F. This extreme heat kills bacteria, pathogens, eggs from parasites, and disease-causing microorganisms that vacuum cleaners often miss. Proper waste removal also eliminates foul odors and supports better home hygiene.
Mud and Dirt From Outside
During wet weather or in snow, pets can track significant amounts of mud and dirt into a home. These abrasive materials can scratch flooring and grind deep into carpet pile the longer they sit. Outside debris also brings in a variety of pollens, fungal spores, pesticides, herbicides, and toxic materials picked up on dog walks.
Using doormats and wiping paws helps reduce the amount of dirt pets bring inside. However, the outdoor grime that still enters will get ground in over time. Your local professional carpet cleaner can flush out these filthy particles with a thorough hot water extraction deep cleaning service. Their high-powered equipment and techniques remove the most soil to leave floors fresh, clean and free of seasonal outdoor irritants.
The Impact of Carpet Beetles
Carpet beetles are common fabric pests found in many homes. Drawn to pet hair, fur, and other natural fibers, an infestation can damage wool clothing, upholstery, carpets, and pet bedding. The larvae feed on these materials and leave behind an abrasive brown powder residue.
Besides ruining fabrics, carpet beetle larvae and cast skins can also cause skin irritation and breathing issues if inhaled. Eggs and pupae can hide deep down in carpet piles away from vacuum cleaners. Frequent hot water extraction cleaning provides the only way to fully eliminate all life stages and residues from an infestation across entire carpets. Partnering with a professional carpet cleaning service to control beetles preserves your expensive flooring investment.
How can I get old urine stains out of my carpet?
Old or recurring pet urine stains can be difficult to remove from carpets. The uric acid can permanently dye fibers if left for too long. Professional carpet cleaners use truck-mounted steam cleaners that heat water up to 230°F. This extreme heat helps lift even old dried urine out from deep in the carpet pads and subfloor. As part of the cleaning, antimicrobial treatments are applied to fully eliminate bacteria and the odor. Blacklight flashlights also help technicians identify all pet stains for targeted cleaning. The combination of hot water extraction, antimicrobial agents, and stain pretreatments allow professionals to sanitize and deodorize old urine stains for fresh, clean carpets.
What’s the best method for removing dog feces from carpets?
The most effective method is having a professional carpet cleaner perform a thorough hot water extraction cleaning. The high heat kills pathogens, parasites, and disease-causing organisms that may be present in dog feces. Bacteria like Salmonella and Campylobacter can spread illness through contact with infected stool. Eggs from common parasites can also lurk deep in carpet fibers. The high-powered suction lifts out all traces of stuck-on waste from pets while the high heat sanitizes down to the floor pads. This removes both contaminants and foul odors better than home carpet cleaning machines can achieve.
How can I limit the amount of outdoor dirt from entering my home?
Strategically place doormats outside all exterior doors and ensure family and pets wipe or scrape feet before entering. Vacuum high traffic indoor areas around entrances daily to remove recently tracked-in debris. Schedule professional hot water extraction cleanings every 3-4 months to keep ahead of the embedded soil that still inevitably gets ground in. The extreme heat, pressure, and suction lift out all the deeply ground-in particulates that regular vacuums cannot. Clean technicians can also apply protective treatments to carpet fibers to repel outdoor contaminants between deep cleanings. By actively trapping, vacuuming up, and periodically flushing out heavy dirt, you’ll keep floors cleaner in pet-prone and high-traffic zones.
What’s the easiest way to check if my carpet beetle infestation is gone?
Inspecting for carpet beetles inside and out for 2-3 months following professional treatment helps ensure successful elimination. Any larvae, pupae, and eggs that were forced out from deep in carpets by steam cleaning may continue developing if left behind outdoors. Keep monitoring to ensure no life stages remain along baseboards, in vents, under appliances, or around pet areas. Repeated hot water extraction cleaning 2-3 times by a reputable professional exterminator will kill larvae and lift out eggs to fully clear an infestation. You can supplement by frequently vacuuming, sealing food sources, washing pet bedding, filling cracks, and drying out humid spots. Over time, the combination of monitoring and targeted cleaning will eradicate carpet beetles.
Why does my cleaner say it’s important to restrict pets from carpeted rooms while drying?
Allowing pets back onto freshly cleaned carpets before totally dry risks re-soiling the fibers. Damp carpets easily attract more pet hair, dander, dirt, and debris. Accidents are also more likely on wet floors before pets are fully retrained. Any urine, feces or vomit on non-dry carpets also exposes pads and flooring underneath to moisture that can encourage mold, bacteria, and odors over time. Letting carpets dry completely avoids wicking up more mess into freshly cleaned carpets. Most cleaners recommend keeping pets out for 4-6 hours, allowing powerful air movers to speed total water extraction and dry time. Proper drying gets carpets ready for pets to safely enjoy sooner.