Orlando Carpet Cleaning tips

Orlando Upholstery Cleaning Tips

2011-05-26T08:41:00.000-07:00

Do I Need a Stain Protector applied after I Clean my upholstery?

The Kind of Protection You Never Hear About

Unfortunately, there is probably as much confusion in the Orlando upholstery cleaning industry about stain protectors as there is about cleaning. Uneducated, uninformed upholstery cleaners cause a great deal of confusion by giving out false information or intentionally misrepresenting the product.

Stain-protector is made with two protective properties: The first is an acid dye blocker that is basically a clear dye that fills the extra dye sites in a fiber. This helps to keep “foreign” dyes (such as red dye in a beverage) from penetrating the textile fiber. The second property is called a “fluorochemical”. It is commonly known as 3M Scotchgard ® or DuPont Teflon ®. This treatment helps keep spillage from actually getting to the acid dye blocker, but its biggest job is to resist dry soil.

By resisting dry soil, less soil bonds to the fabric, therefore being picked up by your vacuum or cleaning. Making sure that you have a sufficient amount of protector on your upholstery will help keep the soil from bonding to the fabric

Cleaning carpet for Health and Face This Allergy Season With A Smile!

2011-05-17T12:28:00.000-07:00

It’s Spring cleaning time of year again….the birds are singing, the sun is shining, the flowers will be blooming, the eyes will be itching, the nose will be running…aaaaahhhh allergy season is upon us.

But, before you pull out the box of tissues and the allergy meds remember….There are proven things you can do to eliminate some allergen at their source and reduce your allergies! “Why people develop allergies remains a mystery in the medical community. Until we know more about allergies the best line of defense is to eliminate the offending agents.” – peacefulmind.com Then it goes on to list some of the “offending agents” several of which are found in most homes today: dust mites, pollens, and mold. We all know what mold is and mold spores can even be found in your carpets. And we all know what pollens are and that they can come in through open doors and windows (even be tracked in) and settle in your home and carpets. But in case you don’t know what a dust mite is, they are microscopic little creatures (bug like) that wander in your fabrics and carpets. The living mites are not the offenders, it’s their fecal matter and the bodies of dead mites that most people are allergic to. (I know I’m grossed out too!) That means…There are many allergy offenders living in your own home! So far I haven’t given you much to smile about have I?

Well you can face the allergy season with a smile if you take a proactive approach to the season. Don’t let allergens in your own home irritate your allergies that may already be flared up by the hay fever of Springtime. Get your carpets cleaned properly and professionally and you will eliminate the pollens, molds and dust mite matter that can make your allergies go from bad to worse.

The EPA has this advice, “Keep the house clean. House dust mites, pollens, animal dander, and other allergy-causing agents can be reduced…through regular cleaning.”

So smile you can reduce your allergies by removing common allergens at the source. Remember, your carpet is like a big “filter” that traps pollutants and allergens. But that “filter” gets full and redistributes allergens back into the air with every step you take. If it’s been more than 6-12 months since you had your carpets cleaned your “filter” (carpet) is probably full. If you want to take steps toward reducing allergens found in your home then pick up the phone and call me at 407-862-9514 right now.

Phone Price or In home Price!

2010-04-08T16:19:00.000-07:00

Reader Mary sent an email saying that she had recently gotten estimates from 2 companies.
Company A made a trip to her house to quote her a price. The person doing the bidding may or may not have the carpet cleaning truck along, waiting for her to give the final OK and start cleaning or He schedules an appointment for a later date, assuming she agrees and requests his services.
Company B, on the other hand, quotes by phone. A phone quote is given, although Mary described the price as very good, Mary then schedules several days later with Company B. Mary thought that Company B phone quote was final and was ready to do the cleaning. She described the experience as a "horror story. This brings up an interesting point. Consumers have heard horror stories of getting phone quotes and then being nickeled and dimed with up-charges for every little thing. That's the fault of both parties--but mostly the cleaner, there are a lot of cleaning companies that quote a very low price on the phone to get in the door knowing full well that they will have to change the quote to a much higher price when they arrive at the location. Consumers on the other hand hear what they want to hear, they should ask about possible incidental charges, especially if they have pet stains or problem areas. Most companies charge extra for urine stains, deodorizing, stairs, furniture moving, and more.
I can understand why Mary is cautious. Some unscrupulous cleaners (Bait and Switchers) advertising ridiculous low pricing will charge extra for everything once they arrive at your home, including dirty carpet, calling it a "restorative" clean rather than a "maintenance" clean. "Sometimes the restorative clean is triple or a whole lot more than the original price phone quote at those kinds of companies, Berber carpets and L-shaped rooms might merit an upcharge at those places too.
The final price should be given before any of the cleaning starts and the customer can decline the service at that point, with no pressure and no charge.
Mary has a legitimate beef that phone quotes can be artificially low. If Both offer the same carpet cleaning alternative and accurate firm quote is a concern for you, insist on a home quote. Don't be a victim of a "horror story" because a company offers an unrealistic low phone quotes, just to get in the door and uses high pressure sales when they get to your home. As long as they are accurate in their phone quote, I have no problems with that.

