The 7 Biggest Secrets about the Carpet Cleaning Industry

Make sure you do your research. Unfortunately, many companies take advantage of the fact that it is an unregulated industry and don’t use proper carpet cleaning techniques, resulting in potential issues for the customer’s carpet. Ensure that the company you choose is certified by the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) and that the company has performed police checks on all of its employees.

We know that some companies use sub-contractors, which means that the carpet cleaning company you thought you’d hired has little control over the work being done. This also means that the cleaning company could be relying on the sub-contractor’s insurance should anything go wrong, which could cause a number of issues for the customer.

Often companies with extremely low pricing have a sneaky way of adding to the price. The standard-sized room their prices are based on are tiny, so you’ll be charged extra when the technician measures your room. Beware of extras too, which ‘unexpectedly’ pop up during the clean. Get an agreed upon price at the time of the quote; an experienced technician will tell you before starting the job if extra work is required. This extra work may include stain treatment and costs for larger rooms.

The steam cleaning process includes pumping water into your carpet and extracting that water out with the dirt and grime. ¬A steam clean will work well if performed correctly. Unfortunately, many carpet cleaners leave too much water behind and the carpet can take 24 hours or longer to dry.

As experts we know your carpet should be dry 8 hours after cleaning because:

Let’s talk about pH levels. The pH level of a substance is measured by its acidity or alkalinity, which is crucial to an effective carpet clean. Why? When carpet is manufactured, acid dyes are often added during the colouring process.

A carpet cleaner who knows their stuff should assess the pH level of a stain to treat it properly. In general terms, an acidic solution to treat an alkaline stain and vice versa. During the carpet cleaning process, an experienced carpet cleaning technician will generally use an alkalic cleaner so they should use an acidic conditioning rinse to neutralize the cleaning solutions. This is really similar to the process of washing your hair with shampoo and following up with conditioner.

Here’s what you need to know. The contaminants in your carpet are generally made up of 50% dry soil (dirt), 2 – 4% Wet Soils (mud) and 46 – 48% oily soils.

Pre-vacuuming is important because if the dry soil is left in the carpet, the water used during the process will turn it into mud.

Did you know that your carpet cleaner must warrant their workmanship? It is a consumer law that many companies avoid by telling the customer that because they signed off on a job, the warranty doesn’t apply. They may also only provide you with a day to complain about the poor quality of the job.

The carpet cleaning company you choose must provide reasonable time for you to lodge a complaint.