Buying a new carpet is an exciting experience for homeowners. Those spotless, plush fibers are just as refreshing to look at as they are to walk on. But if this is your first time having a new carpet you may be surprised to find just how much it sheds in the weeks following its installation. Don't worry; this is perfectly normal, but it does require a little bit of extra cleaning to get the shedding to stop. Here's what you can do to help:
1. Buy a vacuum that can handle the job.
A vacuum cleaner with anything less than 80 cubic feet of air per minute (cfm) won't be able to pick up lose fibers properly. This is not an area you should sacrifice quality for a lower price if you own a carpet! Get yourself a nice, strong vacuum to make caring for your carpet as painless as possible.
2. Vacuum. Check. Repeat.
You'll need to meticulously go over your floor at least twice before you place your furniture on it, emptying the vacuum and unclogging it in between runs. Remember, slow and steady wins the race here. Going too fast could leave you finding those little carpet hairs popping up later on.
3. Place your furniture back where it belongs.
When deciding where to put each piece of furniture consider how easy or difficult you would like the vacuuming process to be in the future. This is important because in the first few months of having your carpet you will need to vacuum frequently - at least once a day - to make sure all the loose fibers are pulled up. You'll see them appear more and more as people continue to walk on the carpet, though this won't last forever. Make your job easier by arranging your furniture in such a way that leaves plenty of room for the vacuum to get around.
4. Vacuum diligently.
As we said in number 3, you will need to vacuum at least once a day while your carpet is still brand new to your home. This will police up any fibers that you may miss on your initial run. The better you are about doing this now, the less work you will have to do later!
5. Keep track of how long your carpet has been shedding.
It's perfectly normal for new carpeting to shed for 2-4 months. After that, if you've done your part with the vacuuming, the loose carpet fibers should be pretty much taken care of. If, however, you continue to see excessive amounts of shedding after the first few months you ought to call the carpet manufacturer. No high-quality carpet should give you that much trouble!
Check in on Thursday for our vacuum-buying guide to help you get the job done!