Cleaning your carpet is crucial to keep it looking spotless and neat. But when the same, newly-cleaned carpet starts to feel sticky after all your hard work, it can be frustrating.
A sticky carpet attracts dirt like a magnet, making it soiled faster even after a recent cleanup. No matter if you’ve spot-cleaned it or shampooed it, this stickiness of your carpet is more or less a consequence of improper cleaning.
So, if you are dealing with one, read on to find what made your carpet sticky. We’ll also see how you can fix the issue to make it truly clean again.
What Causes Sticky Carpet After Cleaning?
1. Incomplete cleaning
One of the main culprits of sticky carpets is incomplete cleaning or inadequate rinsing. When you don’t clean your carpets thoroughly, the cleaning residue is left behind in its fibers.
This residue can be traces of uncleaned stains, dirt, moisture, or even the residue from your cleaning solution. It clings to your carpet fibers and attracts dirt, making your carpet sticky after cleaning.
Incomplete cleaning often happens when you clean in a hurry or don’t use multiple passes when cleaning a heavily soiled carpet.
2. Skipping the clean water “rinse”
Often related to incomplete cleaning, another mistake that leads to sticky carpet is missing to give your carpet a final rinse after cleaning. Whether you’re cleaning a stain or deep cleaning the entire carpeting, if you just finish it with cleaning with a solution, it can result in sticky carpet.
That’s because the remnants of the soap you cleaned your carpet with are still there. You also need to rinse it with plain water after that. Skipping the final water rinse will keep that soap inside your carpet fibers, leading to resoiling.
3. Using rented carpet cleaning equipment [improper suction]
Apart from inadequate rinsing, your carpet cleaning equipment can also be a reason behind the stickiness of your carpet. Most carpet cleaning machines or shampooers that you rent aren’t that powerful to extract all the moisture and residue out from your carpet.
They lack the industrial level suction power that is needed to get all the cleaning solution out. This especially happens when you shampoo your carpet or use a water-extensive process at home. The remnants and moisture stay in your carpet and make it sticky.
4. Using detergent-based cleaners
If you use high-soap products or detergent-based cleaners for your carpet, it can be another culprit. Such OTC, residue-laden soapy solutions can form a lot of foam which sticks to your carpet.
This detergent foam or residue is very difficult to rinse out of its fibers even after multiple rinses. That means, some of it is left behind which attracts dirt. This becomes a leading cause behind making your carpet sticky after cleaning.
5. Overusing the solutions
When cleaning your carpet, if you think more is better, it’s not always true. Using an excessive amount of cleaning solution than what’s recommended can also lead to sticky carpet. When you use more soap and if it is not rinsed thoroughly, the same issue of residue happens again.
The excess soap is left behind and becomes a magnet for dirt and dust, leading to stickiness.
6. Not letting the carpet dry fully
Even if you clean your carpet thoroughly but don’t let it dry, it’s enough to result in resoiling and stickiness on the carpet again. Not giving your carpet enough time to dry and walking over damp carpet can make it absorb the soil from the foot traffic.
This soil and dirt sticks to the damp fibers, combines with the moisture it already has, and makes your carpet sticky.
7. Using carpet powders
The store-bought carpet powders that claim to deodorize your carpet are, surprisingly, one of the main causes of sticky and crunchy carpets. These carpet powders are not safe for your carpet.
What happens is when you sprinkle them on your carpet, they seep inside and cling to its fibers quickly. And because your vacuum isn’t that powerful to extract the minute powdery particles completely, some of the powder remains behind.
This powdery grit not only damages the fibers in the long run but also makes your carpet sticky to attract all the dirt it comes across.
How To Fix Sticky Carpet After Cleaning?
⇒ Rinse it again with plain water
If you feel your carpet to be sticky, try to rinse it again with plain water. If the stickiness is in one spot, try to blot it with a damp cloth to give it a rinse. And if your entire carpet is sticky after cleaning, fix it by re-rinsing it thoroughly with plain water.
This will clean the residue left in its fibers that was making it sticky. However, make sure you dry your carpet properly after rinsing.
⇒ Steam clean with hot water and vinegar
Another way to fix a sticky carpet after cleaning is to steam clean it thoroughly. Rent a good quality steam cleaner from a local store and fill its tank with water mixed with ¼ quantity of vinegar.
Steam clean your carpet with it thoroughly. The heat of the steam along with the acidic property of vinegar will break down the residue and dirt left behind. Make sure to extract all the moisture after steam cleaning.
⇒ Opt for expert cleaning
If your carpet is excessively sticky and if none of the above rinsing methods are enough, you will need to opt for a professional deep cleaning. Opt for experts who use residue-free solutions and high-suction equipment that can pull out all the sticky residue left behind in your carpet. With a quality cleanup, you can get it fully cleaned and fresh.
Summary
Carpets can become sticky after cleaning for a variety of reasons. Some of the common causes include incomplete rinsing, use of excess soap, improper suction, residue-laden cleaners, and carpet powders.
You can fix the sticky carpet after cleaning by either re-rinsing it with plain water or steam cleaning it with a vinegar solution. Moreover, for stubborn stickiness, professionals can be your last resort to get it fully clean and fresh.
