None of us appreciate having stained carpets at home. When it comes to work though, it is easy to look the other way because you don’t own either the carpet or the space. But stains in the office carpet still matter. They make a space look run down and not well cared for. Avoiding stains is the best way to prevent such a nasty look.
The key to avoiding stains is a two-fold strategy that involves:
- Understanding the most common substances that lead to office carpet stains; and
- Knowing how to deal with spills that could ultimately become stains.
Sometimes you do everything within your power to avoid nasty stains but still end up with one or two. That is when it’s time to call in a professional business cleaning service. Commercial cleaners have the equipment and cleaning solutions to get out most stains.
Common Substances That Leave Stains
If you had to guess the one substance that causes most office carpet stains, what would it be? Coffee and tea are at the top of the list. Every office environment has its coffee and tea drinkers. And with so many cups of the two beverages floating around the space, people are bound to spill.
Here are some other common items guilty of staining our office carpets:
- Certain Types of Foods – Certain types of foods can stain just as easily as coffee and tea. Think berries, jams, and condiments like mustard and ketchup. Whether eating is confined to the break room or employees are allowed to eat at their desks, food spills are inevitable.
- Ink and Toner – If your office utilizes a copy machine or printer, the chances are you will have employees dealing with ink cartridges and powdered toner. Both substances are tough to get out of office carpets, especially if they linger long enough to get ground in by foot traffic.
- Chemicals – Although not as common, chemical stains are also a reality in most offices. Everything from cleaning chemicals to lubricants and polishes can leave nasty stains when spilled on carpets.
Did you know that water can also leave a stain in its wake? It is actually not the water itself that does the trick, it’s one of two other things. First are minerals in the water. Especially hard water spilled on carpets can leave mineral stains behind as it evaporates.
The other possibility is that the water lifts the colors in the carpet’s fibers. Those lifted colors then become discolored, as it were. They look like a stain when the water evaporates.
Blot Don’t Rub
Knowing what types of things are likely to stain your office carpets gives you a starting point for avoiding stains. But spills will still happen. Then what? The easiest and most effective thing you can do to prevent spills from leaving stains behind is to clean them up properly. The number one rule for doing so is to blot rather than rub.
Blotting involves taking a highly absorbent cloth or paper towel, placing it over the spilled substance, and gently dabbing. Blotting allows you to soak up the substance without pushing it deeply into the carpet fibers. On the other hand, pushing the substance into the carpet is exactly what you’re doing when you rub. Don’t do it.
All Pro Cleaning Systems can handle all the surfaces in your office, even carpets. So if you have been doing your best to avoid nasty stains but still have one or two, don’t hesitate to contact us. We can manage your carpets and design a regular cleaning schedule that fits your budget.
