Having renovations done to your home can increase the value and enhance your lifestyle, especially if it gives you more room. But if those renovations are internal, your carpet will be likely to suffer. Why? And carpet cleaning specialists will tell you that a carpet acts as a filter that takes all of the dirt and dust in your home and hides it within the fibres.

This happens because those little bits of crumbs and any sticky substances on the floor or even particles from outside stick to your shoes or bare feet – until you walk on the carpet. The carpet fibres act as a brush and sweep your shoes and feet clean, but the dirt stays in the carpet until you clean it out. So what about when you are renovating?

Renovations, whatever they are, usually include a lot of dust. Whether this comes from behind the wall you are pulling out, or is fine sawdust from new timber that has just been cut to length – or even from hammering nails in, which dislodged dust from places that are hard to clean – those particles will very likely end up in the carpet. So what can you do to save it? There are some simple solutions.

  • Keep the doors closed to rooms that are not being renovated and add a door sausage at the bottom so dust cannot seep in through the crack.
  • Cover your carpet with old sheets or a tarpaulin throughout the day, but vacuum or sweep it each day when the work has finished. Or if you move it, makes sure to fold it carefully so the dirt doesn’t fall off onto the carpet, then take it outside for cleaning.
  • Vacuum the carpets at the end of each day if you don’t cover them.
  • Clean the renovation area to remove all the dust, sawdust and debris that gets tracked in.
  • Place mats at the entrance to each external door and also at the entrance to each room, so most of the dirt on shoes and boots is swept off.
  • Dust the furniture every day so that any dust that settles there will not drift around the room and end up in the carpet.
  • When dusting, use the vacuum cleaner, otherwise dust is just swished from one place to another.

While these solutions may seem like a lot of work, it will certainly save your carpet from working as a filter. If it is not done, the carpet becomes a breeding ground for bacteria that can cause allergies and breathing problems.

However, if you simply cannot keep up with it all, make sure you have the carpet professional steam cleaned after the renovations are finished.