Deep Carpet Cleaning Methods: The Difference Between Dry vs Wet Cleaning Procedure

A fresh-smelling and clean carpet bring a great ambiance to every home. It is advisable to have a professional cleaner to handle carpet cleaning but homeowners can also do things that can prolong the lifespan of their carpets. Homeowners can deep clean their carpets to fully ensure that their home is safe from any accumulated dust or allergens. Deep carpet cleaning can be done using several methods. A carpet scrub is used to brush away the stubborn dust out of the material’s fibers. If the carpet owner chooses the wet method in deep cleaning, a special solution and water are used to soften the dirt. The dry method uses a dry cleaning solution, allowing the dirt to be vacuumed out of the carpet.

Homeowners that live with pets or kids must have proper knowledge of deep cleaning their carpets even without the use of a steam cleaner. If mud and juice droplets are combined together, it can create stubborn dirt and stain that simple vacuuming cannot remove. Stains can be unsightly and look unsanitary. It can also produce a foul odor that visitors coming to your house can smell. If left uncleaned, bacteria can breed and cause health problems for the entire household. Professional cleaning services are a good option when maintaining carpets. However, homeowners must also do their own due diligence in cleaning their own carpets.

Deep Carpet Cleaning Methods

Dry Cleaning

Dry Cleaning utilizes special solutions to clean carpets and other surfaces. This method has little to no moisture when implemented. Dry cleaning results in proper removal stains, grit, sand, allergens and pollen. Dry cleaning is focused on using chemical-based compounds to clean the carpet. It uses very minimal moisture to remove the dirt from the carpet and relies on the chemicals and the vacuuming method.

Dry cleaning has a method called dry compound cleaning. This method uses a cleaning compound that is spread over an area that needs to be brushed. The compound attracts the dirt embedded on the carpet. There is slight moisture with this method that needs to be dried for a short time.

The compounds that have the chemicals that attract the dirt need to evaporate. This is the reason why the drying period is needed. After drying the carpet, the next step is to vacuum the carpet which leaves the carpet clean and completely dry.

The dry method deeply cleans surfaces due to the compound used to attract the dirt. Nonetheless, the vacuuming process must be thoroughly done. If the vacuum process is not properly executed, the cleaning compounds and dirt will stay on the carpet. The compound is wasted since the carpet is not cleaned at all.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Dry Deep Carpet Cleaning

Dry cleaning is helpful in carpet materials than might disintegrate when it comes in contact with water. It does not need carpets to have long drying periods. The carpet can be immediately used once the dry cleaning procedure is over. Another advantage of dry cleaning is when oil or grease is involved. Grease and oil are both insoluble in water. This means that water cannot do anything to remove grease or oil stains from the carpets making dry cleaning a great option. Unfortunately, dry cleaning also has its cons. Depending on the carpet material, the color can fade due to the solvent or chemical used. People sensitive with any smallest chemical might have problems with a dry-cleaned carpet since this method is reliant on compound chemical agents.

Wet Cleaning

As the term suggests, wet cleaning utilizes water to deeply clean the carpets. Wet cleaning uses steam or hot water extraction to clean the carpet. The two methods use equipment to spray either the steam or hot water together with the cleaning agents to the carpet.

In the hot water method, cleaning compounds and hot water are injected into the carpet’s fibers. It uses equipment that can put a high-pressure spray into the carpet’s materials. The high-pressure liquid sprayed into the carpet lifts the soil or dirt out of the carpet. It will be later removed by a specialized vacuum powerful enough to remove stubborn dirt.

Steam cleaning is another method for wet cleaning which utilizes vaporized water to clean carpets. The vapor used is heated and placed in a piece of equipment that is similar to a vacuum cleaner. Once the exceptionally heated steam goes in contact with the fibers of the rug, it will break down the stubborn particles. The next step is to use dry steaming to collect the broken down debris.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Wet Deep Carpet Cleaning

The advantages of wet cleaning are the ability of the process to be customized depending on the carpet’s material. The colors of the carpet can be retained because it does not use harsh chemicals to flush out the dirt. It can even soften the carpet. The disadvantage of wet carpet cleaning is it can stretch out the material of the carpet if unsuitable equipment is used.

To choose the proper method, it is important that homeowners assess their situation and carpet material to know which cleaning method would be the best. Both cleaning processes aim to deeply clean the carpet and remove any unwanted dirt and allergens that can be bad for the health and look unsightly for the home.