Battling Against Commercial Odors (and Winning)
“What is that SMELL?”
At home, unpleasant carpet odors can keep you from relaxing.
At work, they can distract you from your job.
The fact is:
Carpet odors are disruptive.
And without the right cleaning methods, it can be hard to get them to go away.
You may be able to mask them in the short term with air freshener or odor absorbers, but you’ll need a plan of attack to neutralize them at the source.
If you have an unpleasant smell coming from your carpet, here’s how to get rid of it.
Cleaning vs. Sanitizing
The first thing you should understand is that there’s a difference between cleaning and sanitizing your carpet.
Cleaning removes dirt and other materials on the floor’s surface or in its fibers.
Sanitizing kills the bacteria and pathogens that can cause odor or illnesses.
Sometimes, cleaning will do the trick to get rid of an odor. But if that doesn’t work, it’s time to sanitize.
How to Sanitize Your Carpet to Get Rid of Odor
In most cases, it’s a simple, two-step process.
1. Identify the source (if possible).
See if you can determine where the smell is coming from.
Most odors are bacterial — meaning there’s generally some moisture where bacteria is growing.
Look for stains, areas where something may have been spilled recently, or spots where a pet may have had an “accident.”
If you can’t find out where the smell is coming from, you’re not totally out of luck. (More about this in Step 2.)
2. Neutralize the odor.
We recommend either a peroxide-based or a tea-tree-oil-based solution, as these will sanitize the floor and kill the bacteria causing the odor.
In addition to applying the solution, you’ll need to agitate it (i.e., work it into the carpet), use a rinse to remove it from the carpet, then blot the area dry.
But if the smell is due to smoke, or for whatever reason, you can’t find the source of the odor, consider an antimicrobial fogger.
Since most odors are bacteria-based, you could use one of these foggers to neutralize unpleasant odors.
But — if nothing is working or you simply don’t have time to deal with unpleasant carpet odor…
It’s time to call a professional to clean and sanitize the carpet.
If You Call a Professional Carpet Cleaner, Ask This Question
“How long will it take the carpet to dry?”
We recommend working with a commercial carpet cleaner that uses a low-moisture cleaning method with a dry time less than 4 hours.
Here’s why:
As we talked about earlier, odors are caused by bacteria — which thrive in moist environments.
A longer dry time provides more opportunities for microbes to flourish and carry on the odor that caused problems in the first place.
If your carpet has a stubborn odor, or if you’re interested in a free site assessment, we’re here to help.