The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California
Carpets And Rugs
Entirely aside from appearance, it is extremely hard on carpets to brush the pile against the lay or to brush it first in one direction and then in the other, as bending the fibers sharply back and forth breaks them off at the base. It also loosens all the short pieces of fiber that are in the yarn and thus thins out the pile tufts—the final result being the complete wearing away of the pile, leaving only the body or warp.
Cleaning Carpets
There are a number of methods in use by housewives for cleaning carpets, the most important of which are:
1. Sweeping with the broom.
2. Sweeping with the carpet sweeper.
3. Shaking out of doors.
4. Hanging up or laying flat and beating out of doors.
5. Suction cleaning.
6. Suction sweeping.
7. Suction sweeping with vibration.
The Broom
Sweeping with a broom is the oldest and probably still the most common method of cleaning carpets. It is hard for many house-wives to give up the broom even though they have available utensils which they recognize as more efficient.
The broom, though it has been used longer than any other utensil for cleaning carpets, docs not thoroughly clean the carpet and unless used in a gentle manner is very detrimental to the fabric.
The ineffectiveness of a broom for cleaning purposes can be demonstrated by attempting to sweep a cup of sand or powder of any kind across a carpet. It will be found that before the sweeping has progressed very far, the sand or powder has disappeared into the carpet.
From observations made with special equipment and different operators, it was found that the average person presses a broom against the carpet with a force of from 7 to 10 pounds. Considering the harshness of the broom straws and the unyielding character of the floor which supports the carpet, it is easy to understand why sweeping with a broom wears out a carpet by abrasion. Entirely aside from the abrasive action, there is the wear that results from the presence of gritty dirt in the body of the carpet that has been forced in by sweeping with a broom.
