6 Costly Misconceptions Most People Have About Carpet Cleaning
Misconception #1: You should wait as long as possible before cleaning your carpet.
No. Dirt is an abrasive, like sandpaper, scratching and dulling your carpet. Remember the
feeling of sand between your toes as you walk along a beach? Its like that every time you
step on your carpet, you grind dirt into the carpet, grinding your expensive yarns down into
those worthless fibers that fill up your vacuum bag. A dirty carpet will not last as long as a
clean carpet and every moment you wait, your carpet wears out faster!
And while vacuuming helps, by itself, it's simply not enough. The dirt causes micro-
occlusions or microscopic scratches on the carpet fibers. Dirt will stick to these scratches
and will not vacuum off. The longer you wait to have your carpet cleaned, the more damage
you do to your carpet, the faster it wears out, the more money you spend replacing carpet.
Oily residues from the street and air are bonding to the carpet. They are brought in from
your shoes, or from sweaty feet, or from the kitchen. Slightly sticky, they grab dirt and lock it
on. Soils bond with the carpet through a process called "oxidation" causing colour change,
and it becomes permanently attached. If you wait too long, you are throwing away the key to
unlocking dirt and oil form traffic lanes. Clean before traffic lanes show up! The longer you
wait between cleaning the more soiling becomes permanent.
MISCONCEPTION #1A: You should wait as long as possible before having your carpets
cleaned for the FIRST TIME!
Because of poor technicians and cleaning methods this myth has been propagated
(described in Misconception #6). Proper cleaning will remove soils and pollutants without
removing any finish from a carpet, even a 5th generation carpet. The carpet will not resoil
faster nor will spots reappear sooner. It will in fact last longer, look better, feel softer and
smell fresher.
If you waited 2 years or more before cleaning your new carpet it may indeed soil faster if
you choose not to reapply carpet protection
Carpet protectors wear off after 6 months to a year just as polish wears off a car. So after
the carpet is cleaned, you have clean, unprotected carpet, which will resoil faster than
protected carpet. It is recommended that protectant be re-applied to any carpet worth
cleaning to help preserve it.
By cleaning your carpet more frequently, i.e. on a maintenance plan, you will increase the
life span of your carpet and save money$$.
Clean your carpet for hygienics rather than for appearance.
It will be healthier and you will never see a soil build up or a traffic lane. Excessive wear
occurs when the carpet reaches the “Unacceptable Appearance Level”. It begins to wear
faster, looks dirtier more often, and will need replacement sooner. You will save money in
the long run by hiring a professional cleaner more frequently.
You can Pay NOW, or pay LATER!
It usually costs more if paid later!!.
Misconception #2: The only reason to clean carpets is to remove the dirt.
No. As you probably know, outdoor air contains pollens, fungus, bacteria, air pollution,
cigarette smoke, car exhaust and hundreds of other chemicals. When you, your family
members or friends come into your home, they carry those pollens, bacteria and chemicals
in their hair and on their skin, clothing and shoes. Not surprisingly, all those chemicals and
toxins wind up; you guessed it, in your carpet.
How long you would go before washing your underwear? How often do you wash your
kitchen floor? You clean these because of hygienics, not just because they might “look”
dirty. If you wash your kitchen floor once a week, it just makes sense to wash your carpet
once or twice a year. Clean your carpet for hygienic reasons instead of for appearance.
Is the air starting to smell stale and your allergies are acting up? If you have allergies,
asthma, emphysema, or other breathing problems, one major source of your problem could
he the pollens, fungus, smoke and chemicals in your carpet. Pollutants in the air are filtered
through your carpet. The carpet traps them so you don't breathe them over and over. But
what happens when that trap gets full? Your family starts breathing dust mite debris,
pollens, pollutants, fungus, spores, bacteria and a long list of other really gross stuff.
Tearing out the carpet is not the answer! The American EPA found that homes with carpet
are healthier, as long as they are cleaned frequently. This is because of your carpets
natural filtering ability, which traps that entire gunk, so your family doesn't breathe it over
and over. Once your carpets natural filtering ability is full it's time for a thorough cleaning for
your health's sake.
In addition, as you may know, tobacco smoke contains over 4000 different chemical
compounds, 43 of which cause cancer. And even if you don't smoke, those chemicals get
on your shoes and clothes, you track them into your home and you leave them in your
carpet. If you are sensitive to cigarette smoke, you might find that you'll breathe easier after
you hire a company to get those harmful chemicals out of your carpet.
So another important reason to clean your carpet, in addition to getting rid of the dirt, is to
get rid of pollens, fungus, bacteria, residues from tobacco smoke and other pollutants.
Misconception #3: One method of carpet cleaning is as good as another.
One method of carpet cleaning is as good as another.
No. The dry cleaning methods, which are dry foam, dry chemical, and dry compound, are
great for in-between or interim cleanings or if the carpet needs to dry immediately, however,
they do not rinse your carpet in any way, leaving soil and cleaning residue in the carpet.
You might say they clean your carpet only halfway. The most effective cleaning method is
hot water extraction.
Hot water extraction means a hot water cleaning solution, under high pressure, is forced
into your carpet and then sucked out of your carpet. Shaw industries, the world's largest
carpet manufacturer, recommends hot water extraction as the primary method of cleaning
carpets, along with an IICRC approved firm.
