Why Vacuuming is Important

Vacuuming, unfortunately, is usually seen as a chore. It is something that we do because we either have to or because our carpet has become dirty with all that nasty stuff that is being tracked in from the front porch. So the question is: Why is it actually important?

This question, also unfortunately, is often overlooked by many people. When asked, they flounder about trying to find an answer to the question. Usually the result is: the carpet is dirty. It needs to be cleaned. A solid answer. There are, however, many things that are being discarded to come up with a simple answer like that. The logic doesn’t naturally flow to the consequences of not vacuuming on a regular basis.

Here are a few of the reasons why vacuuming is important for any carpet (and for under cushions and in crevices of upholstery as well):

• Not vacuuming can lead to carpet damage – If you don’t vacuum up sand and dirt that collects in your carpet, then continued use of the carpet will grind those particles together with your carpet fibers, leading to damage. Vacuuming, thus, extends the life of your carpet.
• There are invisible dangers in your carpet – Allergens, bacteria, dead skin cells, and many other particles that are often invisible to the naked eye are collecting in your carpet all the time. Vacuuming will remove these. Make no mistake; even if you do not see these things in your carpet they are
• Not vacuuming could lead to higher soil distribution – First we step in the entryway. Then the hallway. Then the stairs. Then the upper hall. Then the bedrooms. By the time we get to the bedrooms, all of the dirt on our shoes is gone. But where did it go? A lot of it went into the entryway, the hallway, and the stairs. When you don’t vacuum on a regular basis, you risk heavily soiling those areas and then re-tracking that dirt from those areas to the cleaner areas of your home.
• Pride – We are all proud of our homes. Not vacuuming has a very real and obvious effect on our carpeting. Nobody wants their friends, family, or visitors to see a dirty carpet when they walk in.

Differences in Vacuums

The type of vacuum that you are using can make an enormous difference in the quality of cleaning that you are doing. First of all: you want a powered vacuum (that you plug in). The manual ones that work with brushes and have no actual suction look nice sometimes and they are relatively inexpensive, but they simply aren’t going to get the job done. You want a powered vacuum with rotating brushes on the bottom to agitate the carpet and one that has good suction in the vacuum. Try a few out. Ask for recommendations. Don’t settle for something because it’s cheap. You know what they say: You get what you pay for.

Recommendations

I usually recommend vacuuming the whole house once every week or once every two weeks, depending on traffic, and vacuuming the high traffic areas (hallways, stairs if you can, entryways) at least twice a week. Cleaning the high traffic areas more will lead to less requirements for the rest of the carpet. Don’t make things complicated for yourself if they don’t have to be.