After more than 56 years in the carpet cleaning business, I have occasionally had customers ask me a question that seems to make no sense: “Alec, why does my carpet smell worse now that you have cleaned it?”
The first thing I want to point out is that a properly cleaned, well-maintained carpet should not normally smell worse after cleaning. When this does happen, however, there can be several reasons—and one of the biggest is how heavily soiled and neglected the carpet was before it was cleaned.
Think of Your Carpet Like the Engine in Your Car
Here’s an analogy I think makes sense.
Imagine that you never changed the oil in your car. Years go by, the engine develops a serious problem, and eventually it needs thousands of dollars in repairs. You then ask, “If I change the oil now, will that fix the engine?”
Of course not.
Changing the oil is still the right thing to do, but the damage caused by years of neglect cannot necessarily be reversed by one maintenance procedure.
Carpet can be similar.
A carpet that has been regularly vacuumed and professionally cleaned before it becomes heavily soiled is a very different situation from a carpet that has accumulated years of dirt, oils, organic material and other contaminants.
This is one reason I recommend regular carpet maintenance rather than waiting until a carpet becomes heavily soiled. I discuss this in more detail in my Ask Alec article, “How Often Should Carpet Be Professionally Cleaned?”
What Is Actually Living in a Heavily Soiled Carpet?
It is important to understand that bacteria does not simply grow on a clean carpet fiber because the fiber is there.
However, soil and organic material that become attached to or trapped within the carpet can provide a place where microorganisms can exist and, under favorable conditions, multiply.
This is one reason that heavily neglected carpet can sometimes present a much greater cleaning challenge than carpet that has been maintained regularly.
When we clean carpet, we introduce moisture. If substantial organic soil remains in the carpet and the carpet stays damp for an extended period, conditions can become favorable for microbial activity.
That can sometimes produce an odor that wasn’t as noticeable when the carpet was dry.
“But Didn’t the Cleaning Remove the Bacteria?”
That’s a reasonable question.
Professional carpet cleaning can remove a tremendous amount of soil and contamination. But no cleaning process is going to remove 100% of everything that is in a carpet.
How much is removed depends on many factors, including:
- How heavily soiled the carpet is
- How long the soil has been accumulating
- The type and condition of the carpet
- The equipment being used
- The cleaning agents being used
- The experience of the technician
- How well the carpet has been maintained over the years
A well-maintained carpet that is professionally cleaned on a regular basis can generally be cleaned much more thoroughly than a carpet that has been neglected for years.
I would never promise a customer a specific percentage of soil removal because every carpet is different. But the basic principle is simple:
The more heavily contaminated the carpet is to begin with, the more difficult it becomes to remove everything that has accumulated in it.
In some circumstances, an appropriate antimicrobial treatment may also be considered, depending upon the situation and the carpet involved.
Vacuuming Is Part of the Answer
Regular vacuuming is another important part of keeping soil from accumulating in carpet.
Vacuuming doesn’t replace professional cleaning, but it can remove a considerable amount of dry soil before that soil has an opportunity to become embedded in the carpet.
I’ve written more about this in “Why Is Vacuuming Your Carpet So Important?”
The point is that professional cleaning works best when it is part of an overall maintenance program rather than something done only after years of accumulated soil.
Humidity and Drying Time Can Make a Difference
There is another factor that I have always paid close attention to: the environment where the carpet is located.
Consider a basement.
If the basement has little or no air conditioning, poor air circulation and relatively high humidity, a freshly cleaned carpet may take considerably longer to dry than carpet in an upstairs room with good air conditioning and air movement.
And the longer a carpet remains damp, the more opportunity there is for microbial activity to occur.
This is one reason that when a customer asks me about cleaning a basement carpet, I don’t just look at the carpet.
I also consider the environment.
If the basement is particularly damp and has poor air circulation, I may even suggest waiting for a cooler, drier time of year when conditions will allow the carpet to dry more quickly.
The faster a carpet dries, the less time it remains in a damp environment.
What About That “Doggie” Smell?
Pets can create another situation that homeowners sometimes don’t think about.
I have had customers with larger dogs who regularly go outside, roll around in grass or soil, and then come back into the house and lie down in the same areas of carpet.
Over time, soil can be transferred from the dog’s coat onto the carpet. In addition, dogs naturally have body oils and perspiration, and these materials can accumulate in the areas where the dog spends the most time.
When the carpet becomes damp during cleaning, those accumulated materials can sometimes produce an odor that becomes more noticeable temporarily.
This is one reason why a carpet that looks reasonably clean on the surface can occasionally tell a different story when it is thoroughly cleaned.
If you’re dealing specifically with pet odors, my Ask Alec article “Can you really get ride of pet odors permanently” goes into that subject in greater detail
The Bottom Line
If your carpet smells worse immediately after it has been professionally cleaned, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the carpet wasn’t cleaned properly.
Sometimes the explanation is that the carpet was heavily contaminated before cleaning, some of that contamination remains after cleaning, and the moisture and environmental conditions have temporarily made the odor more noticeable.
Regular maintenance is one of the best ways to help prevent this situation.
Just as changing the oil in your car on a regular basis is much better than waiting until the engine develops a serious problem, regular carpet maintenance is much better than allowing years of soil and contamination to accumulate and then expecting one cleaning to completely reverse the effects of neglect.
After 56 years in this business, I have learned that every carpet is different. That’s why I believe the best approach is to look not only at the carpet itself, but also at its history, its condition, how it has been maintained and the environment in which it is located.
If you have a carpet with a persistent odor and would like to discuss the situation, give us a call at 781-871-1415.
Learn more about Alec’s Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning LLC on our website www.Alecscarpetcleaning.com