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The carpets in a company environment take quite a beating, with employees walking back and forth all day and tracking in dirt, moisture and who knows what. Grime is ground deeply into the fibers and shortens the life of the carpet. Any business owner should know the office carpets should be shampooed frequently to save you the cost of replacement.

Shampooing your own carpet at your workplace can be a challenge, but it can be done. Here are the steps:

1. Choose the correct method of shampooing

There are a few ways to approach your carpet cleaning. You can use the steam cleaning method, shampooers that brush liquid cleaner into your carpet and suck it back out with the dirt, or cleaning with dry cleaning chemicals. Steam cleaning can put too much moisture into the carpet and you may want to avoid that. Dry cleaning is sometimes the safest and dries the fastest.

2. Get the equipment you need

You will have to find the right carpet cleaning machine for your project. You will usually opt to rent the machine. You’ll find a selection at groceries and hardware stores. You can also purchase one, but the high-end models can be very expensive.

3. Move furniture out of the area

You will need to either take all the furniture out of the room or move it to one end. Ensure you have all cords out of the way.

4. Vacuum thoroughly

To remove all the loose dirt and hair, vacuum the entire carpet where you will be shampooing.

5. Pre-treat heavy traffic areas

On the heavy traffic areas you will need to treat those spots with a pre-spray of some kind that maximizes the cleaning of these soiled areas. Allow these sprayed spots to dry before actually shampooing.

6. Mix the carpet shampoo

Ensure you read the instructions carefully and mix your shampoo exactly per these instructions. This will make for a more effective cleaning and negate the need to re-do the whole thing.

7. Shampoo the carpet

Start in the area farthest from the door, working your way out of the room. Take a four or five-foot-square space to start with, moving back and forth over the carpet slowly. Don’t let it get too wet. Ensure you get as much of the moisture out as you can before moving on to the next area. Follow the instructions that came with the carpet cleaning machine.

8. Allow carpet to dry

You can return the equipment while the carpet is drying. Open the windows so the fresh air will speed the process of drying. Leaving it overnight is best. Don’t walk on it until it is fully dry or it will pick up more dirt fast.

There you have it! A clean office carpet, ready for a new work day! Remember, it is so much easier to hire a janitorial service to do this all for you, as well as pick up other cleaning and maintenance work that cuts into the hours you could spend working on important business tasks.