Juice Report

In order to keep your carpets looking fresh and clean, it’s important to vacuum them on a regular basis. However, even with regular vacuuming, your carpets will start to look dull and worn over time. The reason for this is that vacuuming will only remove loose dirt from the upper layers of the carpet. Ground in dirt which is trapped deep in the carpet will not normally be removed even by the most efficient vacuum cleaner. Spills, if not quickly attended to, can often become slightly sticky when they dry and act as a trap for dirt and dust.

Obviously, one of the best ways to avoid having dirt trapped deep in your carpet is to vacuum on a regular basis so that the dirt is removed before it becomes deeply ingrained in the first place. What this means is that heavy traffic areas – hallways, the areas near doors etc. – should be vacuumed at least twice a week. If you have pets then you may want to do this three times a week. This should be reasonably effective in preventing excessive build up of dirt and dust.

Even with regular vacuuming, some ingress of dirt and dust into the deeper layers of your carpet is unavoidable.Accidental spills, heavy traffic, wet and muddy shoes will grind dirt and dust into the carpet and it will start to look shabby and worn out. Given that it’s not possible to remove this ingrained dirt by using a vacuum cleaner, some alternative cleaning method is necessary.

The most effective way of removing this trapped dirt is by the periodic use of a specialised carpet washer. This loosens any trapped dirt using water and a cleaning agent and then removes it. A deep cleanse using a carpet washer once every six months or so – perhaps more frequently if you have children and pets – will make a big difference to the appearance of your carpet and will also help to extend its life.

Carpet washers, much like standard vacuum cleaners, come in a variety of different forms with the most common being cylinder and upright. They are available to hire in most large supermarkets – but the cost of buying these has come down quite a bit, so that may make sense for you. If you have your own carpet washer it can also be used for cleaning up any accidental spills immediately – before there is an opportunity for a stain to become established.

Whether you choose to hire or buy, regular washing of your carpets will extend their life and pay for the hire or purchase price of the machine. Your carpets will look much cleaner, there will be less odour in your home and the overall environment will generally be more hygienic – especially important if small children and pets are sharing the same floor space.

Find out how to increase the life of your carpet using carpet washer – your carpets will look cleaner and so will your house. Also learn how you can reduce the amount of time you spend on housework with a Tefal steam generator iron – you’ll wonder how you ever got by without one.

Whilst it may be a mundane piece of equipment, and one to which most people would give very little thought, a good ironing board is an essential item for any household. Choose the wrong one and you could wind up with poorly ironed clothes, spend more time than you need to ironing and even give yourself a bad back.

Nowadays, the majority of people use steam irons – or even steam generator irons which are growing in popularity due to the fact that they can reduce the amount of time required for ironing. For both of these types of irons an ironing board which has a surface of open mesh construction is desirable. The mesh structure allows the steam to pass through the board, which helps to avoid condensation and soggy garments and ironing board covers when ironing large amounts of items.

The ironing board cover should be as smooth as possible to make ironing easier. It should be well secured and have no tendency to slip. An elasticated cover which incorporates one or two cross ties will usually suffice and will not slide around on you when you’re doing your ironing. A nice shiny metalised cover will also reflect heat from the iron back into the garment and will help to remove creases from the underside of the material whilst the top surface is being pressed.

The type of items that you intend to iron will play an important role in determining the size and shape of the board for you. A small board will be easier to store – but will typically require you to position the garment that you’re pressing more often. Picking a large board is usually the best choice – but make sure it has a good taper on the pointed end. This will make it easier to get into corners – the corners of blouses and shirts, collars etc.

Scissor action legs which allow you to adjust the height of the board are pretty much standard these days. Make sure that you set the board height at a level that’s comfortable for you and doesn’t strain your back. If you’re the only one who irons (I bet you are) then a position marker is always useful. If you like to sit down whilst ironing then choose a board which has curved legs so that your knees don’t bang against the legs when you’re sitting down. Whatever type of legs you go for, they should provide good support and give you a stable platform to iron upon. A broad T-piece foot or splayed feet joined by a connecting bar usually works well.

