I have never been the best at cleaning regularly but am determined to stick to more of a schedule and to be better at cleaning as I go as I hate having to do a panic clean before visitors and feeling too embarrassed to invite people over for play dates with DD because of the state of our home. One of the parts of this new regime has been to actually use the cordless Dyson for a quick whip round most days although I have used the 'proper' Dyson several times in a week as well. I just can't seem to keep our carpets looking remotely presentable though. I am doing all the sensible things like shoes off at the door, we have turtle mats to trap dirt at doorways, I make sure I only bring the pushchair through the side door into the kitchen which is not carpeted, no eating without a plate or for DD at the table with her splash mat under her chair....it is driving me nuts that I can literally just have finished a good hoover and blink and suddenly the carpet is covered in dirt again.
Our carpet is very light beige and has no pile so I think that does show up the dirt particularly badly but we don't have the funds to change it unfortunately. There are multiple small stains/general grime from a time I wasn't so diligent (Dd's first year being a particular low point as she was an appalling sleeper so it was hard to risk getting the hoover out and waking her) but even so I feel like I am fighting a losing battle/turning into my mother who whisks dirt away practically before it's had time to settle.
Do I just have unrealistic expectations about how often I need to hoover? (apparently 5 times a day) Could it be that I need to go through this period of removing more ground in dirt before I can settle on a more moderate maintenance programme? (What we could probably really do with is a professional steam clean but sadly that isn't really in the budget.)
I have tried a few different home carpet cleaning remedies to no avail but going to go over the whole carpet again with my mini bissell to see if that at least helps the carpet look a bit less grimy overall. What is your preferred home carpet cleaner? Tried vanish Gold foam and barely noticed a difference.
Sorry this is so long so well done if you made it to the end! I know it's not the biggest problem but my carpets looking dirty is making my whole house look dirty and really bringing me down. Thank you in advance for any tips.