by Andrew Rutherford, Go Cleaners London
If you have bare wooden or stone stairs, you may have received advice from friends or relatives to cover those up with a comfy rug. What they would frequently fail to mention, however, is how tedious it is to actually maintain their inviting appearance. To save you much hassle and lots of hours musing on whether you should get new friends, we simplified the cleaning process in 4 easy-to-follow steps. But why should you bother cleaning your carpet-covered stairs at all?
A Few Reasons to Clean Your Carpeted Staircase
A well-maintained carpeted staircase is full of vibrant colors that add character to your home. Its soft and cosy surface, on the other hand, muffles the loud stepping sounds and makes it much safer to use. With time, however, dirt and dust will gradually build up on its fuzzy surface. The particles will then damage the carpet’s fibres, stimulate the growth of mould and harmful bacteria, and make your carpet simply unpleasant to look at. To avoid all of this, we recommend cleaning your staircase once every few months or once a week if it “enjoys” heavy traffic. Remember, regular carpet maintenance prolongs its life and improves the indoor air quality.
Revive Your Carpeted Staircase in 4 Easy Steps
Step 1: Choose a suitable vacuum cleaner for the job.
Unfortunately, standard vacuum cleaners are not suitable for cleaning staircases as they are quite heavy and can all too easily tumble down the stairs. Instead, the specialists in carpet cleaning from Go Cleaners London recommend getting a canister-shaped or cordless model, which are more compact and weigh significantly less. Make sure that these also come with useful attachments, for instance a small nozzle or a brush roller.
Step 2: Clear the area of all objects and large debris.
Before getting your vacuum cleaner anywhere near your staircase, you’ll have to remove everything that can obstruct its path. This includes flowerpots, vases, old newspapers, and shoes, as well as larger pieces of dirt or gravel that may clog or damage your machine. And while you’re at it, you can also consider giving the handrails or stair spindles a good polish.
Step 3: Pick up a broom and loosen up ingrained dirt.
Staircases usually come with many crevices and corners that are often filled with all sorts of debris. A stiff broom or a brush roller attachment are great tools that you can use to treat the edges and base of your carpeted stairs. To do so, simply brush or vacuum each step several times to loosen up dirt, dust bunnies, or pet hair that may have accumulated on your carpet’s surface. Remember to sweep from the topmost stair downwards so that all debris can fall on the bottom floor, where you can then easily collect them with a dustpan or vacuum them away.
Step 4: Grab your vacuum cleaner and start cleaning.
To vacuum your carpet, you should once more start from the uppermost stair and gradually work your way down. Start by attaching a tiny nozzle and run it several times along your carpet’s edges and stair corners, where dust usually tends to gather the most. For better results, you can then switch to your standard beater brush and give your stairs another “sweep,” thoroughly vacuuming both the horizontal and vertical surfaces of your stairs with up-and-down motions.
Step 5 (Optional): Give your staircase a good bath.
If, despite all your efforts, your carpeted stairs still look like they’ve seen better days, there is one more thing that you can do to restore their neat appearance. To this end, you can either purchase a carpet shampoo or use any of the countless online DIY recipes to make your own.
Аpply the mixture by hand using a scrub brush until a light foam is produced. This method is especially useful for dealing with stubborn spots, but avoid prolonged scrubbing as this may cause discoloration. Finally, use a soft towel to absorb as much liquid as you can and give your staircase another vacuum clean once the carpet has fully dried out (usually within 12 hours).
About the Author: Andrew Rutherford loves sharing cleaning tips and tricks to help people go through their chores faster and more efficiently. He is part of Go Cleaners London, a company providing a wide range of cleaning services for domestic and commercial properties.
