So you’ve eventually taken the plunge and hired a professional cleaning company to give your carpet the once over. It certainly needed it and it looks just like it did when it was first fitted, rather than one complete with dark stains and sticky patches. Good job! However now the technician is telling you that it isn’t a good idea to enter the room until the carpet is completely dry. The trouble is you’ve got the dog outside who’s itching to come in, the cat’s been locked in the spare room, and the kids are in the breakfast room watching the same video a third time over. What’s more you’ve got friends arriving this evening for dinner. The question on everyone’s lips at this point is… how long should it take to dry your carpet and why is it so important?
First of all let’s address these two questions in reverse – Why is it so important to thoroughly dry a carpet before you move furniture, pets, and family back in?
Aside from getting your feet wet, the answer is because it can ruin all the hard work that the professional carpet cleaner has done. If you try to decamp to the room – pets and all- before your carpet has had time to dry there’s a strong chance that you’ll track dirt into your wet carpet. Wet carpet fibres tend to lock in dirt faster than dry fibres and once locked beneath the surface, dirt, dust and debris becomes much harder to remove with normal vacuuming. In addition moving furniture in when carpet is still wet can dent carpet fibres or worse still leave rust stains which can be very hard to remove.
So now you know this… how long should it take for a carpet to dry?
This can depend on the carpet cleaning company you use. For instance some companies rely on the mercy of the weather. If it’s the middle of summer and baking hot outside, then it’s understandable that if the windows and doors are thrown open and a good circulation of air is present, then your carpet is likely to dry relatively quickly. However if the weather is damp, dull, or raining then opening your windows and doors probably isn’t the best idea. Therefore it’s going to take longer.
Conversely, other companies bring large box fans with them to ensure a speedier drying time, whatever the weather. These aren’t like the household fans most of us use in hot weather. Instead these are powerful industrial fans designed specifically to dry out carpets. In some cases they can dry out your family rug in as little as 20 minutes However in the main, these are used in circumstances where the carpet has experienced a great deal of water – namely a flood.
In reality, carpets should dry in somewhere between 4-6 hours; however, and here’s the caveat – it’s vital that a carpet is dry within 24 hours. This is because after this time your carpet is in danger of attracting mould spores which will not only ruin your carpet, but be harmful to your health. This is why it’s important for companies to deliver sufficient water to remove any staining, etc but not too much as to soak the carpet completely.
Here at Carpet Cleaning Kings, we use the hot water extraction method to ensure a maximum clean with the minimum amount of water. To find out more information or to book a free, no-obligation quote give us a call on 1300 7000 75 today.
