There’s no question that your daily or weekly vacuuming makes your carpet look fresh and newer but it’s not enough to protect your carpet from dirt, debris, and oily film deposits that go with this debris. You can’t avoid the oily debris. It comes from cooking vapor, the air, the bottoms of your feet, your pets, and a host of other places. So you’ll need to clean your carpets regularly. Follow these carpet cleaning tips to get the best job done.

Clean Frequently

Carpets should be cleaned every 12 months. This ensures that the oil film doesn’t get so thick it discolors your carpets. If you live by yourself or there’s just two of you then every 18 months will probably be suffice. If there is more than 5 of you then you’ll probably need to do your carpets every 6 months.

Hiring A Professional

You should consider hiring a professional to clean your carpets. A professional cleaner is trained, that’s why he or she is a professional and they will know which type of cleaning is best for your carpet. The professional will come with a heavy duty hot water extraction system which will be used to spray your carpets with water and detergent and then to suck back the water and oil into a tank in their vehicle.

Do It Yourself

If you decide to rent a steam cleaning machine and do your own carpets you need to realize that the rental equipment is not nearly as powerful as the pro’s equipment so you won’t get as deep a clean. You also need to realize that some of these machines can damage your carpet so be sure you know what you are renting.

Powerless Retail Rentals

Choose your retail rental carpet cleaner carefully because many of these lack power meaning you might land up with a carpet that’s too wet and not enough power to suck the water up. This could end up damaging your carpet. Make sure you do your research and that you know what you are renting

Easy On The Water

Pretend like there’s a water shortage and use water sparingly. If you use too much water and your carpets are wet for more than 24 hours you can develop mold and mildew growth which is bad for your health. Never mind those interesting odors that seep out of the carpet.

Leave No Trace

Choose a solution that leaves no or little residue behind. The PH of the cleaning solution should be around 9 and it should always be less than 10. If you are left with that sticky residue your carpets will pick up more residue and pick it up quicker.

Wool Carpets

Wool carpets are different than the synthetic blends. They require a special solution that is designed for wool and the natural fibers. Make sure the solutions PH is no higher than 8 and no lower than 5.

Stop The Stains

If your carpets are already treated with a stain resistant treatment you need you use a cleaner that’s designed to work with this treatment. Any other cleaner will destroy the stainguard treatment already on the carpets which could cause discoloration and void the warranty.

Less Dry Time

After you’ve cleaned your carpet places fans around the room to push air across the carpet. This will reduce the time it takes to dry the carpets and the risk of mold and mildew. If you have a dehumidifier use it to pull the moisture out. An air conditioner will also pull moisture out. Your carpet should be dry in 12 hours or less.

Following these carpet cleaning tips will have your carpets looking fresh and clean and it will extend their life. Carpets are expensive so the longer you can make them last the better!

For centuries, poets and men with an agenda, have been writing peons of praise to the loveliness of female lips. Most of them however, admired from afar and didn’t have to deal with the lipstick of today. Now, a compliment is as likely to get a gentleman an enthusiastic hug, and an imprint of those incomparable lips on his shirt collar.

The first thing to do, is return the enthusiasm and forget the stain! You can’t do much about it until you get home, although you can try blotting it wit water to make sure it doesn’t set any deeper. Don’t rub though, or it will become a real mess, instead of a charming imprint.

Take care of it as soon as you get home. Lipstick is a grease-based product, and most good grease pre-treatments will do the job. Spray the spot, or blot if necessary with a white cloth and the pre-treatment. Let sit for 15 minutes. Rinse with warm water. If the stain is still there, turn the fabric over so you are working at the stain from the back, and work in some liquid dish detergent with an old toothbrush. Let sit 15 minutes, then launder.

An alternative is to dab the stain with rubbing alcohol. Do not rub, or you’ll spread the mark. Turn the fabric over and work in dish detergent from the back, with a toothbrush. Let sit for 15 minutes and launder. If there is any mark remaining, re-treat with a pre-soak.

