We are going to have our 3 year old carpet stretched. We also need to have it professionally shampooed. Which service should we have done first?
Any proper cleaning should not get moisture into the padding. As far as carpet, only natural fibers have a chance of shrinkage (not common), such as wool. With over 10,000 cleanings under my belt, I personally have never come across carpet shrinkage due to cleaning, though I have heard of one case. Almost all wall-to-wall carpet nowadays is synthetic... usually nylon, polyester, or polypropylene. A rippling effect is almost always a result of poor installation, and is worsened by consistent foot traffic and the moving of heavy furniture. I usually recommend for my customers to have the carpet stretched prior to cleaning. Carpet being cleaned first has no effect on how well the carpet will be stretched. However, cleaning a carpet with ripples in it will not provide quite as nice results as opposed to a nicely stretched one. Flat and flush to the cleaner's equipment works best. If done correctly, the repair technician should cut a line of carpet from the baseboard and not just tuck the excess from stretching, otherwise the carpet will begin to ripple again in the future. With heavy rippling a power-stretcher must be used, but a simple knee kicker should work fine for mild cases. Having the cleaning done after allows the technician to clean up the tufts and debris left by the repair tech. Plus, you'll have a fighting chance of getting rid of possible ripple marks that may be left after stretching. I have heard it recommended both ways, but in actuality it's not extremely important which one you choose to do first. I've done it both ways many times and eventually settled toward preferring the carpet to be stretched first. Also, I wouldn't recommend having the carpet shampooed. This will leave an unwanted residue coating your carpet's fibers. It's best to use the hot water extraction method, commonly known as steam cleaning.
Have it shampooed first. The moisture will sometimes (rarely) make the carpeting or padding shrink or expand. Wait at least a week after cleaning to schedule a carpet stretcher.
Without doubt it must be shampooed first as K M has already said. The reason is also the same, that carpets do in fact lose their shape due to shrinking , etc and then when you get it stretched, the stretcher will get it into a perfect rectangle.
This Site Might Help You. RE: Stretch carpet first or shampoo carpet first? We are going to have our 3 year old carpet stretched. We also need to have it professionally shampooed. Which service should we have done first?
