Carpets bring out the luxurious side of our homes. They are great additions to our interior decorations, especially when they complement well with the theme and design of our home. The problem is that cleaning carpets can be a burden because of how time-consuming and labor intensive it is. And doing it yourself poses a threat of doing some damage to your carpet. For this reason, asking the help of a professional carpet cleaner is highly recommended. With so much carpet cleaning equipment available in your neighborhood, it is good that you equip yourself with some basic knowledge on the carpet cleaning methods.

Carpet cleaning is commonly classified into five methods. They include shampooing, dry foam, bonnet, dry powder and hot water extraction. Shampooing involves scrubbing your carpet after applying a foaming solution which draws in dirt and soil. This solution will dry after a few hours, and only then can the foam residues containing the dirt can be vacuumed to make the carpet clean again.

The dry foam cleaning method uses the same process; the only difference is that this one literally uses dry foam. Unlike the former which gets the carpet wet a lot, this one uses little or no water at all, speeding up the drying time for it to get vacuumed. Both these methods just clean the surface of the carpet, leaving the dirt that's burrowed deep in it untouched. It is for this reason they are considered poor methods of cleaning.

The bonnet method is a better way of cleaning carpets rather than shampoo and dry foam. It is better in the sense that it uses little or no moisture which allows for quicker drying times. The cleaning solution is sprayed into mist form over the carpet, after which an absorbent pad attached to a rotary brush is driven onto it for cleaning. Once the absorbent pad is dirty, it just gets rinsed or changed, and then the cleaning process is done over and over until the carpet is clean.

With the dry powder method, it is literally using a dry powder containing cleaning chemicals and ingredients which is sprinkled generously all over the carpet. The process of brushing the carpet also applies to this method in order to make the powder attract all the dirt and soil accumulated in the surface. After drying at a very impressive rate, vacuuming will then take place to achieve the desired cleanliness of the carpet.

The problem with this method is that you need to carefully vacuum every trace of cleaning powder that is visible in the carpet. This is because these granules can easily damage and stain your carpet when left over time, not to mention the way it can affect your air quality at home.

With the hot water extraction method, you are literally extracting stubborn dirt and soil from your carpet as hot water and cleaning agents are combined. They are sprayed into your carpet at high pressure and at the same time, a powerful vacuum sucks all the solution that contains all the dirt and grime from your carpet.

This is the most recommended method of carpet cleaning as it enables your carpet to be deeply cleaned, unlike the other methods which only clean the surface. You'll find almost every carpet cleaner establishments are urging their customers to use this method.

It is essential to be able to learn these carpet cleaning methods that are commonly used. With so many carpet cleaning equipment available in the market, it is good that you have an understanding how they work and clean your carpet. This will also help you in making a decision whether to clean your carpet yourself or to get a professional carpet cleaner to get the job done effectively.