Carpet cleaners use one or two types of hot water extraction. If they use a large unit that
operates from a van or truck outside your facility, it's called truck-mount extraction. If they
use a small unit that can be brought inside, it's called portable extraction. Shaw's first choice
is the truck-mounted unit-and it recommends the small, portable unit only in areas where the
truck-mounted unit won't reach.
The truck-mount extraction cleans much better because it heats the water to a higher
temperature-which breaks up the dirt, bacteria, chemicals and pollens in the carpet. Then
the machine uses high suction to draw the dirt and chemicals out of your carpet. This is the
method my company uses.
Misconception #4: Having the right equipment is all a company needs to clean your
carpets properly.
Truck-mounted steam cleaning units will remove ALL the soil from the carpet.
To the contrary of many cleaner's boasting, No they will not. Only 20% of the soil trapped
by a carpet is actually stuck to the fibers and requires a specialized cleaning method, like
steam cleaning, to remove it. The other 80% is loose soil and needs to be removed by dry
vacuuming. This why the "STANDARD for CARPET CLEANING", written by the Institute of
Inspection, Cleaning, Restoration Certification (IICRC) states that:
‘prevacuuming is the first step in any cleaning method.’
If proper prevacuuming is not done the loose soil and hairs will stick to the carpet when they
get wet and the fine soil, at the bottom of the carpet, will just turn to mud.
Its like having sand or hair in your hand. When its wet it sticks like glue. When it is dry,
however, it blows off cleanly.
Wicking happens as the fine soil, now mud, gets pulled with the water up the carpet fibers
as the carpet dries. The soil that was hidden now becomes visible and the carpet may look
worse after cleaning. This is a common problem for cleaners who don't prevacuum or who
rely on the customer’s inefficient machine. It is for this reason that I insist on prevacuuming
the carpet myself with the best dry vacuum system available.
Many people use the dry methods to avoid the wicking problem, but if the carpet isn't
thoroughly vacuumed before a dry method is performed the results still won't be any better.
In fact, if the carpets do look okay after cleaning, all they've succeeded in doing is to giving
you the illusion of a clean carpet. All that soil still remains, grinding away at the carpet.
What to look for in a Good Vacuum.
"A top-fill upright vacuum with brush agitation, or a canister vacuum with a "power head"
incorporating a brush agitation should be selected and used with routine frequency." It
should have a high efficiency filtering system or bag to keep dust from being recirculated
and contributing to indoor air pollution. (STANDARD for CARPET CLEANING)
Bags should be emptied when they are HALF FULL so the vacuum can operate at peak
efficiency. When the bag is half full it loses 30% to 40% of its airflow and just won't pick up
any more soil, even though you think it is. When choosing a vacuum, don't be sucked in by
a fancy name or a low or high price. You get what you pay for BUT some salesman mark
the price up so you think you're getting a great deal when they give you a discount. If you
need a new vacuum I'll be happy to give you more advice.
Misconception #5: The company that offers the lowest price is the company you
should hire.
This may be true... but not often. Here are two important points to consider:
1) The price you see offered might not be for the services you want performed. You need to
decide what you want to accomplish before you choose a company. If all you need is for a
company to remove only the top dirt from your carpet, there are plenty of companies willing
to take your money, or you could rent a machine and do it yourself.
But should you want deep soil as well as the bacteria, fungus, pollens, dust mites and
tobacco residues removed, then you need to hire a company that is fully trained, takes the
time to prevacuum, and properly equipped with a truck mounted steam cleaning unit. This is
the only way to assure that your carpet remains healthy and free from dirt, disease-causing
bacteria, and hurtful chemicals. You won't get the lowest price but what you will get is the
best value for your hard earned dollar, saving you time and money long term.
Remember, you get what you pay for.
(2) The price you see advertised might not be the price you pay. Many homeowners have
learned the hard way that the low price they saw advertised lasted only until the carpet
cleaner got into their home. Then they were pressured into paying a lot more for a variety of
add-ons. Some carpet cleaners even break the law by using illegal bait and switch tactics.
A company can offer you THREE things:
1) Best Service
2) Best Quality
3) Best Price
But they can only offer TWO at the same time!
Misconception #6: Hot water damages your carpet and it will get dirtier faster if it is steam
cleaned.
This isn't true. The truth is you could steam clean your carpet once a week without
damage. People get this misconception because of bad technicians and improper cleaning
methods
a) Some technicians still use the ONE STEP method. They just start steam cleaning
the carpet without prepping it, cleaning with ONE solution only. The cleaning solution,
usually a very strong cleaner, is also the rinse solution. This tends to leave a soapy residue
on the carpet, which attracts more soil. As well, it is usually too strong and removes soil
resistors from 5th generation carpets. This is why some people would never clean their
carpet because they thought that steam cleaning would remove the finish from the carpet
and it would soil faster.
b) Some technicians move too fast or don’t use any soap at all. They are trained to
sell rather than clean so if they aren’t able to get any extra money from you for extras and
add-ons, they cut corners, not completely cleaning the carpet. Soiling and spots reappear
sooner.
Steam Cleaning requires a well trained technician. Like a violin played properly, it will
render the most beautiful music the ear can hear. If played improperly, well, where are the
earplugs! If a tech “screws up” with a dry method the worst that happens is the carpet isn’t
cleaned. Improper steam cleaning can and has Left A Soggy Wet Mess, physically
damaging the carpet. This is where the bad rep comes from.
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