6 costly misconceptions about carpet cleaning
MISCONCEPTION #1: You should wait as long as possible before cleaning your carpet.
No. Dirt is abrasive – like sandpaper. Every time you step on your carpet, you grind dirt into the carpet fibers. This cuts your carpet, just as if you had used a knife. This cutting causes your carpet to wear out faster. A dirty carpet will not last as long as a clean carpet. And while vacuuming helps – by itself, it’s simply not enough. The longer you wait to have your carpet cleaned, the more damage you do to your carpet and the faster it wears out.
MISCONCEPTION #2: The only reason to clean your carpet 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 come into your home, you carry those pollens, bacteria and chemicals in your hair and on your skin, clothing and shoes. Not surprisingly, all those chemicals and toxins wind up in your carpet.
If you have allergies, asthma, emphysema, or other breathing problems – one major source of your problem could be the pollens, fungus, smoke and chemicals in your carpet.
MISCONCEPTION #3: One method of cleaning is as good as another.
No. The dry cleaning methods – which are dry chemicals, and dry compound – do not rinse your carpet in any way. Instead they leave a dirty residue. You might say they clean your carpet only halfway. The most effective cleaning method for annual deep cleaning 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 IICRC approved technicians.
Carpet cleaners use one of 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 unit cleans much better because it heats the water to a high 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 main method our company uses.
MISCONCEPTION #4: Having the right equipment is all a company needs to clean your carpets properly.
Not true. Many companies own hot-water cleaners but very few companies teach their employees how to use them properly. This is why it’s important that you choose your carpet cleaner carefully. The best cleaning companies have technicians certified by the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification, known as the IICRC. Before you choose a carpet cleaner, ask to see written proof of IICRC certifications. If they don’t have them, don’t use them!
MISCONCEPTION #5: The Company that offers the lowest price is the company you should hire.
No. We’ve seen so many problems arise from the lowest-bid companies that I suggest you NEVER hire a company that quotes the cheapest price. The two most common problems are:
- The price may not be for the services you want performed. The company may be equipped to remove only the dirt from your carpet. But you may want bacteria, fungus, pollens, dust mites and tobacco residues removed as well.
- The price you see advertised may not be the price you pay. Many home owners have learned 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 cleaners even break the law by using illegal bait and switch tactics.)
MISCONCEPTION #6: Any honest carpet cleaning company should be able to give you an exact price over the telephone.
I wish this were true, but it isn’t.
Honest, reputable carpet cleaning companies almost never price carpet cleaning by the room. Instead, carpet cleaning is usually priced by the square foot. So if you’d like me to tell you the exact cost of cleaning your carpet, I need to know the exact number of square feet that you want cleaned. To get an accurate measurement, I use an electronic device to calculate the exact size of the carpet area.
On which type to choose, Shaw’s Technical Bulletin states: “[cleaning] can be done from a truck mounted unit outside the facility with only the hose and wand brought inside, or where a truck-mounted unit cannot reach, by a portable, self contained system brought into the facility.”
As you see, Shaw recommends the truck mounted unit first.
This isn’t surprising. You see, the truck mounted unit cleans much better because it heats the water to a high temperature – and shoots the cleaning solution into the carpet at higher pressure. This breaks up the dirt, bacteria, chemicals, and pollens in the carpet. Then the machine produces a huge vacuum volume to draw the dirt and chemicals out of your carpet. This is the main method our company uses.
No question, the most effective way to clean carpeting is with a hot water unit mounted in a truck. It’s the most powerful cleaning machine on the market and the only machine that cleans your carpet of dirt, harmful bacteria, fungus, chemicals, pollens, tobacco residue and dust mites.
Some people believe that hot water damages your carpet, but this isn’t true. By washing and then rinsing your carpet with hot water, we clean your carpet completely – in the same way that the person who showers and then rinses off the dirt and soap will be much cleaner than the person who takes only a sponge bath.