The Cleaning System:
The most Qualified Cleaner in the world can use different
carpet cleaning systems. He knows they are not equal. A less experienced carpet cleaner can clean your carpets with the ultimate
cleaning system and do a lousy job. The best system needs experienced handling.
At one point, many years ago, I
was cleaning carpets using a dry (or low moisture) style cleaning system. I liked the idea of not over wetting a carpet.
Generally, I always improved the look of every carpet that I worked on and I sincerely thought that I did a great job. One day I was working on a very soiled white carpet and just happened to have a portable wet cleaning system in my
van, which was not that powerful at all—similar to the type you can rent. Always looking to improve and test my work, I decided to compare their cleaning abilities.
To my surprise, the wet method gave me better looking results.
The carpet was much brighter! Soon after that, I started cleaning with a portable wet cleaning system with special tools which
gave me great results. Since May 2001, I have been using a powerful truck-mounted system using those same special tools
giving me even better results.
There are mainly three cleaning
methods on the market now. They are the Dry Cleaning (low moisture) Method, the Portable Wet Cleaning System,
and the Truck-mounted Wet Cleaning System.
Dry Cleaning Method:
There are a few types of dry cleaning
methods. The most common type is to spray a cleaning solution on the carpet and than use a rotary machine, with
a cloth covering, to agitate the carpet and absorb the solution and soil. Using this method is appropriate in many situations
because of quick drying time and the simplicity of the equipment.
In my opinion, this is a surface cleaning. It works well on carpets that are in decent condition. It is not the best method for a very soiled
carpet. I believe this method can make about 75% of the people happy. Although one of the most common
complaints I hear is that the carpet doesn’t look great after a couple weeks.
Portable Wet Cleaning Method:
Before truck-mounted cleaning and
dry cleaning, portable wet cleaning was a popular method used by many carpet cleaners. There
aren’t many companies who use this method any more. Generally a company will use equipment that is superior to the portable equipment that you can rent. Using this method
is appropriate in many situations. Its’ portability gives you the ability to access some places that a truck-mounted
system would not be able to get to. It is a good choice in some circumstances. I refer some callers to a good local company,
who uses this method, when I can’t access their home.
Truck-Mounted Wet Cleaning Method:
If you ever look through the yellow
pages in the carpet cleaning category, you’ll notice that this is the dominant method and for a good reason. The carpet
manufacturers suggest this method. Generally, a truck-mounted system includes higher pressured cleaning solutions, a strong
vacuum, and high heat. All of these factors aid in a superior and thorough cleaning.
All truck-mounted systems are not
equal. Some use your water. Some are self-contained (with a fresh water tank). Some are powered by a separate engine inside
the van—which means the vehicle doors have to be open and the noise level is high. Others are powered by the van
engine—which means the doors can be shut and the noise level is lower.
For the most part, many of the
good companies and large companies out there have a truck-mount system that is sufficient in high solution
pressure, vacuum strength, and high heat.
We use a truck-mounted
system that is self-contained (has a fresh water tank and a recovery tank) and is powered by the van engine in which we can
close all the doors and windows which will lower the noise level.
Which method would you like used
on cleaning your carpets? Which method do you think is going to give you a superior job? Do you think they are equal?