Winter weather is notorious for spreading around grime. Here in San Antonio, we don’t need to worry about snow or the salt and other snow-melt materials that get sprinkled across the roads. It’s great because we don’t need to worry about what that gunk is doing to our carpets — but that doesn’t mean we’re entirely free from the carpet-wrecking effects of winter. Start by learning why winter weather is so hard on your carpets in our recent blog. Here are a few ways you can help protect your carpets during the increased wet and grime of winter.
Invest In Doormats
It’s a simple step, but doormats are a great first line of defense against winter grime. Doormats are a great way to minimize slips on smooth surfaces like tile or wood floors. They’re also a great way to capture some of the gunk that gets tracked in on shoes. Doormats aren’t going to get all of the grime that shoes pick up, but they’ll gather enough to help save your carpets — and not just during the winter. If you’re looking for a winter-specific boost, we recommend looking for doormats that are both absorbent and some with thicker, tougher fibers. This will help reduce water damage and hopefully scrape off more grime from everybody’s shoes. Just be sure to put a mat at each entryway, including the door in from the garage.
Set Up Shoe Racks
While you’re at it, it’s even better to simply ask anyone coming into your home to remove their shoes. Going shoeless inside means less grime will make it to your carpets, but it also means less wear and tear on your carpet fibers. Whether shoes have a deep tread or are smooth on the bottom, the hard materials will wear away your carpets, so becoming a shoeless household will help your carpets last longer. Putting a shoe rack near entryways is a pretty obvious indicator that you’d like everyone to take off their shoes when they come in.
Clean Up Moisture Quickly
Moisture is one of the worst things for any carpet. It can soak into the fibers quickly, pulling grime in with it. The bigger problem is that moisture can keep going and end up soaking into the carpet pad, where it’s harder to dry out and more likely to grow mold or mildew (which wreck your carpets and can cause breathing issues). During the moisture-filled winter months, it can be beneficial to keep some old towels or rags by entryways so you can soak up any moisture that gets tracked in before it reaches your carpets.
Carpet Cleaning Services
The other big step is to ensure you’re keeping up with carpet cleaning measures — and by this, we mean professional carpet cleaning services, not just vacuuming. Vacuuming isn’t sufficient to suck up all the grime your carpets collect. Carpet cleaning services are a great way to give your carpets a deeper clean and help them survive the grime of winter.
Connect with the team at Steam Master Cleaning & Restoration for experienced, professional carpet cleaning services across San Antonio.