Home Maintenance: How to Protect Your Carpets from Fading

Carpets can enhance the appeal of your home by concealing unattractive flooring. Moreover, they can protect expensive and beautiful floors from premature degradation due to exposure to high traffic and unfavourable climatic conditions. Unfortunately, the carpets tend to take abuse from heavy usage. If they are not properly maintained, they will become degraded, necessitating expensive replacement. In most cases, the fibres will lose their original colour, and the appeal of the carpets will decline. If you are concerned about carpet fading in your home, you should consider using these practical tips to prevent this deterioration.

Limit Sun Exposure Carpets lose their vibrant colours quickly due to continued exposure to the sun. The fading process can be attributed to the harmful ultraviolet rays which have a bleaching effect on some fibres. If you do not protect the carpet from the radiation, your mats will experience this damage, even if you perform regular maintenance. There are different options for preventing fading due to sun exposure. The most convenient is installing a UV-blocking film over your glass windows. This protective product will filter out the radiation. Alternatively, you can place solar shades over your windows or keep your drapes or curtains closed during the day. 

Clean off Spills The carpet can lose its original appeal due to contact with incompatible or harmful spills. If a strange liquid is poured on the carpet fabric, it could cause the fibres to lose their original colours. Also, some spills tend to leave stains, necessitating heavier and prolonged washing. This excess handling can contribute to accelerated carpet fading. Fortunately, you can avoid this detriment or at least, reduce the effects by cleaning off spills immediately they occur. If you blot out and cleanse the spill before the liquid settles into the carpet pile, you will prevent accidental degradation. If you cannot clean off a stain at home, you should hire a cleaning service as soon as possible.

Choose the Right Detergent Finally, you should choose the right detergent for cleaning your home carpets. There are numerous cleaning products on the market, but they are not homogenous in their intended application, quality and compatibility. If you select the wrong detergent for carpet cleaning, you will cause premature fading of the fabric. Therefore, you should evaluate the carpet material and choose the most compatible product. Moreover, you should always test the detergent on an inconspicuous patch before using it for cleaning as a precaution. If your carpet is already faded, you should consider carpet dyeing to restore its appeal.

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