Other choices include dabbing off what you can with a water dampened cloth, then blotting the stain with a bit of ammonia, and laundering as usual. Or, you can try wetting the spot with hairspray, wiping the spot gently, and laundering.

The carpets of your home undoubtedly make for a beautiful part of the entire home interior. With their colourful patterns and comfortable design, they invite warmth and make any room much more welcoming. That is why all carpet cleaners recommend you take good care of the carpets and rugs of your home.

Now that you know just how important it is to provide adequate care for your carpets, you might as well familiarise yourself with the effective practices and methods that ensure this. After all, if you don’t invest the effort and make sure that what you do is right, how can you benefit from a clean carpet? Read further for expert tips on how to prolong the life of your carpet and keep allergens at bay.

Prevention is the best carpet care advice – whatever you do to clean your carpet, it won’t last long if dust and dirt end up on the carpet within a short period in no time. That is why you need some preventive measures to reduce the number of solid particles. For starters, you can adopt a strict policy of no walking with shoes in the house. If that seems rather drastic, consider laying some mats in the welcome area. A mat helps capture a good portion of the debris that would otherwise end up on your carpet, so it is a must.

Hoover regularly – the basic form of carpet cleaning known worldwide is hoovering the carpets with a vacuum cleaner. It ensures the surface dust, dirt and whatever solid debris end up on your carpet is removed. Try to maintain regular cleaning sessions – once every week is ideal.

Be mindful of how you hoover – it is a wise idea to change hoover pattern regularly to pick up as much solid debris as possible. Additionally, you must be very careful around corners and tight spaces – use different hoover attachments to reach every nook and cranny. Keep in mind that dust ends up under furniture too, so move it around and vacuum underneath. It is a lot of hassle, but it has to be done.

Have it steam cleaned – the advantages of steam cleaning are unparalleled. Thanks to this method, a carpet can be thoroughly cleaned and sanitised without the use of harmful ingredients and chemicals. It is the best eco-friendly alternative out there, which you should consider.

Treat stains as soon as possible – every carpet cleaner out there knows that the sooner you tackle a stain, the higher chance you have of removing it. Given time, stains become nearly impossible to clean and can become permanent. That is why treating fast is so important. However, don’t just apply random solutions, and instead take your time to learn how to clean various type of stains. That way you will have peace of mind you can deal with potential problems.

Follow all of these tips to ensure that your carpets are well-looked after. Do so and you will see that all carpet cleaners who recommend them have a valid point.

Sure, we want our floors to be dirt-free because they look so pretty that way. But we also want to keep our floors clean because it’s healthier. Foot-traffic and airborne contaminates like dirt, dust, pollen, bacteria, and more can pose a serious health risk, especially for children and those with existing upper respiratory conditions. A little preventative maintenance and routine cleaning is all it takes to keep your floors looking like new, and healthy too! Continue reading to learn some simple and effective tips for cleaning floors of all types, including carpets, tiles, woods, and laminates.

Carpet Cleaning

There are three key rules to keeping carpets fresh, lustrous, and soft. First, vacuum regularly. For homes with multiple occupants and heightened foot traffic, vacuum once a day. And for homes with few occupants and minimal to moderate foot traffic, vacuum every other day or two. Even if you have a “no shoe” rule, you need to vacuum carpets often to reduce dust and bacteria buildup, and improve indoor air quality. Second, always treat spills, spots, and stains, immediately. And treat them properly. Always test a small corner of carpet before using a new carpet cleaner or product to ensure it won’t discolor or damage it in any way. And third, have your carpets professionally deep cleaned once every year. You might want to consider twice a year if you have multiple occupants, several pets, or both.

Homemade Carpet Cleaner:

Mix baking soda and white vinegar together to form a paste. Apply a small amount to the spot or stain with a small cleaning brush or toothbrush. Work it into fibers in a circular motion. Allow the paste to dry completely. Then vacuum up the dried remains. And voila! The stain should be gone!