The support for the iron itself should be sturdy enough to take the weight of the iron. Wire type extension platforms are usually okay for standard steam irons. The extra weight presented by a steam generator iron may mean that a longer board which just features a heat resistant plate on a slightly extended surface is better. Alternatively, the base unit of steam generator irons may be positioned on the floor – as long as the connecting hose between base unit and iron is long enough to permit this.

A Tefal steam generator iron – will cut your ironing time in half. You’ll wonder how you ever got by without one.

Steam generator irons and conventional steam irons look quite similar at first glance – especially the iron part itself. However, steam generator irons are constructed quite differently and have a different mode of operation. They employ a separate base unit which acts as both boiler and water tank. The body of the iron contains no water. Steam is passed from the base unit into the iron using a flexible connecting tube.

Steam generator irons do tend to cost a little more than traditional steam irons – but they offer several advantages to the user. It’s worthwhile taking a little time to consider the important points before you decide which one to buy. The key things to look at when comparing steam generator irons are steam pressure, the capacity of the water reservoir, the soleplate, how easy it is to clean and the overall ease of use.

PRESSURE OF STEAM: The steam drives moisture and heat into the fabric of the garment being ironed. This makes it easier to remove wrinkles and creases as it causes the fabric to become more flexible. The higher the steam pressure is, the deeper it is driven into the fabric and the better the finished results are.

As a rule, steam generator irons will have their output capacity noted in terms of grams of steam per minute (g/min). The higher this number is, the more steam is produced and the easier (and faster) it will be to use the iron. Typical values will range from 70 to 140 grams per minute.

Sometimes you may see the steam pressure expressed in bar. Once again, the higher the number is, the more steam that will be produced, the deeper it will penetrate the fabric and the better the results will be.

WATER RESERVOIR SIZE: Steam generator irons normally have a generously sized water tank. This means that you will be able to do a fair bit of ironing before you need to top up the water. The exact duration will vary based upon the type of fabric being ironed – but you should get a couple of hours of ironing out of a 1.4 litre tank.

If you plan on doing a lot of ironing, then you might be well advised to select an iron which has a larger tank. If you have a small ironing board then make sure that the length of the connecting hose between the water reservoir and the iron is long enough so that you can position the base unit on the floor rather than having to put it up on the board.

It’s also worth considering how easy it is to fill the reservoir. Many of the better steam generator irons have removable reservoirs to make filling easier. It’s a lot better than messing around with jugs of water. Some also have the facility to top up the reservoir even when the iron is in use – which avoids you having to disconnect it and then wait for it to heat up again after filling.

THE SOLEPLATE: The design and material of the soleplate should be such that it glides smoothly across the surface of a variety of different fabrics. It should be durable, scratch resistant and easy to clean. Soleplates with ceramic coatings are very popular these days and are always a good choice.

EASE OF CLEANING: Most modern irons, whether standard steam irons or steam generator irons, use plain old tap water. Depending upon the water supply in your area, this will usually contain a number of different mineral – including both magnesium and calcium. This can cause scale deposits which will reduce the efficiency of your iron if left untreated.

If you have a hard water supply in your area, then an iron with some type of anti-scale system is essential. Some irons flush the scale out with water. Others have a detachable anti-scale cartridge for ease of cleaning.

USER FRIENDLINESS: As discussed, you might prefer a long connecting hose to let you position your iron on the floor as opposed to the end of the ironing board.

A removable water reservoir is also something that most people will find convenient.

Other features, which you may or may not find appealing, include automatically rewinding power cords, fast heat up systems, easy clean soleplates etc.

SUMMARY: Be sure to choose a high enough steam pressure for your requirements. Select a water reservoir which is large enough so that you don’t need to keep stopping in order to top it up. Ensure that the soleplate is of a suitable material and design. If you live in a hard water area, make sure that some anti-scaling system is incorporated.

Cut out the drudgery of long ironing sessions with a Tefal steam generator iron – you’ll be amazed at how much time you can save.