Carpet, Upholstery & Mattress Cleaning
Hot water extraction for carpets, sofas and mattresses.
Carpet, upholstery and mattress cleaning, all done with hot water extraction. The machine puts a cleaning solution into the pile under pressure and pulls it straight back out, bringing the dirt with it. That is the part a vacuum cannot reach, because a lot of what makes a carpet look tired is sitting below the surface, not on top of it.
We clean carpets on their own and we clean them as part of a bigger job. Plenty of them are booked alongside an end of tenancy clean. We are already in the property with the kit and the water on, so adding the carpets to that visit means we are not travelling out and setting up a second time. Tell us the rooms, the stairs and roughly what state the carpet is in and we can tell you what to expect before we turn up.
One honest point before you book. Not every stain comes out. Old pet accidents, bleach marks, dye transfer from a cheap rug and spills that somebody has already scrubbed hard will often lift a long way and still leave a shadow. We say that up front, because finding it out on the day is worse. Agnes has been cleaning since 2001 and can usually tell which marks will lift and which will not as soon as she sees them.
Who it's for
- Tenants adding the carpets to an end of tenancy clean
- Landlords and agents refreshing a property between tenancies
- Homeowners with a sofa, a mattress or a stair carpet to sort out
How the clean works, and how long it stays damp
We vacuum first. Dry soil comes out dry, and skipping that step turns it to mud. Then the traffic lanes and any marks get pre-treated and left a few minutes to work. The extraction machine goes on room by room after that, and the last stroke over every strip is a dry one, to take back as much water as the machine will give us.
Most carpets are walkable in two or three hours. Fully dry is usually somewhere between four and eight, depending on the pile, the room and the time of year. Thick wool in a cold back bedroom in February takes a lot longer than a short synthetic pile in a warm hallway. Open a window, leave the heating on low and keep shoes off until it has gone. On an empty property between tenancies, none of that is a problem at all.
Wear is not the same thing as dirt, and it helps to know the difference before we start. Heavy traffic lanes, the doorway into a living room and the front edge of each stair tread take nearly all the punishment in a house. On an older carpet the fibre in those places is flattened and worn as well as grey. Cleaning takes the grey out. It will look much better and it will not look new, because the damage is in the fibre itself. We will point out the worn patches before we start, so you know which bits will still look tired at the end.
Sofas, armchairs and other upholstery
Upholstery is counted by the seat. A two-seater is two seats, a three-seater is three, an armchair is one, and the cushions, arms and back are included either way. Counting it that way keeps things simple, and it means you can have the sofa done and leave the armchair, or do the armchair and leave the sofa.
We check the fabric before anything gets wet. Most cotton and synthetic covers take hot water extraction well. Some do not. Viscose, a few silks and some loose weaves will mark or shrink, and where we see a label or a fabric we are not happy to soak, we will say so and either clean it a drier way or leave it. Most calls are about a dark throw that has bled into a pale sofa, years of hair and oil on the headrests, or one bad spill on a cushion.
Dining chairs, headboards, fabric footstools and office chairs all get cleaned the same way. If you are not sure whether something can be done at all, send us a photo of the piece and a photo of the label underneath it.
Mattresses
A mattress gets slept on for years and cleaned almost never. There are a few things that usually prompt somebody to book one. Allergies, and the dust mite population that builds up in a mattress nobody has ever touched. A stain, usually a child, a pet or a spell of illness. A furnished let, where the next tenant is about to be handed somebody else's bed and the agent wants it clean first. Or a house going on the market, where a clean mattress in the spare room is one less thing for a buyer to look twice at.
We clean the top face and the sides, treat the marks that will respond, extract, then go back over it with a dry pass so it comes out damp instead of wet. Give it several hours uncovered with a window open before you make the bed up. If the mattress turns, mention it when you book and we will do both faces. Afterwards, a washable protector catches most of what would otherwise end up in the mattress.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a carpet take to dry?
Walkable in two or three hours, dry in four to eight. Wool and thick piles hold more water than short synthetic ones, and a cold room in winter is slower than a warm hallway in June. We finish every strip with a dry pass to pull the water back out, so the carpet is left damp and not soaked. Keep a window open and the heating on low and it will go faster.
Will you get the stain out?
Sometimes. Food, drink, mud and general traffic grime nearly always come out. Red wine, curry, old pet accidents, bleach and dye transfer are a gamble, and anything that has already been scrubbed hard has usually been pushed into the backing. We treat what we can and we say what we think before we start. If we do not believe a mark will shift, you will hear that from us before you book, not after we have finished.
Can you do the carpets at the same time as an end of tenancy clean?
Yes, and it is the sensible way to do it. It is one visit instead of two, so we are not travelling out and setting the kit up a second time. Ask for it when you book the clean, not on the day, because it changes how long we need in the property. You get a dated receipt and dated photographs showing how the carpets were left.
Do I need to move the furniture?
Move the small things if you can, and leave the rest to us. We will shift light furniture that is safe to move and put it back on protectors while the carpet dries. We do not move beds with storage in them, full wardrobes, pianos or anything that is likely to break, and we will not clean under something that cannot be moved. Empty properties are straightforward and need nothing from you.
Can you get rid of a pet smell?
Usually, but it depends how far it has gone. Odour sitting in the carpet and the top of the underlay responds well to treatment. Where a dog or cat has repeatedly gone in the same corner and it has reached the underlay or the floorboards, cleaning the carpet will reduce the smell and not finish it, and the fix is new underlay. Pull the carpet back at a corner and look at the underlay. If it is stained through, the smell is in there, and cleaning the top will only take the edge off.
What do you need to know from me for upholstery and mattresses?
Upholstery goes by the seat, so tell us the seat count and the type of fabric when you enquire. For a mattress we need the size, and whether you want both faces done. For carpets, list the rooms and say whether the stairs are included. Give us that over the phone or by email and we will confirm it all back to you before anything is booked.