Hard Surface Floor Cleaning

Hard surface floors, whether wood, tile, or laminate, are easier to treat in terms of stains and spots. However, they still require special attention and routine cleaning if you want them to look good and last a long time. Start with daily sweeping to keep dust, dander, and dirt build-up in control. Allowing these contaminants to build up is very damaging for floors and reduces indoor air quality. After sweeping, be sure to mop once a week, or more often for homes with higher traffic. Keep a mat at entry doors to reduce the amount of dirt coming into the home, and even try to establish a “no shoe” rule to help decrease your cleaning efforts.

Homemade Hardwood Floor Cleaner:

Mix 3 parts warm water with 1 part distilled white vinegar. For an added fragrance, add a few drops of your favorite essential oil, such as coconut, lemon, peppermint, or orange peel. Apply with a clean mop and let it dry completely.

Homemade Laminate Floor Cleaner:

Mix 3 parts warm water with 1 part distilled white vinegar. Then add a few drops of liquid dish detergent of your choice. Apply the solution with a clean mop or cloth, and rinse with clean water. And then allow the floors to dry completely.

Homemade Vinyl Floor Cleaner:

Mix 1 gallon of hot water with 1 cup of apple cider vinegar. Apply the cleaner with a damp mop, and use water to rinse the mop as you clean. Rinse when finished and allow the floors to dry completely. If you wish to disinfect, replace the cider vinegar with distilled white vinegar.

There are a million articles, books and courses that you can find about spring cleaning, clearing the clutter, organizing, and the art of Feng Shui. You can even hire a consultant to come into your home and do these things for you. This article is going to go a step beyond that. You will be able to rejuvenate your home in areas where Lysol, a carpet cleaner, and organizational systems fail to go!

I’m going to assume that you all ready know the basics of cleaning, removing whatever you don’t need or aren’t emotionally attached to, and how to keep your belongings organized. I’m also going to assume that you understand that a clean and healthy environment improves your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. I don’t believe you would be reading this article if you haven’t all ready been working hard to create a clean and healthy environment for yourself and your family.

What we really want to focus on with this article is that not so fresh feeling that occasionally lingers even after you’ve cleaned, organized, and simplified down to the bare bones. There are a variety of reasons why this might happen. Maybe the room doesn’t have enough windows, or other natural resources to refresh itself in a natural way. Or, it could have lingering energy from bad memories. Those energies need a little more work to get rid of so you can fill the room with the warmth and comfort you want to feel in there instead. The following tools will help you with your efforts.

If the room you are struggling with doesn’t have enough windows to provide plenty of natural lighting, it may have a lingering stale feeling to it. There are a couple of things you can do to correct this. One is to buy light bulbs that have a natural light to them. They are available at most places you buy regular bulbs at. This will give the room the feeling that sunshine is pouring in. Another good idea is to burn candles. Even unscented ones are perfect in giving the room a feeling of warmth and comfort that the sun would normally offer.

Speaking of candles, scented candles are a wonderful source of aromatherapy and can help freshen a room while your offering the additional light. Try to stick with one scent at a time though so the room doesn’t become overwhelming. The best scents for a room lacking in sunlight are light or citrusy scents that will help lighten the room’s atmosphere.

Mother Nature offers many types of naturally cleaning items. Bringing these items of nature indoors is the best way to keep your space refreshed. Plants are perfect for any room and continuously clean the air for you. Philodendrons, Spider plants, and Pothos were found to be the most efficient in the removal of formaldehyde. Gerbera Daisies and Chrysanthemums were found to be effective in the removal of benzene, a known carcinogen. You can check with your local greenhouse for more information about the types of plants that will work the best for you.

Gemstones and crystals have energetic vibrations that interact with the atmosphere in a room and are perfect for helping to create more positive energies. You can find decorative gemstones in any shape and size to fit the scheme of your room’s décor. You can also use smaller gemstones and put them in a decorative dish, or in planters with your plants. Clear Quartz is a favorite general stone that works well to balance energies. You might want to check with your local New Age store to see what other recommendations they may have that are more specific for your situation.