Client review from Lawrence and Rebecca Davis

2009-12-29T18:19:00.000-08:00

Five Stars on the job that was done on our bathroom and Kitchen Tile and grout floors. We moved in 3 years ago and we have never seen our floor look as as it does now.

Extending the life of your Fine fabrics

2009-11-01T07:25:00.000-08:00

How to Care for Your Upholstery & Draperies

Rotate all loose cushions frequently to assure even wear. Vacuum dust & dirt from all fabric, cracks & crevasses. By far, Fabric Protection is the best possible way to extend the life of your upholstery.
- Vacuum often to reduce grit that can cause abrasion.
- Reverse loose cushions weekly for even wear.
- Protect from the sun. Ultraviolet light can cause deterioration.
- Keep Pets off of furniture. Pet's body oils rub off and are very difficult to remove.
- Use caution with clothing such as Blue Jeans. Fabric dyes can transfer onto upholstered furniture.
All upholstered furniture will become soiled through use. Most spills & soil on fabric protection treated upholstery will clean easily and quickly provided that the proper cleaning procedures are followed. A fabric protection application is not an absolute impenetrable barrier and improper cleaning methods can damage both the fabric and the treatment.
Blot (don't rub) spills immediately with a clean absorbent cloth while spill is still fresh. Dried spills are more difficult to remove.
Identify the cleaning code for your type of fabric. This is very important to determine the type of cleaner to use.
Always read & follow the instructions on the cleaning agent.
Use distilled water with the cleaning agent if water is called for (W & WS Codes Only)
Pretest any cleaner on any fabric in a hidden area. Check for Color fastness and fabric compatibility.
Keep a small spill small. Work lightly, blotting from center to the edges. "Feather" the edges by dampening edges irregularly and blotting quickly to avoid rings.
Quickly dry a cleaned spot using a small fan or blow dryer on low.
Professional Fabric Protector After your fabric is cleaned, it will need to be protected. Fabric Protector keeps keep your fabric cleaner longer and helps avoid permanent staining. Don’t leave your fabric unprotected. The protector will be sprayed evenly onto the fabric and brushed in. Your next cleaning will be more effective as the protector will “encapsule” body oils and soils that accumulate on the fabric. When it is cleaned, more soil will be removed as a result of the treatment.

Rust Removal

2009-06-07T06:33:00.000-07:00

Rust Removal

When rusting begins, a lot of problems go prominent. One such problem is rust stain.

Rusted iron looks like reddish-brown dust particles. These particles are very loosely attached with main metal figure and easily attach to any adjacent surface. Anything that comes into contact with rusted metal gets stained easily. Always protect damp carpet or fabric from contact with metal, plastic is your best defense.

Upholstery:

Are you using wrought iron furniture at home? Keep checking the upholstery frequently. If the furniture begins to rust, the upholstery fabric or leather easily catches rust stain.

And it is very difficult to clean upholstery fabric as you cannot remove it from the chair or sofa set for washing. 1 option left in your hand is to replace it! Costly.

However, spray based rust stain remover can be an easy solution here. Just spray the solution or dab it on the stained area with a white cotton towel and wait for some time. Patches are going to vanish soon.

Carpet:

Carpet is very much likely to get moistened. Being spread all over the floor it can get damped any time and the moisture is locked inside.

The legs of iron chair and the base of iron furniture are in constant contact with the carpet. The moisture content of the carpet would result in rusting of the metal and the carpet itself would get stained.

Again a spray based rust stain remover can be an easy solution here. Just spray the solution or dab it on the stained area and wait for some time. Patches are going to vanish soon.

