Our SUPERIOR Process!!!

WHAT WE DO AND WHY WE DO IT Clients who have not used us before often ask what we are doing and why. We hear that they're unfamiliar with some of the steps we take because previous cleaners didn't do them. Here are the answers. These also explain WHY anything less is just not workable, and why we will never compromise service for price. YOU decide if this is the same service you get elsewhere or not. Most people I speak to never bothered to find out what was being done, and could NOT tell me if these steps were used to clean their carpets or not. 1. Pre-Cleaning Inspection and Consultation. (IICRC-specified) We completely measure each room and the area of each that you want cleaned. We will ask you about specific spots we find and will point out any potential problem areas. We will also advise you of potential permanent stains or bleached-out areas and will also ask about any cleaners you may have used on particular spots. We will tell you how much carpet you have, how much you want cleaned and provide a firm quote for service. We perform a written CARPET EVALUATION, which is much more than a plain "eyeball, pencil and paper" estimate. (Unless a credit application was completed and approved beforehand, all services are provided on a COD basis.) We closely monitor how much area is cleaned so that we may more accurately track chemical requirements and usage, manpower requirements, time management, as well as track equipment wear and maintenance. 2. Thorough Dry Soil Removal. (IICRC-specified) Even though you may vacuum regularly, we will thoroughly vacuum before we start cleaning. This is for a couple of reasons. Our vacuuming may reveal problem areas that weren't obvious to the naked eye. It gives us a good idea of where heavy traffic areas are, and where pockets of heavier soiling may lie (beneath the visible portion of the carpet). It is much easier to remove loose dry soil than to try to remove mud, as anyone who does laundry will realize. There is only so much cleaning action in a given quantity of emulsifier / pre-conditioner. The more dry soil we remove beforehand, the more cleaning power is available for the heavy, resistant soil trapped in your carpet. Just as dirt particles damage your carpet, they also cause wear to our equipment. If we want our equipment to operate at peak condition for as long as possible, it is in our own selfish interests to make sure we remove as much of it before it gets into our equipment. 3. Thorough Pre-Conditioning. (TACH-specified) We use only the best quality cleaning agents. We use it as specified by the manufacturers. We will not over-dilute it as we know is done elsewhere to save a few cents. We have different pre-conditioners for different carpet materials. We use only cleaning agents that are deemed safe for your environment and carpet and we assume your carpet is of the latest technology, requiring the highest-quality cleaning agents. Cleaning agents are formulated to release all the various types of contaminants present in residential carpeting. From the most visible dirt, to the most invisible and unseen pollutants. Some companies find it acceptable to pre-spray or pre-condition only the most visibly soiled areas of your carpet. These would be the same companies that might tell you there is a cleaning chemical in their solution lines, when in fact, it may only be water. This means they may simply be running water through the areas of carpet they never pre-conditioned. Still feel you're getting your money's worth? We know this type of practice will NOT yield a clean carpet. We KNOW this practice exists elsewhere. On the other hand, we stay away from cleaning agents that contain chemicals which are of dubious safety. So you see - it's a balancing act of sorts. We want cleaning agents that will do the job they need to, but no more! We know that where air travels in your house, so does pollution and contamination. We know these soils take proper chemistry to release or you simply end up living with them again once we are gone. We, as well as most of our clients wouldn't be comfortable with that, so we pre-condition every square foot of carpet that we will clean. Whether it's the front entry hall, or a bedroom closet. A carpeted bathroom, or a flight of stairs. If we're going to clean it, we may as well do it right. We will take very step necessary to clean your carpet as thoroughly as possible - even if you don't know we're doing it. 4. Hand Edging and Detailing. (IICRC-specified) While pre-conditioning, we keep an eye out for the problem spots we detected earlier. While the pre-conditioner is working, we will apply spotters to spots when we are sure of what they are. This increases the time factor for the chemicals to work properly and allows us to use safer chemicals. We use the hand wand to detail right up to the edges of each room. We also hand-clean areas that our ROTOVAC won't reach - in smaller closets, in tight corners and behind doors, for instance. Each room is detailed as we get to it. Where carpet meets hard floor, we also detail to make sure it's as clean as it can get. We may also apply boosters and specialty agents to certain areas - such as near kitchen passages - which usually contain tougher spots. 