Water fountains have multiple benefits in helping to keep a room fresh. The water helps hydrate the air, while the sound of a fountain running offers soothing water sounds for stress relief benefits. Water Fountains come is a broad variety of styles and sizes. You will be sure to find one that will match the décor of the room perfectly.

Stubborn, negative energies call for more extensive measures to remove them. The easiest thing to do to completely refresh the energy in a room is to burn some Sage; it has cleansing properties in it that will replace negative energies with fresh energetic elements. There are Sage candles, or even dried Sage in a fireproof container will work beautifully. While you are doing this, meditate about positive feelings and imagine them filling out into the room. Nothing is more powerful than your own intentions.

One other idea I’ll leave you with is to consider getting a House Blessing. Blessing ceremonies abound in every religion and spiritual discipline. You can have someone come into your home for a House Blessing when no one is there, or you can be involved and make it a very special event for your family to be involved with.

I hope these ideas help you in your efforts of creating a heaven on earth for you and your family. If you would like more suggestions, or would like specific ideas for your particular circumstances, I would be more than happy to help you further.

Remember, There’s no place like home!

To create an effective and lasting filtration system it is essential to find the ideal combination of above ground pool filters and pool pumps. The purpose for choosing the perfect combination is to prevent any type of problems that can create premature malfunctions, safety hazards or ineffective filtration. The above ground pool filters systems and the pool pump usually sits near the pool. Therefore, the water requires shorter travel time to pass through the filter and then back to the pool.

Different factors to consider about above ground pool filter systems

These filter systems have different horsepower (hp) and before deciding on which one is ideal, you need to consider the following factors. These factors will enable you to select the appropriate filters.

• General Pool Size that you can choose from are small, medium, or large

• Filter Type may be sand or cartridge

• Cleaner Type may be pressure side, suction side, or robotic

It is very important to find the correct size pool filters parts so that they can work well together and perform effectively. In order to get the accurate size you need to first check the size range of the swimming pool. Generally the size of the filters is relative to pool size. Hence, for a smaller pool it will need a smaller filter. Meanwhile for larger pool you will need bigger filtration system. Next you need to think about the type of filter. There are two main types of pool filter systems namely; sand and cartridge. Both has different types of benefits and are effective in many ways. However, cartridge is more popular because the filtration process is better than sand as it offers double filtration. The ground filter cartridge screens out the dirt particles as the water passes through. But you need to clean the filter cartridge on a regular basis as the dirt accumulated on the outside can affect the effectiveness of the filtration process. Another very important thing to consider is the above filter cleaner types. The cleaner types such as pressure side, suction side or robotic are all very effective but are usually powered differently.

Details about cleaner types of above ground pool filters

The details about the pool filter cleaner types are as mentioned in the following lines. This information will enable you to choose the appropriate type for your pool filter system.

• Pressure Side Cleaners: This cleaner can conveniently capture all kinds of debris and also efficiently circulate pool chemicals and water. This filter system is beneficial because uncirculated water can encourage algae growth. This cleaner creates a vacuum which picks up all the debris and dirt thus providing clean and healthy pool water.

• Suction Side Cleaners: This is among the most commonly used filter cleaner types because it is very affordable. It is generally attached to the plumbing system suction side and the cleaner receives power from the pool pump thus drawing debris and dirt. As the name suggest it can suck up all the debris such as leaves and other contaminants.

• Robotic Cleaners: This is one of the above ground filter parts that run independent of the filter and the pump. This cleaner collects debris in a fine mesh bag that is self-contained. This is one of the most efficient pool cleaners.

Thus, you need to consider many things before you purchase above ground pool filters. If you choose higher horsepower then the water flow movement will increase and you can get cleaner water fast. However, you need to remember that high horsepower will increase speed and suction which may harm the pool liner with constant use of the filter systems. Moreover, if you use sand filter above 1.5 hp then it will create high water movement which may result in pushing sand into the swimming pool. Therefore, a standard pool needs only 1 hp pump to sanitize the water and also run the cleaners effectively. So, you need to choose the correct pool pumps and filters to get clean and sanitized water.

