How to Increase the Lifespan of the Carpet on Your Stairs
In addition to protecting your feet from the cold and providing comfort, a carpeted staircase helps absorb the noises from the steps in order to have a quiet environment between the floors of a house. However, because the stairs in a house are a high-traffic area that often gets trampled, the carpet on a staircase can quickly get damaged. Here are our tips for increasing the lifespan of the carpet on your stairs.
Clean it regularly and properly
- A removable carpet
If you have a removable carpet on your stairs – that is, one that can be moved around on your stairs – don’t hesitate to take it completely off the staircase from time to time, and at least once a month, to dust it and air it out completely. To do this, hang it on a clothesline outside your house and beat it vigorously with a solid object. Then, let it air out to eliminate any bad smells. After the natural dusting in the open air, you can place your carpet on the ground and vacuum it with a powerful vacuum cleaner across its entire length and on both sides before putting it back.
- A non-removable carpet
If your carpet is entirely integrated into your stairs or if it’s formed like a fitted carpet and you can’t remove it, you can use a powerful vacuum cleaner and vacuum each step, starting at the bottom of the staircase. That way, you move through the cleaning by always standing on an already-vacuumed step. If you do the opposite and start at the top of the staircase, you’ll drive the dirt into the carpet as you walk. Consider also vacuuming the risers of your staircase.
As soon as you notice that the carpet on your stairs is drab, dusty, or dirty because of your movements on it, vacuum and dust it. The best way to increase the lifespan of the carpet on your staircase is – naturally – to clean it regularly and as soon as it needs it.
Use the right type of vacuum cleaner
Vacuuming a carpet on a staircase is no easy task. To avoid breaking your back and tiring yourself out trying to pick up every last hair, you can equip yourself with specific accessories, such as an air-powered beater brush that can be added to your vacuum cleaner. This turbo-brush accessory, which is available on many vacuum cleaner models, attaches to the end of your vacuum cleaner hose by changing its initial tip and makes it possible to brush the carpet on your stairs quickly and efficiently. This turbo nozzle or air-powered beater brush also helps keep the carpets on the floor clean. It removes and sucks up hair, fluff, fine dust, and any type of slightly embedded dirt without making vacuuming a painstaking chore for you.
Clean the railings
Often, and as in every part of the house, dirt has a way of getting itself lodged where it’s least accessible for us. On a staircase, it gets stuck between the railing and the steps, but also in the corners of the railing, especially if it has patterns that create little hollows. If your staircase has a railing, whether it’s wooden or metal, you should clean it at the same time as the carpet on your stairs to increase the lifespan of your carpet. The dust on the railings will therefore stop falling to the ground and onto your carpet. To do this, use a clean, soft, damp cloth and add a few drops of a dust-removing product that respects the nature of the material of the railing. Move the cloth over every part of the railing, in all the corners, then dry everything with another soft, dry cloth. Your railing will be like new, and it will make your carpet and your whole staircase shine!
