GREAT REASONS TO HAVE THE LARGEST FILTER IN YOUR HOME CLEANED

1)      Sand is scratching & dulling your carpet.  Oily residues from the street and air are sticking to your carpet. It’s grinding your expensive carpet yarns into those worthless fibers that fill up your vacuum bag. Soils bond with the carpet through a process called “oxidation” causing color to change, and becoming permanently attached. Clean before traffic lanes show up! The longer your wait between cleaning the more the soiling becomes permanent. New carpeting is a major investment!  Everyone knows it costs thousands of dollars to install new carpet in a home.  Many homeowners replace carpeting years before they should have to because they don’t do the one sure thing that will protect their carpet investment – they don’t clean it.

2)      The air your family breathes.  The Environmental Protection Agency found that homes with carpet are healthier, as long as they are cleaned frequently. Did you realize your family spends much of their time indoors?  Everyone is concerned about clean outdoor air, but with so much time spent inside, it only makes sense to want clean indoor air too!  Your carpeting performs a very important “Clean Air” function. Carpet filters the air your family breathes by collecting and trapping air pollutants. Carpet traps dirt, pollens, tars, allergens, and all types of airborne bacteria. Just like any filter, your carpet must be cleaned on a regular basis or it quits filtering. Then when someone walks over carpet, pollutants get re-dispersed into your air. You and your family breathe them, over and over. Indoor air is trapped. Rarely does it get completely replaced. That is why indoor air can be more polluted than outdoor air. EPA studies of human exposure to air pollutants indicate that indoor air levels of many pollutants may be 2-5 times, and occasionally more than 100 times higher than outdoor levels.

3)      Precious little ones.  From tiny tots, to not so tiny tots, when children are crawling on the carpet you need to make sure nothing is crawling on them. Dirty carpet is a perfect breeding ground for all kinds of nasty critters and bacteria. You can’t see them, but if your carpet has not been cleaned recently, they’re there. Dirty carpet is home to over one hundred different varieties of dust mites alone!  Protect your precious little ones with clean carpeting.

4)      Allergy and cold sufferers.  Mold + mildew + dust + pollens + bacteria = itchy, red, watering eyes and runny noses! Regularly scheduled professional carpet cleaning is a must if you or any member of your family suffers from allergies of frequent cold symptoms. Clean carpet may not cure the common cold or rid you of your allergies – but clean carpet can help reduce allergy and cold symptoms. Quit suffering! Have your carpets cleaned at six to twelve month intervals.

SUGGETION FOR IMMEDIATELY IMPROVEMENT OF YOUR INDOOR AIR QUALITY

1. Keep Walkway and entries clean – Start by keeping outside sidewalks, entry areas, porches and steps clean. Sweep, dust, vacuum or use a leaf blower to remove soil and debris from entries to eliminate tracking into the facility. 
2. Use mats to trap soil at entries – Outside and interior mats to trap and contain particles and moisture should be placed at each entry. This not only extends the life of carpet, it greatly reduces the quantity of particles that enter and build up within traffic areas, eventually becoming airborne.
3. Clean shoes at entries – Studies conducted by professional engineers on carpet dust samples indicate that fine particles containing lead are reduced by cleaning or removing and leaving shoes at the entry.
4. Purchase and use high quality vacuum equipment – A quality, durable upright vacuum with brush agitation is a must. Check trade or consumer magazines and expect sales persons to provide technically accurate information. Also check the Carpet and Rug Institute’s list of vacuums that have passed the Green Label Program at: www.cri-rug.com.
5. Use high efficiency vacuum filter bag – The use of high-efficiency (HEPA-type) double-lined vacuum filter bags that filter out 99% of particles down to one micron or less in size is highly recommended. Avoid cheap paper filter bags that remove particles down to seven microns only. Small particles that pass easily through paper filter bags are a major source of respiratory irritation, as well as household dust.
6. Vacuum frequency – Increase the frequency of vacuuming before soils sift downward and become embedded in the carpet pile. Vacuuming should be done more slowly in entry areas where most particle soils accumulate. Traffic areas should be slowly passed over two or three times.
7. Clean the carpet – Hire a carpet cleaning professional who is trained and certified by the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification. Look for an IICRC certified technician at www.iicrc.com.
8. Control moisture and humidity – Dust mites and mold are the two most common allergens present in higher humidity climates. According to studies, dust mite infestation will be eliminated if the relative humidity of the building, not just a particular area, is consistently maintained below 50 percent. Molds, which are classified as fungi, require humidity of 70% or higher and a food source of organic-based material to grow. Cooler surfaces, which may have a relative humidity near 100%, create a perfect breeding area for mold. By reducing and maintaining the relative humidity of structure below 50 percent, both dust mite infestation and mold growth will be prevented.

SPOT CLEAN YOUR CARPET, HERE IS HOW

It is not always necessary to clean an entire carpeted area to remove a small spot or spill. However, improper spot cleaning may result in setting stains and abrading your carpets. It is important to learn how to correctly spot clean carpeting in order to protect its value and appearance.

Please use the following techniques to remove spots.

Time is of the essence; so the sooner a spot is attended to, the better. Always treat spots as soon as possible.  If the spot is still moist, blot as much as possible, dabbing lightly with a clean white towel or a paper towel.  Scrape off any solids with a spatula. If the spot is dry, loosen with a spotting spatula and then thoroughly vacuum. If the spot dries it may lock into the dye sites of the carpet fiber. If that happens the spot will likely be permanent. 

Always pre-test the surface to be cleaned. Apply a cleaning solution to an inconspicuous area of the carpet.  If after 5 minutes the carpet color transfers to the towel, discontinue its use and try another solution.

No matter how convincing the pitch-men are on television, there is no such thing as an all-purpose, magic carpet spotter. Yes, there are certain chemicals that can remove a wide range of spots and spills, but not all spots. If certain spot cleaning chemicals are applied to the wrong spill the spot will be set as a permanent stain.    

No matter what you are removing, or which chemicals you are working with one rule is the same, do not scrub a spot, blot! Begin the spot removal process by blotting excess material. When taking out spots always use a clean white towel. Do not pour cleaning solution directly on the carpet. First apply an appropriate cleaning solution to a white towel and then place the towel on the carpet. Working from the outside of the spot to the inside, use a blotting motion. Repeat as long as the spot is transferring to the towel. The temptation to scrub is always there. You must understand that scrubbing will un-twist fibers and make a mess of your carpet. If the carpet is scrubbed too vigorously it may suffer a wear spot that looks worse than the spot that was originally there.