Marketing your cleaning business is something that you will already have an idea about when you start your business plan. Nothing is better for an emerging cleaning business than a really good marketing strategy. This is when all of your research will work to your advantage. Cleaning business or any other type of service business cannot survive without a proven marketing plan, In order to build a good marketing strategy you must first:

1- Correctly assess your competition and what they are doing to market their businesses. You have to offer your clients something that is fresh and different if you want to get their attention.( You can offer free information on keeping your clients area clean – this will show your clients that you are an expert in your field).

2-Survey your potential market beforehand so that you can establish what your clients are missing in their current needs as consumers. You will want to know what they want and give it to them.( may be they need special cleaning product or prefer more special services)

3-Learn what types of advertisements work best in your business’ locale. Sometimes commercials are best whereas other area get a better response by utilizing the local newspaper or pennysaver.( how about direct response marketing? )

4-Begin your promotion before you plan to start your cleaning business so that you can garner an interest in your services before you even start. Building up some interest ahead of time can help to ensure good contract. If some consumers are not satisfied with their current cleaning service they could be waiting for any opportunity to switch to a different cleaning company.

5-Promotions and discounts are a necessity to running a successful residential or commercial cleaning business. You must make sure that you are in a position to compete in this manner. Your business start-up will run a lot better if you begin with a special promotion.

6-The key to successful marketing will be your ability to meet the basic supply and demand of your community. Be sure to stay on top of this because these things are always changing. You can offer extra services that are not supplied by most of your competitors.

7-You should be able to keep up with market changes and try to anticipate them beforehand because it keeps you a step ahead of the average consumer. This will prove invaluable to you later. by following the news about the cleaning field.

Spring-cleaning can seem like such a chore. You spend all day, or even a few days getting the entire house sparkly clean. As a busy mom, you will appreciate some of these cleaning tips that will make the job a little easier and faster. You’ll have more time to enjoy the nice spring weather outside.

Start out by taking a quick look through your cleaning supplies a few days before the big spring clean. Make sure you have plenty of paper towels and cleaning rags. If your mop or broom is really worn out, this is a great time to invest in a new one. Check all bottles and containers of cleaning supplies that you like to use and see if you have plenty of them. There’s nothing worse than having to clean yourself up during your big spring cleaning to run to the store for a new bottle of Windex.

Get everyone in the family to spend some time with you the day before the big spring cleaning to pick up around the house. You don’t want to spend time picking up toys or washing dishes the next day.

Get up early and put on some comfortable clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty. Dress all the way down to your shoes and put your hair up. Take a few minutes to gather all your cleaning supplies and get going.

Tackle one room at a time. This works much better than trying to do 10 things at once. It will also give you a great sense of accomplishment to see each clean room.

Start at the top and work your way down. Use a broom or a mop with a soft cloth wrapped around it to get any spider webs and dust out of the ceiling corners. Dust the light fixtures. Keep working your way down cleaning counters, windows and windowsills, furniture. Finish by dusting the baseboards and giving the carpets a good vacuuming. Take the time to vacuum under the bed and move furniture to clean the floor under it whenever possible.

When you get to the bathrooms, start by spraying some all purpose or bathroom cleaner on all the appliances, especially anything that may have some build up on it, like the soap dish in the shower. Pour some Clorox in the toilet. Allow the cleaner to soak in while you get started on the ceiling, windows and counters. By the time you get around to the sink, shower and toilet, all you need to do is wiping them down and give the inside of the toilet a quick scrub with the brush.

Make sure you take some breaks, and drink plenty of water. Cleaning is a touch job. When you are done, enjoy a long shower, put on some clean clothes and put up your feet. Give yourself a pat on the back for a job well done and get some rest. You deserve it.

With the end of the year just a few days away, people will surely be conducting their end of the year version of spring cleaning. This is the time to do away with the old stuff, retain the stuff that they will still be using and purchase the stuff that they will be using for the next year.

