Moving Home - Clean the carpets before moving company arrives?

[TruffleShuffle]

tl;dr I'm moving into a new house and before all the furniture is delivered i want to clean the carpets. Is this essentially pointless however as the removal company are just gonna walk in and out loads of times?

We're moving home in the next month (just going into Exchange contracts now). We have a 1yr old who will be, from Day 1 in the new house, running, crawling and rolling around on the carpets of this house.

The house is not occupied (seller already moved out). So my plan is to ask them if, between exchange and completion, we can gain access and get all the carpets professionally cleaned.

Does anyone have any experience with Moving companies and how much respect they pay to whatever mess they may make?

For example, they'll be taking furniture upstairs into the bedrooms from their lorry in the street. If it's raining will they just walk straight up the stairs with, say, a chest of drawers and negate and carpet cleaning i've had done?

 

[Liquid_Entity]

It'll get ruined if my move was anything to go by.

 

[Thekwango]

They certainly won’t be stopping to take their shoes/boots off.

you got any old sheets or the like you can lay down to protect the carpets?

 

[TruffleShuffle]

They certainly won’t be stopping to take their shoes/boots off.

you got any old sheets or the like you can lay down to protect the carpets?

I guess if thats the only real solution then thats what we'll have to do.

 

[pepp77]

Get them cleaned and then buy a roll of this - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kenley-Adh...Protective+Carpet+Cover&qid=1619684955&sr=8-5

Cover the main walking sections wherever you can, I keep a roll of this in my cupboard because I dont have side garden access and its useful if you are having work done in the garden to be able to stick a length of this down the hallway.

 

[Quartz]

Does anyone have any experience with Moving companies and how much respect they pay to whatever mess they may make?

A reputable moving company - I used Pickfords last time - will use the carpet protection roll @pepp77 mentions but you should have a roll just in case.

 

[TruffleShuffle]

Thanks. can always be used when decorating too!

 

[Rroff]

Last couple of times we used a moving company they put stuff down on the floor but can't remember about the stairs. They also talked about options like avoiding certain rooms, etc.

Have to say I was impressed overall with the last lot - despite seeming a bit of a rough bunch they were polite and professional, knew what they were doing, considerate and did a pretty good shift of work without messing about.

 

[sovietspybob]

Yeah any company worth their salt will use a roll of carpet protection stuff so you should be ok. If you've got a completely empty house it'd be 100% worth getting them properly cleaned beforehand imo

Even the '3 guys in a luton van' we used to move last time used that stuff on our stairs even though they were wooden just in case to avoid any scuffs.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

How much does carpet cleaning actually save Vs buying new carpets?

Especially if you are paying professionals to clean it for you.

I'd be tempted to get new carpets and it's exactly what I did for every room and space that had carpet in it and I left the wooden floors as they were as all of them were perfect bar one of the spare bedrooms which needs done again with better stuff as it's not the same as elsewhere but I just covered it with a large rug.

 

[SoundsGood]

Get them cleaned and then buy a roll of this - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kenley-Adh...Protective+Carpet+Cover&qid=1619684955&sr=8-5

Cover the main walking sections wherever you can, I keep a roll of this in my cupboard because I dont have side garden access and its useful if you are having work done in the garden to be able to stick a length of this down the hallway.

This stuff is great for moving, you can use the rest when you decorate

 

[Deleted member 66701]

How much does carpet cleaning actually save Vs buying new carpets?

Especially if you are paying professionals to clean it for you.

I'd be tempted to get new carpets and it's exactly what I did for every room and space that had carpet in it and I left the wooden floors as they were as all of them were perfect bar one of the spare bedrooms which needs done again with better stuff as it's not the same as elsewhere but I just covered it with a large rug.

We were quoted 1200 quid for carpet for living room, stairs (x2), landing (x2) and two loft bedrooms — we got them cleaned for 300 quid and they look brand new — so it is a lot cheaper.

 

[BallistixOnZ490]

Get them cleaned and then buy a roll of this - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kenley-Adh...Protective+Carpet+Cover&qid=1619684955&sr=8-5

Cover the main walking sections wherever you can, I keep a roll of this in my cupboard because I dont have side garden access and its useful if you are having work done in the garden to be able to stick a length of this down the hallway.

This could be useful if I decide to paint my skirting boards.

 

[TruffleShuffle]

How much does carpet cleaning actually save Vs buying new carpets?

Especially if you are paying professionals to clean it for you.

I'd be tempted to get new carpets and it's exactly what I did for every room and space that had carpet in it and I left the wooden floors as they were as all of them were perfect bar one of the spare bedrooms which needs done again with better stuff as it's not the same as elsewhere but I just covered it with a large rug.

That is the long term plan but it's not an immediate solution for a toddler crawling around on carpets which could have dog stuff, or who knows what else on them.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

If you can get access, I’d say go for it.

Professional moving people should have clean shoes, if it’s wet you can’t really stop bringing dirt in and you’ll need to put blankets down anyway.

 

[darael]

Definitely clean the carpets if they give you access, then lay that carpet protector film across it a few days later when the carpet has dried out.

As a pet owner, something else I would consider, especially if they also had pets, is using the rare chance of having access to all to floor surfaces to spray some flea treatment everywhere. Even though there probably isn't even a problem, the extra peace of mind is worth it to me.

 

[HangTime]

I guess it depends on the individuals involved but the main priority for the movers will be getting in and out as quickly as possible.

That said, I guess you've got a good window of opportunity assuming you get agreement (can't really see why there would be an objection as if the sale falls through they've got their carpets cleaned for free). Just make sure you have an inventory of the state of the property prior to cleaning and that the cleaners have proper liability insurance to cover this scenario in case they damage anything. You want to avoid a situation where you move in and find damage which the vendor claims wasn't present pointing the finger of blame at the cleaner who just shrugs their shoulders.