When it comes to maintaining your carpet, one of the most critical areas of focus is the traffic area. If ground- in soil is not removed on a regular basis, the traffic areas will begin to wear excessively. The dirt is extremely abrasive against the fibers of the carpet as you walk back and forth on it. The second area of focus, of course, is spot removal. You must react to "danger" spots immediately. Red wine, red beverages, urine, blood, etc. can cause a permanent stain if not treated immediately. Listed below are the steps that you must take to properly maintain your carpeting.

WARNING:
By not maintaining your carpeting properly, you could experience one or more of the following:

• Warranty voided
• Rapid resoiling
• Damage to fibers in traffic areas
• Unremovable spots
• Short life of carpet

WARRANTY
Copies of specific warranties on your carpet purchase are available for you upon request. Stain resist warranties can vary from 5 to 20 years. All stain resist warranties require regular cleaning and immediate spot removal.

VACUUMING
Vacuum your carpet often. Once or twice a week at least. Vacuuming removes the sharp soil that can cut and slice the fiber, causing premature wear. Much of this soil is not visible to the eye Vacuum before the carpet looks soiled. Remove any loose particles such as food, leaves, pieces of crayon, bugs, etc. as these items can cause a spot on the carpet.

PROFESSIONAL CLEANING
As a general rule, professional cleaning, by a professional, certified firm, should take place about once a year. Many stain resist warranties require professional cleaning every 2 years. Have your carpeting cleaned by a professional at least every 12 months. If you have extremely heavy traffic areas, clean more often. Rule of thumb: If there is any visible soil whatsoever on the carpet, it is time to be cleaned. Proper professional cleansing will not leave a sticky residue behind, and can be done as many times per year as needed. Professional cleaning removes the damaging soil from the traffic areas that vacuuming has not been able to remove.

WARNING: Uninformed carpet cleaners may void the warranty. Be very selective which company you hire.

Most manufacturers recommend hot water extraction applied with a truck-mounted cleaning machine, by a trained professional.

"We recommend that carpet be professionally cleaned at least every 12 months."
"To maintain texture retention warranties, we recommend carpet be professionally cleaned with hot water extraction every 18 to 24 months"
- DuPont Stainmaster

SPOT REMOVAL AND INTERIM CLEANING
Immediate spot removal is the key to a clean carpet. Great care also must be taken in how spot cleaning is performed. When a carpet is new, or has sufficient protector on it, plain tap water will remove many spots. However, for those spots that will not remove easily with water, you must use a spot cleaner. Select a spot cleaner that is recommended by your carpet retailer or trained, certified, professional cleaner. Most spot removers that are purchased over the counter leave too much soap residue and can cause yellowing. Avoid using foam carpet cleaners or any product that is not made specifically for carpet.

Apply spot cleaner sparingly to white terry cloth and gently massage spot, causing it to transfer into the cloth. Never pour cleaner directly on carpet. If the product that you are using seems to cause the spot to resoil over a few weeks period, discontinue use. Any spot that you are unable to remove, and for pet urine or feces, call your professional cleaner immediately.

PROTECTIVE COATINGS
Residential carpets are treated with stain resist properties and soil resistors. The soil resistor part is known as DuPont Teflon or 3M Scotchgard. After a period of 2-3 years, much of the soil-resistor wears off, depending on the traffic. At that point, you should consider having a professional carpet cleaner re-apply the treatment after professional cleaning. The soil-resistor will help the soil slide off the carpet easier when vacuuming, spots will be easier to remove, and professional cleaning will be more effective the next time it is cleaned.