The flooring in a hotel, restaurant, office, etc. can make or break guests’ and employees’ experiences in that space. If people don’t feel comfortable in your building — or they encounter a scratch, snag, or tear in the flooring — their experience turns sour, and they may not return.
Don’t worry. Maintaining the carpet in your commercial building doesn’t have to be difficult. Follow these four easy tips to learn how to maintain your commercial flooring and keep your guests, employees, and other visitors comfortable and happy throughout their entire stay.
Deep Clean Regularly.
Just like you need to service your car regularly to keep it running smoothly, the same is true for carpet. Regularly deep-cleaning commercial carpet helps ensure it stays in top condition as the weather changes, traffic fluctuates, and spills and snags inevitably surface.
Natural fiber rugs and carpet should only be cleaned with a dry extraction cleaner. If your commercial carpet is all-natural sisal or wool, you’ll need a dry carpet cleaner to freshen up your space and leave your commercial carpets sparkling clean.
Use Doormats to Your Advantage.
Outdoor weather is unpredictable, so you never know what visitors will drag into your space. Use a doormat in the entryway to help capture dirt, snow, water, and any other miscellaneous elements trying to find their way indoors on the bottom of customers’ shoes.
To get rid of even more debris before entry, make sure the outside of your property is clear of mud, dirt, leaves, and trash. You may also choose to place a doormat or runner rug in high-traffic places, like in the employee break room, near the sink and coffee pot. The right carpet or rug will prevent damage to your hard floors, saving thousands in the long run.
Don’t Forget to Vacuum (and Sweep!)
Ground-in dirt and debris will reduce the beauty and lifespan of your carpeting by abrading the carpet’s fibers and leaving visible wear and tear from heavy traffic and dirty feet. Sweeping and vacuuming daily helps pick up smaller pieces of dirt, dust, sand, and the like, to keep them from forming stains or damaging the natural fibers of your carpeting.
Any loose dirt on your commercial carpet should be vacuumed with a strong brush-suction vacuum. Do not use the beater bar on natural-fiber rugs, like sisal, jute, or wool. You may not always be able to see dirt and debris, but regular, frequent vacuuming — even when the carpet appears “clean” — will increase its lifespan by preventing soil build-up and potential stains.
See a Spill? Clean it up ASAP.
Life is messy — and spills happen. Don’t worry! Stay on top of potential stains by quickly and efficiently cleaning up any spills you see on your commercial carpet. For dry spills — like powders, dust, and dirt — vacuum the excess material off your carpet, or scrape it off with the blunt edge of a spoon, if necessary. Work from the outer edge of the carpet toward the center.
For wet spills — like milk, wine, or mud — you’ll want to extract the material, and then scrape up the excess. Add cold water to the spill and blot the area, pressing downward. Never rub in a circular motion, as this can cause the stain to spread and set. If the spill was created by a hot substance, like coffee, add hot water to the area after blotting it with cold water.
Continue blotting until most or all of the substance has disappeared; then, place a stack of clean towels on top of the area, and place a weight on top of the towels overnight. This ensures the stain lifts into the towels, instead of setting into the carpet, until you return the next day.
Customers Care About Clean Commercial Carpet
Whether you’ve just installed a beautiful new carpet in your commercial building, or you’ve recently recognized the need for regular cleaning and maintenance, the tips and tricks above will help you keep your commercial carpet in tip-top shape all year long.