Steam cleaning is a crucial part of keeping your carpets fresh and clean all year round. While you can definitely hire a professional to steam clean your carpet, it’s a task you can do yourself. Here are a few tips on how to steam clean carpet yourself.
How to Steam Clean Carpet Yourself
If you’re wondering how to steam clean carpet yourself, you should first vacuum the carpet, treat any stains before cleaning, prepare the room and more.
Vacuum the Carpet
Carpet steamers are designed to wash and partially dry your carpet while extracting grime and dirt as they go. If you want to get to the dirt that’s deeply embedded in the carpet, it’s advisable to vacuum your carpet before steam cleaning. Here are a few steps to follow:
- Pick up all books, toys and other items from the carpet.
- Remove furniture, or at least move smaller pieces such as floor lamps to another room.
- Dust your baseboards to avoid knocking stuff off them and back onto your vacuumed carpet
- Use the crevice attachment for hard to reach areas and around remaining furniture and the base of walls
- Finally, vacuum your carpeting in two directions to ensure the carpet is thoroughly vacuumed and that you’ve removed all ground-in dirt. Start slowly in one direction then again from a 90-degree angle.
Treat Stains Before Steam Cleaning
While the steam cleaner will get rid of a significant amount of grime and dust, the heat involved can also make it harder to remove stains. Therefore, be sure to remove wine, coffee, pet stains, spray paint and more before you begin steam cleaning.
Prepare the Room for Steam Cleaning
If you’re unable to remove all the furniture from the room, you’ll want to cut squares of aluminum foil or wax paper and slide them under the feet or edges of furniture. This will help to protect your furniture from absorbing any moisture that’s left in the carpet after the steam cleaning process. Leave them in place until the carpet is dry.
Be sure to spot-test any product before using it on your carpet to avoid damaging or fading it.
Use a 2-Step Process
You may opt to use manufacturer recommended products but you can also get equally good results with a homemade solution to make the process even cheaper.
Step One: Use one tablespoon of Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap for every quarter gallon of almost boiling water while filling your machine’s tank. Castile soap is oil based, which makes it ideal for tackling oil-based dirt such as grime from the bottom of your shoes.
Step Two: Since you’re using soap, you’ll need to rinse it. For that, use a 50-50 mix of hot water and white vinegar. The vinegar will not only neutralize and remove the soap but also help to fight stains. This second step will lift up more dirt and grime while also deodorizing the carpet. Finally, follow up with a clean water rinse.
Operate the Steam Cleaner Properly
Most steam cleaners are designed to lay down water when pushing the unit forward and then extract it when you pull back. You want to pull back the cleaner slowly to get rid of as much water as possible.
Bottom Line
These simple tips help you on how to steam clean carpet yourself, one of the cheapest ways to clean your carpet. Experts recommend steam cleaning your carpet at least twice a year. It’s also best to steam clean your carpet when the weather is warm to speed up the drying process.
