Commandment I: Vacuum frequently and thoroughly. Most of the wear of carpeting is caused by dirt. Oily soils attract more oily soil and frequent vacuuming will reduce soil buildup.

Commandment II: Get at stains quickly, 99% of all stains can be removed by one cleaning agent or another if they are cleaned in the first few days. The longer a stain chemically reacts with the carpet the harder it will be to remove it.

Commandment III: Test carpet before scrubbing, extracting or spotting. All carpets are different. Some carpets are very sensitive to acid type cleaners and will lose their color quickly. Other carpet dyes are sensitive to harsh alkalis.

Commandment IV: Use appropriate spotters starting with the mildest. Do not use harsh spotting agents unless absolutely necessary and always neutralize high alkaline or high acid cleaners after use.

Commandment V: Never dig or brush spots. The proper procedure is to scrape the spot towards the middle and then tamp the spot into the white towel or cloth using a brush or other tamping devices. A meat tenderizer makes a great tamping tool.

Commandment VI: Do not overuse detergents, shampoos or spotters. Too much detergent will result in residue left in the carpet that thorough vacuuming may not remove.

Commandment VII: Do not over-wet carpet. Our carpet detergents are chemically active enough so they do not need a tremendous amount of wetting. Over-wetting can cause brownout, carpet shrinkage, adhesion problems and all other kinds of nightmares.

Commandment VIII: Extract residue if possible. Hot water extraction will clean the carpet fibers the best by encapsulating dirt and detergent residue. Extraction will flush out this dirt and other organisms deep in the carpet.

Commandment IX: Never “coat” a dirty or spotty carpet. After scrubbing or extracting a dirty carpet, if you are not satisfied with the results, do not apply a coat of carpet protector as this will result in “gluing in the dirt” making it harder to remove it the next time. Either re-scrub or extract the carpet or leave the carpet until the next cleaning cycle before you coat.

Commandment X: Have your carpets professionally cleaned at least once or twice per year depending on traffic from kids and/or pets.