2009-04-29T17:05:00.000-07:00

Coffee and tea stain removal
Anyone involved in carpet cleaning often find success when removing coffee or tea spills — if the job comes relatively soon after the spill occurs.
But allowing days to pass, and the coffee, tea or wine stain is one tough job.
These stains appear to become permanent in the carpet. The best cleaning technique often shows limited success.
Why so tough?
Coffee, tea are difficult to remove because of the high temperature of the spill and added substances in the beverage
Plain, black coffee removal is one thing; black coffee with added cream and sugar is another.
In addition to this, some decaffeinated coffees often have artificial colors added to give it a richer look. Other, organic and non-caffeine coffees also can have artificial colors added. Artificial coloring can be tough to remove.
When performing spot or stain removal with coffee or tea that has flavorings added, you often have to use protein spotters (typically alkaline spotting agents) for those substances in addition to the basic coffee spill.
And then there are the tannins in beverage spills. Tannins are found in beverages such as:
Coffee
Tea
Wine
Beer and other alcoholic drinks
Fruit juices
Colas
Cocoa
Tomato juice
And more
Tannin is a natural occurring vegetable dye found in many plants especially grape skin, tea leaves, bark and stalk of vegetation. It is responsible for the "bitter" taste of red wine and some coffees — a good thing, as long as it isn't spilled onto the carpet.
When coffee or tea or other beverages with tannins are spilled onto carpet, the heat of the beverage "opens up" the fiber and allows it to penetrate, at times penetrating through any fabric protection in the carpet. However, the better the stain Protector in the carpet, the better your chances of complete stain removal.
These hot spills bond with the fiber and removal is difficult, especially after a day or two have passed - or weeks or months, which can be the case.
What to do?
The first step of removal is to clean the spot or stain with a quality detergent, which will help remove added substances.
Do not use real soap, as soap can set the tannins or at least make them more difficult to remove. Although the cleaning industry uses detergents and not real soap, you may feel tempted to grab a bar of soap and use it on the stain. That's a mistake.
After applying the detergent, work it into the spot or stain and allow dwell time; then extract the spot or stain.
What is left behind is probably a tannin stain.
Next, apply a tannin stain remover (tannin stain removers are acid-based detergents, which work by dissolving the tannin for easier removal), work it into the stain, and allow to dwell for several minutes. Extract the spot and inspect.
If you still have a stain, it's time to use a color-safe bleach. When the going gets tough…
There are two schools of thought with removing the remaining coffee or tea stain.
Some profesional cleaners recommend using a reducing agent; another say an oxidizing agent is best.
Often, either one will work fine. The bleaching action of these products removes the discoloration.
Choosing a reducing agent is smart if you are in a hurry. Reducing agent action can be seen very quickly, while an oxidizing agent takes more time.

5 Reasons Why You Should Always Get Carpet Protector

2009-04-11T11:49:00.000-07:00

1. Reduces permanent stains. A great looking carpet can be ruined by an ugly spot. Unprotected carpet doesn’t repel spillage as well as protected carpet. Being able to remove spots and spills more effectively, you can avoid permanent staining.

2. Helps save your traffic areas from becoming destroyed. Traffic area soil is very abrasive and cuts carpet yarns like a knife. This damaging soil can easily bond to an unprotected carpet. By applying protector, you will increase the life of your carpet dramatically. When you vacuum your protected carpet the soils will release from the carpet pile much more effectively.

3. Make spots easier to remove. The easier a spot is to remove, the less cleanly you will have to use. The less agitation you will have to use, and the less time it will take. Many spots can be removed easily with just water.

4. Makes your next professional cleaning more effective. Having protector applied to your carpet will enhance your next cleaning. More soil will be removed the next time your carpeting is professionally cleaned.

5. Helps avoid costly service calls. Although you want to call us out to handle any spot you cannot remove immediately, carpet protector helps you remove more spots than you could without protector. You may be able to save a minimum charge by removing the spot yourself.

The result of having protector applied to your carpet is that you carpet will look better and last longer.

WHY AREA RUGS ARE MORE DIFFICULT TO CLEAN…

2008-11-10T14:58:00.000-08:00

Reason why area rugs are more difficult to clean
Because of the dense pile construction of area rugs, dirt particles work their way down through the fibers - to the backing foundation of the rug where they cannot be removed by ordinary vacuuming.
This loose grit wreaks havoc on your rug’s delicate fibers, causing a cutting abrasive action as you walk on the rug. Abrasion accounts for fiber loss (wear) and embedded soil stains.
Other types of soil including food particles and pet oils “hide” in the dense pile, making your rugs an ideal haven for germs, bacteria, and other nasty creatures such as dust mites!
Dust mites are too small to be seen but are the most common cause of year-round allergy and asthma. They live in mattresses, pillows, carpets, rugs, furniture, bedcovers, and clothes – anywhere they can feed on dead flakes of human skin.
All foreign pollutants in your rugs should be removed by professional cleaning on a regular basis to keep your rugs “healthy”.
Use a unique and thorough high-volume clear water rinse extraction process. You see, the amount of water used to clean area rugs is directly proportional to the amount of soil removed in the rinsing process.