It's Friday afternoon and you have company coming over for the weekend.
You have the house looking spectacular, the furniture dusted, and carpet vacuumed, but all you can think about is that big stain in the middle of your living room carpet.
This would be the time to invest in the services of a local carpet cleaner.
When it comes to carpet cleaning, companies offer many options for many different prices.
Knowing what to look for and how much to spend can save you time and money.
The first thing you should know is where to find a good carpet cleaning company.
While the classic yellow pages still do the job, they give far less information than the internet.
The internet can give you prices, customer reviews, services offered, and even special deals or coupons.
Also, you should go with a company that has experience.
Carpet cleaners that have workers with plenty of experience can usually offer better knowledge when cleaning your carpets.
More experience means that they have dealt with more types of stain problems and know how to handle them.
Make sure the company you choose has all the tools required for a professional looking job.
These tools should include furniture pads to protect your furniture, high quality cleaning agents, and the proper cleaner depending on the type of job performed for you.
There are usually five methods available for companies to use when cleaning carpets.
They are shampooing, foam cleaning, dry cleaning, bonnet cleaning, and steam cleaning.
The type of cleaning performed will depend on what you want to spend, and what type of area needs to be cleaned.
Bonnet cleaning is almost always used in commercial cleaning like restaurants or retail stores.
Shampooing is usually the least effective but the most cost efficient.
Steam cleaning is by far the most effective and is usually in the middle of the price range.
The best part about the dry cleaning method is that you don't have to wait for the carpet to dry.
Finally, foam carpet cleaning is a cross between dry cleaning and shampooing, so many companies prefer this method.
The more research you do and the more patience you have, the better the results will be for you in your carpet cleaner endeavor.
Just make sure to read all the reviews available to you on the internet, call around as much as possible, and finally make sure to read all the fine print and regulations before signing any contracts.
If you know what you're getting into before you do, it will result in a much better experience for you.