How We Remove Carpet Odors at the Source-Not Just Mask Them

Carpeting can transform an interior that is cold and unwelcoming into one that is warm, comfortable and stylish. Carpeting also reduces heat loss and muffles sounds that used to travel from floor to floor. Yes, in most cases, carpeting is a smart investment. But for all the benefits it provides, it does have 1 unpleasant habit: absorbing and holding onto odors from mold and bacteria, food spills, pet accidents and other sources.

If you go to the big box store, you'll find plenty of off-the-shelf carpet cleaning products that claim to eliminate carpet odors. But all they really do is mask them for a while. At Steve's Carpet Care, we get right down to the source of the unpleasant odor and remove it, leaving your Colorado home fresh-smelling and hygienic.

Why and How Carpeting Traps Odors

Carpets get their soft, agreeable texture from the nature of their fibers, which are typically light and absorbent. While these fibers feel good underfoot, they also have a tendency to absorb spilled liquids, mud, pet accidents and a variety of airborne particles. If enough moisture is trapped long enough in carpet fibers, it can become home to bacteria, mold and mildew that give off very stale, unpleasant odors.

Unless you take a comprehensive approach to odor removal, the cause of the unpleasant smells will reassert itself once the temporary fix wears off. That is why at Steve's we use a truck-mounted steam cleaning machine that scours the carpet fibers right down to the base, removing everything in its path and using minimal water to do so. But before we get into the details of how our system works, let's address another question we get all the time.

What About Carpet Deodorizers? Won't They Remove Carpet Odors?

These are questions we hear all the time when talking to clients about deodorizing their carpets. And while they are certainly free to use whatever method they determine to be best for them, it needs to be said that off-the-shelf carpet deodorizers come with some significant downsides, including:

Respiratory irritation

Most reatail spray "freshness" products are composed of a chemical stew designed to mask the offending odor. These, in addition to synthetic fragrances, are known to create respiratory irritation in some people. Even a basically healthy person may start coughing and wheezing in the wake of applying scented aerosols.

Skin rashes

Some of the chemicals found in carpet deodorizers are also known to act as skin irritants, causing allergic reactions that may take the form of redness or swelling, or both. If you find that you or someone else in the house is experiencing skin rashes after using a carpet deodorizer, there is a pretty good chance the deodorizer is the culprit.

Dangers to your cats or dogs

Sometimes, pets will come into a portion of carpeting where deodorizer has been applied. After walking across the area or lying down on it, they may start to clean themselves and end up ingesting those same chemicals that cause skin rashes and respiratory irritation. Not good. If your pet starts vomiting or develops diarrhea in the wake of using a carpet deodorizer, you should probably take them to the vet to ensure their bout with deodorizer poisoning is not too serious.

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

Many spray and aerosol products contain volatile organic compounds. VOCs are considered organic because they contain carbon and volatile because of their ability to easily transform into a gaseous state. VOCs rising from a spray product may contribute to poor air quality in the home and can pose health issues.

How We Remove Carpet Odors at the Source

At Steve's, our truck-mounted steam cleaning power scours your carpeting right down to the pile and does not leave behind water that could become home to new colonies of bacteria or mold. Our carpet cleaning system is low-impact but high-effectiveness, rooting out and eliminating odor-causing materials and then removing them to our truck for later disposal.

Compared to some commercially available carpet cleaners, our steam cleaning system does not bleach the color from your carpets, damage the fibers or shorten the life of your carpeting. Nor does it cause your carpets to become warped or misshapen or necessitate carpet repair. Our process is also environmentally friendly, energy efficient, and won't leave behind irritants that could cause respiratory distress or any of the other problems mentioned above.

How to Prevent Future Odors

Once we have removed the offending odors at the source, the challenge for the homeowner then becomes how to prevent future odors from taking hold. Here are a few tips that should help:

• Set up a regular vacuuming schedule: Some odor-causing materials can be removed by vacuuming. But the longer you wait to vacuum, the more embedded and harder to remove they get. We recommend vacuuming at least once a week.


• Make sure to clean up spills immediately: If at all possible, you should address spills as soon as they happen. This could potentially prevent foul odors from setting in.


• Make use of area rugs and mats: Placing area rugs and mats in high-use areas can prevent spills from reaching the carpet below. Just make sure to engage in rug cleaning from time to time to remove any odor-causing materials from the rugs.


• Schedule regular cleaning of your carpets by Steve's: Having the pros from Steve's come in once or twice a year will extend the life of your carpeting and ensure it always smells fresh and hygienic.

Carpet odors are not something you have to put up with. Every carpet odor has a source, and the way to rid yourself of unpleasant odors is to address that source. That's what we do at Steve's Carpet Care. Our truck-mounted steam cleaning machine doesn't mask odors, it scours your carpeting right down to the pile and removes bacteria, mold, pet urine, spilled drinks, and anything else lurking there. As a result, your carpeting will smell fresh and clean, and without the dangers posed by off-the-shelf carpet deodorizers.

Or, Just Call Steve's Carpet Care

Until and unless you remove the source of the odor in your carpet, it will continue to come back to haunt you like a bad decision. Fortunately, there is a way to dig down and remove the source of carpet odors. It's the truck-mounted steam cleaning machine from Steve's Carpet Care. We're the gold standard of carpet cleaning companies.