But cleaning the whole house after perhaps six months of no major cleaning can be really time-consuming, not to mention stressful. To ensure that the end of the year cleaning gets done with as little stress as possible, here are some tips that can help you make the most of this one-time chore.

Involve the family

Who says you should be the only one doing the cleaning. Your home is also the home of every member of the family (unless you are living alone of course. In that case, you have to do all the cleaning yourself!); so they should all give you a hand.

Assign different chores to different people. If you can, ask them what they want to do? Clean the floors? wash the dishes? tend to the garde? clean windows? organize the garage? Involving the whole family will not only lessen the job for you but will also foster a spirit of togetherness. When everybody takes his or her part, there is better unity within the family.

Involve the little kids

Assigning chores to the kids is a wonderful way to also teach a sense of responsibility early on. This is like hitting two birds with one stone, they get to learn something and you get help. Easy tasks like feeding the pets while everybody is cleaning or folding the laundry is already a big thing. If they have their own rooms, they can clean their own rooms and get rid of their own trash.

Start from the top

When cleaning the house, it is good to start from the top then proceed down. This means that you clean first the ceiling, the walls and the windows before cleaning the floor or dusting off the sofa and the other furniture. This is because dusts from the top will go eventually fall off, dirtying the lower areas once again. If there are many people doing the job, they can simultaneously do clean everything but you still have to do one final sweep or vacuum on the floors and on the furniture.

Don’t be a scavenger

If you have not used something for more than a year, chances are, you are not going to be using it anytime in the future. This is especially true with clothes on your closet. Get rid of it.

Most people who cannot seem to throw things away see to think that time will come when they will be able to use the item but unless you have a tracking system or a special database that lists down every knick knack that you have, you will forget that you have them in the first place. So just put them on a box and organize a garage sale for it. Who knows, others have a use for them now.

Divide and conquer

Cleaning the whole house cannot be accomplish in one day, even if you have a battalion of hands to do it for you. Try to schedule the cleaning day by day so that everything can be logically done. Three to five days will suffice depending on the number of helpers and the size of the house.

Ah Yes! The house is a mess…again! Why do I even bother attempting the impossible? I’ll tell you why I do it. For one thing, I don’t like living in a mess. Another reason is that People tend to show up unexpectedly.

That last reason alone is enough to get me to make sure that the path to the bathroom is cleared of rubble and that the bathroom itself is clean with smells of Pine.

If your house is a mess… again, here are ten (10) house cleaning tips to help you out.

1. Make a house cleaning schedule.

2. Survey each room in your home, look for the trouble spots and decide on how you’re going to get them cleaned up. Here you can decide what tools you’ll need, what can be thrown away or better yet, who you can assign the task to.

3. Get help. Rome was not built in a day and I’m certain it wasn’t built by one Roman. If there are others living and breathing in the house with you, get them to help.

4. Gather your cleaning supplies. A big time waster and distraction when cleaning is running up and down getting a broom or cleaners or whatever you need to complete the task that you’re doing. So before you get started make sure you have what you need.

5. Use natural cleaning products. House Cleaning is not just about cleanliness, it’s also about safety in the home. Using natural cleaning products can protect you and your family from the harmful elements of synthetic cleaning products.

6. Get clutter free. Hey, I’m sure you’ve got those stacks of old magazines somewhere in the house. They’re gathering dust because there is one article about child rearing that you need to read or a recipe that you have to clip. Or is your linen closet a mess because you refuse to throw out old sheets and cases.

7. When you are about to embark on a housecleaning task, do yourself a favor and turn down the ringer on your phones. Phone conversation can cause you to forget the task at hand.

8. Get housecleaning music. Don’t choose those slow love songs. Get some lively music, stuff that gets you in the cleaning mood (if such a mood exists).

9. Make a housecleaning maintenance plan for each room of the house.

10. Hire a house cleaning service. At least once a year treat yourself. Hire professionals to do the house cleaning for you. What do you think about making an appointment for a day in December, somewhere in the teens of the month?

Well you now have ten (10) house cleaning tips to get you started. Happy Housecleaning!

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