From muddy paws and spillages to dust and kids’ mess, our carpets go through a lot over time. But is there a way to keep our carpets looking fluffier and fabulous for longer?

Fortunately, experts at leading carpet retailer, Tapi, have revealed top home carpet cleaning hacks to boost the longevity of your flooring and help keep it looking tip top.

So, to tackle the dreary look of a worn carpet, here are the top five tips to keep your carpet looking vibrant, fluffy, and full of life:

Vacuum like a Pro

It may seem obvious, but vacuuming regularly is one of the best ways to keep your carpet looking fresh and fabulous.

Generally, you should vacuum around once a week (or more if there’s an emergency!) but you should aim to vacuum two times a week if you have a softer carpet. Dust can build up in rooms you don’t use too often, so you may need to vacuum more in this instance to keep your carpet fresh.

And to keep your carpet fluffy, always vacuum against the pile, which helps lift the fabric up. If you’re not sure which way your pile goes, lay a piece of paper on your carpet and rest a pencil on top of the paper. Roll the pencil back and forth until you feel the paper moving – the paper moves in the direction the pile goes.

Know Your Carpet

To give your carpet the best care it needs, you need to know the materials you’re working with. Loop pile carpet needs to be cleaned with a suction-only vacuum – meaning no beater brush! Cut pile carpet, on the other hand, will need a beater brush function to clean effectively.

If you’re not a carpet expert just yet and don’t know which one you have, cut pile refers to carpet loops that have been cut, whereas loop pile carpets remain in their natural state.

Keep it Fluffy

After a while, carpets will naturally lose their bounce and begin to look a little flat. But don’t worry, there are things you can do to breathe some life into them.

To really make your carpet super-fluffy, you can refresh it with a bicarbonate of soda and vinegar solution. Just spread bicarbonate of soda over your carpet and work it into the fibres with a stiff brush, before letting it sit overnight. Vacuum the baking soda up in the morning and then fill a spray bottle with equal parts vinegar and cold water. Just spray into the carpet and work with a stiff brush, and your carpet will be as good as new! You can also try moving your furniture around too to help keep your carpet fluffy.

Remove stains ASAP

Spilt something on your carpet? It’s important to act fast on any stains you make. For water soluble stains, such as drinks or mud, blot away the mark with a solution of two pints of water with a quarter of a teaspoon of white vinegar. Start with a clean cloth and gently press the stain, moving from the outside to the inside. Never rub the stain as this causes it to move into the carpet fibres and you risk permanent damage.

For tough stains like blood, coffee and wine, use either a spoonful of ammonia mixed with a pint of water, or use an ammonia-based cleaning product, to get rid of these tougher stains. However, if the carpet is wool or a wool blend, stick to mild detergent and water, as ammonia can damage the fibres. Blot the stain, working from the outside in, and you should see results in a flash.

With any stain, it’s a good idea to test your cleaning product on an unseen area of your carpet before use to make sure it won’t damage or discolour the material. And always avoid using hot water as this can actually make stains worse, and always act fast!

Tackle pet problems

We all love our furry friends, but maybe not what they do to our carpets! If your beloved pet has an accident, the best way to clean it up and remove odour is to apply bicarbonate of soda to the area and let it absorb until the powder starts to dry. Blot away with a clean cloth and then vacuum it away.

And to tackle stubborn pet hair in carpet fibres, one of the most effective ways to do so is to use a window/shower squeegee over your carpet. This will collect hair into a pile, leaving your carpet looking fresh.

Commenting, Johanna Constantinou, brand and communications director at Tapi, says: “Installing great quality carpets is a wise investment, but spending time learning how to extend the lifespan of your carpet is arguably even wiser. We hope these five tips help to keep your carpets looking fresh, fluffy and as good as new, regardless of whatever life throws at them!”