5. Rotary Agitation and Extraction. (TACH-specified) An experienced technician can do about 60 passes per minute with a hand wand - at least for a few minutes at a time. After that one of two things happens - the pace slows down, or overlapping strokes get larger and larger - meaning less effective passes. Though the wand is not heavy, a lot of downward pressure and leverage is required to use it properly. This is fatiguing work. The ROTOVAC performs 1,500 cleaning passes per minute continuously. The weight of the ROTOVAC means the technician can spend more energy on operating it and directing it where it needed, than to putting on a show of labor for the homeowner. The unique and patented design of the ROTOVAC also uses vacuum to seal it's heads against the carpet, ensuring consistent and maximum agitation, debris removal, solution application and vacuum extraction. This is why we say a technician using a hand wand would have to spend AT LEAST 6 times as long on the job to get the same kind of results we do. There is just no comparison, UNLESS it's against another company using the same equipment. Everything else pales in comparison. You do the math. After detailing, we bring in the ROTOVAC. The first thing we do is adjust the height of the heads to make sure they are at exactly the correct height for the carpet. We clean large sections of the room, making two overlapping cleaning passes over each portion of carpet. During this step, carpet yarns are cleaned first from one direction, then from the other, at all angles in each direction, being flushed the entire time. (Each yarn is passed an average of 30 times in this step alone. Compare this to most non-rotary companies, which might pass the hand wand over each yarn 1-2 times, and rarely more than 3, but only in a back and forth action.) Watch a non-rotary company the next time you get a chance! Some of them won't even overlap strokes, meaning you ONLY get ONE PASS. No wonder they can charge so little and still make a profit! They aren't DOING AYTHING! The yarns are being flushed during this entire cleaning step, with extraction taking place simultaneously. We don't just flush with water. We have a neutralizing agent added into solution that helps flush out any remaining pre-conditioner and neutralizes it, returning the carpet to a more normal pH. This also helps the carpet to dry faster and to dry softer. Dirt has no time to sink back in, and it has no place to hide. We use the ROTOVAC on every part of the carpet we can. Because it is the smallest rotary design in use, we can get into tighter areas than the other two most-used rotary machines. We honestly feel it is the BEST rotary available. The first rotary designed was invented by the same person who later also invented the ROTOVAC. The other major similar machine is a combination of both, and is large and heavy. Sort of a half-step backward. We stand by the ROTOVAC, 125%! NEXT, we go back to the beginning of the section we just cleaned, and we spend the same amount of time doing moisture extraction (no solution). With another average of between 30-60 passes per carpet yarn, we extract excess free moisture and further agitate the carpet to complete the neutralization process. We keep careful watch during this step for any stubborn or recurring spots. 6. Problem Spotting. (IICRC-specified) We go back and treat any remaining spots with our arsenal of spotting materials. On occasion, we might spend as much time doing this as we did cleaning that particular room. Most spots will come out. Depending upon type of spot and what you did in the past to get it out, it may have been rendered permanent before we ever arrived. A spot that is permanent is called a stain. When spotting is completed, we will neutralize the area once more, then extract it to eliminate all spotters. You are notified of any remaining stains, what can be done and why they are still there. WE DO NOT guarantee to remove all stains without harming your carpet. Any company that does is lying to you. The only ways to remove remaining stains is to cut it out and replace that section, and your carpet may still never look quite right, OR the area will have to be bleached out and re-dyed. This process can permanently damage your carpet. 7. Grooming. (IICRC-specified) Carpeting is like hair. When it's wet, it's a good time to groom it. Failure to do so can result in a terrible appearance later. You can somewhat "set" carpet much as one sets their hair. Therefore, in the interest of appearance alone, grooming is important. Grooming serves other purposes as well. If you elected to have protectant applied, grooming helps to completely distribute both protectants and neutralizers. It also separates carpet yarns, fluffing them up and allowing them to dry faster. Either a groomer or a carpet brush will be used to finish your carpets to perfection. 8. Post-Cleaning Inspection and Consultation. (IICRC-specified) Only now are we ready to have you inspect our quality of work. One thing you will notice is a clean, fresh smell. You will immediately see an even, fluffy-looking finished carpet. We will point out any spots that we were unsuccessful with. Keep in mind that the chemicals we use to spot with are very powerful. If a spot or stain won't come out with what we have, it's likely that the chemicals that ARE required will cause permanent changes, even damage to your carpet. Those - we don't carry. Once your carpet is dry, you will notice that it is much fuller and softer feeling than before. You might also notice color that you haven't seen in years is back once again. And spots that you may have thought were there to stay are usually gone. A note of caution, we do NOT use optical brighteners in our cleaning agents or follow-up chemicals. There has been some discussion of health risks as well as inconsistent final apperance associated with using such fluorescent dyes and the latest chemical formulations do not include them any longer. So any brightness you notice or color-enhancement you see when we are done is STRICTLY a result of cleaning - it was ALWAYS there to begin with. We view optical brighteners as like makeup for carpet and upholstery. If you have to use them - they are hiding something. In a few weeks, the brighteners will lose their effect (and charm). 