If you don’t yet have carpet stain protection and you’re wondering whether it’s really worth the cost, this article is for you. We’re going to take an in-depth look at all the relevant factors so you can make an informed decision that’s right for both you and your carpeting. As time-served, carpet cleaning professionals, we have a great deal of firsthand experience - as far as the effectiveness of carpet stain protection is concerned - and it is our distinct pleasure to share this experience with you now.
Our Carpet Cleaning Arvada Team Examine the Pros and Cons of Carpet Stain Protection
Quality carpeting is a major purchase as far as the majority of homeowners are concerned, so it’s hardly surprising that most of us are keen to learn about ways in which we can protect our investment. But does carpet stain protection really work and, if so, is it worth the cost?
If you are looking for a short answer so you can get on with the rest of your daily tasks, we would say that, yes, in most cases carpet stain protection is a worthwhile investment. However, there are some provisos we would like to add, for those of you who have a little more time to investigate the pros and cons of carpet stain protection.
The Cons
- It Doesn’t Always Work – While quality stain protection solutions are very effective at preventing staining from a wide variety of sources, there are some substances they simply cannot protect your carpet against. If, for example, you were to spill engine oil on your newly protected carpeting, you are likely to be disappointed in the protection that even the best stain protection products offer.
- It’s Not a Permanent Solution – Most carpet stain protection products are designed to make your carpeting more hydrophobic. In other words, they increase the ability of the individual carpet fibers to repel water. However, over time, this ability is degraded by regular vacuuming and professional steam cleaning. As you cannot avoid vacuuming and cleaning your carpeting if you want to keep your house neat and tidy, the best solution is to reapply the stain protection every now and then. Some carpet cleaning companies offer to apply stain protection as an optional extra that you can choose when booking their cleaning services so it’s always worth asking if they can help in this regard.
- It Can Be Expensive – Applying stain protection on a regular basis can be a costly undertaking, especially if you choose the most expensive products on the market today. Exactly how much it costs will depend largely on the stain protector you choose and on whether you apply it yourself or pay a team of professionals to do it for you.
It’s more normal to start with the pros, we know, but we’re going to investigate the cons first: all the reasons that stain protection may not be effective or worth the cost:
These are the main reasons that some people are not very enthusiastic about investing in carpet stain protection for the home. However, there are many other people who swear by it, for the reasons that we discuss in the next section.
The Pros
Carpet stain protection, when applied properly and on a regular basis, has a number of benefits to recommend it:
- Very Effective at Preventing Certain Types of Stains – Scotchgard, along with most other well-known stain protectors, is very effective at repelling water-based liquids, which means it is very effective at preventing the stains that such liquids might otherwise leave behind when spilled on your domestic carpeting. Instead of soaking into the fibers, water-based liquids will just pool on the surface after an application of stain protector, ready for you to blot or mop them up. If you find yourself paying for carpet cleaning services more than once a year, because of all the stains that your carpet seems to attract, investing in a quality stain protector is definitely well worth considering. Families with young children may derive particular benefit from regular applications of a high-quality carpet stain protection product
- Works on Most Textiles, Fabrics and Fibers – All good stain protectors are designed to work on the majority of commonly encountered textiles, fabrics and fibers around the home. Whether you have polyester, nylon or wool carpeting, you should be able to apply a commercial stain protector to it without any issues.
- Cheaper Than Replacing Your Carpets – Although quality stain protector represents a significant investment itself, it is still many times less expensive than your carpets. Paying to have a proven formula applied to your carpets every year or so will help you avoid having to replace them prematurely.
These are some of the most frequently cited reasons for applying stain protection, in informal surveys carried out by carpet cleaning industry professionals. Whether stain protection is a good investment for you personally is something we are going to discuss in the final section below.
The Best Option for You
By considering all of the above-mentioned pros and cons carefully, you will be able to determine whether carpet stain protection is a good investment for you or not. In our expert opinion, if you vacuum your carpets a couple of times a week and pay for professional carpet shampooing and cleaning services every year, you will probably want to renew your stain protection annually too. This combination of measures will help to ensure that your carpeting remains in excellent condition for as long as possible. However, there is one proviso: if you have paid for stain-proof carpeting to be installed in your home, there may be little point in paying extra for additional protection.
If you would like to learn more about this topic or you are interested in our carpet cleaning services in Arvada, please feel free to get in touch with us by phone or email. We will be very happy to provide you with all the information you need, including a firm quotation for whichever of our services you may require.