5 simple steps to pristine floors and carpets

Keep your carpets and floors looking their best for less with these simple tricks.

•  The easiest way to keep floor-cleaning costs down is by preventing dirt from entering your home in the first place.
• Put some inexpensive, heavy-duty mats outside every exterior door.
• Thinner mats can go just inside the doors. This stops dirt being trodden into carpets and wearing down the fibres.

• Rent a carpet cleaner from a supermarket or rental equipment shop for about $30.
• Carpet cleaning companies will charge about that much per room. Ask about a discount if you move all the furniture out of the room beforehand, as this will save the cleaners time and mean they can fit in more jobs that day.
• Check the Yellow Pages and shop around. Prices can vary significantly.
• Cleaning your carpets once a year can add to their lifespan.

Sprinkle baking soda generously over the carpet, leave for 15 minutes, then vacuum thoroughly. Carpet cleaner is significantly more expensive than baking soda, and the results can be about the same.

• Rub small scratches on wooden floors with fine steel wool, then mix a little brown shoe polish with floor wax and rub in well.
• Remove scuff marks on vinyl by rubbing with a clean pencil eraser.
• Disguise a small worn patch on a carpet by filling in with a felt-tip pen in the same colour. Test on an inconspicuous corner first to check for a good colour match.

• Soak up spills with a cloth as soon as they occur, then squirt the stain with soda water, and blot and repeat.
• Never rub the stain.
• If the spill discolours your carpet, apply a half-and-half solution of white vinegar and water, then dab and blot with clean rags repeatedly until the mark disappears.

New carpets and floors are expensive, so maintenance is important. With these simple, money-saving tips, your floors will look better for longer, and stave off their replacement.