9. Drying and Care Tips (TACH-specified) During your cleaning job, you will notice we use air movers to help flash-dry your carpet. Once we are done working, it's your turn. We will give you specific instructions on how to care for your carpet both before and after it has dried. Prompt drying is important for your carpet. While many people believe that heat will do this, it is more correctly dry air that dries carpets, not heat. IF YOU HAVE SUFFICIENT VENTILATION - preferably a cross-flow from one side of the house through to the other, then a moderate amount of heat WILL help to speed drying by helping to keep air moving over the carpet. Better to have good air flow and NO HEAT then NO VENTILATION AND HIGH HEAT - which will only turn your home into a sauna, causing other problems and potential damage. After it has dried, the best things you can do for your carpets are to keep dirty shoes off. Use walk-off mats to catch dirt in advance. Vacuuming AT LEAST once per week, but more preferably DAILY, is recommended . Keep foods away as much as possible. Keep milk, wine, coffee, brightly-colored fruity drinks and sodas away from it. If that is not possible, use smaller portions in the glass. If you spill one of these liquids on it, soak up as much of it as possible as quickly as possible WITHOUT RUBBING THE CARPET. Always SOP IT UP and DAB AT IT. Rubbing the carpet will only drive the spill deeper and lead to abrasion and unraveling (untwisting) of the yarns, leaving it permanently rough-looking and "frazzled". DO NOT USE ANYTHING BUT A CLEAR, (pH) NEUTRAL OR NEARLY NEUTRAL CLEANER on spots and spills. We highly recommend a product called FOLEX. We do not sell this product, but it can be bought at most larger department or grocery stores. The reason we recommend it is because we have seen it in action time and time again. It gets out many common household spills and spots, and if it doesn't get them out, it will tend NOT TO SET THEM PERMANENTLY as many other consumer chemicals can. If you use other types of chemical cleaners, and in fact, if the last company that cleaned your carpet did not neutralize it properly, the spill could possibly be set as soon as it happens without your ever having a chance of stopping it. I specifically do NOT recommend the recent spurt of "oxygen" cleaners. People tend to overuse these and there is no way to extract them when used as directed (flooding area with the cleaner). Large amounts of fluid on a fresh spill takes the spilled material right to the backing of the carpet, where it will be nearly impossible to extract fully again if the cleaner doesn't make it disappear as advertised. I also do not recommend the canned aerosol carpet cleaners, especially any with protectors in them. I've seen too many spills which should have just been blotted up, turned into permanent, much larger areas of fading and dye loss. The problem is similar as with the oxygen cleaners. There isn't any extraction going on and these aerosol carpet cleaners are left in the carpet to react with light and heat and cause permanent dye loss and color damage. Further, if we discover these types of consumer cleaners were used, we will not guarantee the job. It's not that they are competition, but that they come with their own whole set of inherent problems. For instance, most of the aerosols don't address the deep down part of the spill, so it keeps coming back up and attracting soil. The user keeps on spraying more of the cleaner, which starts to leave it's own chemical residue, attracting even more soil. I once saw a 6-inch diameter koolaid stain turn into a 3 by 4 foot dye loss problem. My chemicals removed the koolaid once I got to this carpet. The dye loss remained. For the ones with protectors in them - if they don't get the spill or spot out, the protector simply seals them in, making a successful professional cleaning all the less likely. Certain food dyes, like kool-aid and mustards will often permanently dye carpet regardless of what you do. Acid food dyes, like found in many brightly-colored kids' drinks, are very similar to the dyes used to color carpets at the factory. Other dyes, like mustard, contain an inherent (molecular) electrical charge that actually makes them stick better, the harder you rub them. Both take some very specialized procedures to render them invisible to the eye, or at least far less noticeable. When you have a spill, again, soak up as much of it as you can, as quickly as possible. When it is as dry as you can get it, mist-spray a product like FOLEX onto the area. Using a clean, white, absorbent cloth, press and dab the area to extract the cleaner. If more of the spilled material is released, dab until dry again, then spray more FOLEX lightly on the spill. Keep dabbing, checking and spraying until it is apparent no more material is being released. If the spill is still visible (not just wet), then you should call in a professional. Remember: DO NOT RUB A SPOT. Doing so can set it permanently, and will only result in permanent fuzzing of that area of carpet, so the area will always look dirty even if the spot itself is long gone. If this does not help, cover the area to prevent drying out and call a professional as soon as possible. Remember: The BEST THING you can do for your carpet between cleanings is daily vacuuming. 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