Cleaning Myths

The new generation of carpets is made to hide dirt. In most instances once the carpet begins showing dirt wear or traffic lane patterns, it may already be too late to restore the carpets back to original conditions. Everyday dust, dirt, body oils, and grime grind down and dull the carpet fibers.

By following our carpet care guide below your investment can be protected in the years to come.

Fallacy #1: I should wait as long as possible before cleaning my carpet.

No! Dirt is an abrasive. Every time you step on the carpet, you grind dirt deeper into your carpet fibers. This cuts your carpet, just as if you had used a knife, causing it to wear out faster and look unsightly. A soiled carpet will not last nearly as long as a clean carpet. Around 70-80% of soil is a dry particulate (dirt), therefore, frequent vacuuming is not recommended, it is required to make your carpets last longer. Part of this fallacy dates back many years ago when carpet shampooers were the norm before more traditional hot water extraction was perfected. The shampooers often left quite a bit of soap residues in the carpets as well as over wetting of the fibers causing many problems to occur such as shrinkage to the carpets and carpets getting soiled much more quickly due to the residues left in the carpets

Fallacy #2: The only reason to clean carpets is to get out 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 and your family members 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, pollens and bacteria 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, and chemicals in your carpet. In addition, as you may know, tobacco smoke contains over 3000 different chemical compounds, 42 of which cause cancer. And even if you don’t smoke, those chemicals get on your shoes, you track them in to your home and you leave them in your carpet.

 Fallacy #3: One method of carpet cleaning is as good as another.

Here are the three basic methods:

1. Chem-dry: A carbonated effervescent solution is sprayed onto the carpet. The company then sets a large cotton bonnet pad on your carpet using a rotary machine. The machine spins the bonnet pad from side to side absorbing the dirt that’s in the carpet. After the bonnet is saturated with dirt, another cotton bonnet is applied. Our company does utilize this carbonated process in certain special situations. It can be an effective method under limited conditions but is not recommended.
2. Host. This dry-compound method spreads an absorbent mixture that looks like wet sawdust all over your carpeting. Then the machine brushes the mixture into the carpet, which in theory causes dirt to absorb into the mixture. When the mixture has dried, a vacuum cleaner sucks the material out of the carpeting. Again, this can be an effective method under limited conditions but is not recommended because small amounts of the dry-compound remains in the carpet.
3. Hot Water Extraction. A hot water surfactant/detergent cleaning solution is sprayed onto the carpets, dwell time and agitation is followed and then the dirty excess water is rinsed and extracted out of the carpets. This method is sometimes referred to as steam cleaning even though true steam is not used. Shaw Industries, the world’s largest carpet manufacturer, and Mohawk both recommend hot water extraction as their choice of carpet cleaning methods available.