Carpets have come a long way since they were first manufactured. Major changes have been made to help carpets hide soiling, prevent static build-up, resist soiling and staining and to maintain their luxurious texture.
The most significant event occurred in the life of nylon carpets over twenty years ago when manufacturers started applying a fluorochemical product to the nylon fibers to prevent soiling. We recognize this product by names such as Teflon® or Scotchgard™.
You’ll see ads showing liquid spills beading up on top of the carpet. Yes, it’s true that one of the advantages of a carpet protector is its ability to keep liquid spills on the outside of the carpet yarn. It also helps keep oils from penetrating the yarns too. But the primary reason protectors are applied to carpets is to resist dry soil!
Think about a Teflon® pan for a minute. You can cook an egg in it without butter and the egg won’t stick to the pan. Because of the protective coating the egg can’t seem to grab hold of the pan and slides off.
This is the same product specially formulated for carpet fibers. When this protective coating is added to nylon fibers the dirt is unable to grab hold and easily slides off when vacuumed. This keeps carpets looking clean longer.
There seems to be a great deal of misunderstanding concerning these protectors. First, even though dirt and spills can easily slide off the fibers, gravity still wins. I have yet to see spilled coffee jump back up into the cup. Protectors do not prevent a carpet from getting dirty, they only make spot cleaning, maintenance vacuuming and professional cleaning more effective.
Secondly, carpet protector is a coating that is applied to a flexible carpet fiber. This coating does not wash off during professional cleaning. However, abrasive soil and foot traffic will flake or rub off the protective coating. When this happens, dirt has the ability to grab hold of the fiber and stick. The carpet will soil faster.
The good news is that carpet protector can be reapplied to the fibers after it is professionally cleaned to restore what has been worn off. The fiber manufacturers indicate that after two years there will be a significant loss of the original protector. Carpet protector should be reapplied annually, especially in heavy use areas.
When you keep the fibers completely protected, your carpets will look cleaner longer and emergency spot cleaning will be easier and more effective.