WARNING: Don't Hire a Carpet Cleaner Before Reviewing This Information!
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 | The Carpet Cleaning Quiz (3 questions you must know the answers to!) |
| Common Carpet Cleaning Misconceptions |
| Questions You Must Ask Before Hiring a Cleaner! |
Welcome to the Nu-Way Systems’ carpet cleaning quiz. The first quiz question is— How often should I clean my carpets? Is it
A) Not until they look dirty
B) Once per year
C) At regular 6 to 9 month intervals
Let’s look at the answers starting with "A". A tan residential grade carpet can hide up to one pound of dirt per square foot before it looks soiled. Knowing this we’d have to rule out "A" as an answer—in fact if you wait to clean your carpets until you see soiling you’ll be doing irreparable harm to the fibers shortening your carpet’s useful life by years. Just think of the hidden dirt and grime grinding away at your carpet’s fibers every time someone walks across it. This is the main reason unsightly wear patterns develop in hallways and entryways.
Answer "B", once a year, is a reasonable answer if your carpets are subjected to minimal use.
The best answer for households where children or pets are present, or especially for carpeting in high traffic areas, such as the most used rooms in your house, is "C", 6 to 9 months. To protect your carpet investment, clean every 6 to 9 months.
On to the next question—
The most important reason to have my carpeting cleaned is? —A) To maintain its appearance
B) To extend my carpet’s useful life
C) To protect my manufacturer’s warranty
D) To improve indoor air quality for my family
If you answered a, b, or c you would be correct. Cleaning for any of these reasons is important. However answer "D", Cleaning to improve indoor air quality, may be the best of the four reasons for cleaning your carpet. Carpeting traps all kinds of harmful air pollutants. We not only track in dirt from outside; we also track in tar and chemicals, smoke, car exhaust, and all the other outdoor pollutants you can imagine. Not to mention the skin and hair follicles our pets and we humans deposit among our carpet fibers. It’s no wonder carpet serves as a breeding ground for bacteria, allergens, and dust mites.
Recent studies have shown carpet’s ability to filter all of these pollutants from the air we breathe is a real plus. Of course, just like any other filter, we’ve got to keep it clean for it to work. By cleaning your carpets on a regular schedule you will improve your family’s indoor environment as well as have beautiful, long-lasting carpets.
And on to the final quiz question—
The best carpet cleaning method is? —A) Absorbent Compound, also known as dry cleaning
B) Dry Foam cleaning
C) Shampoo cleaning
D) Extraction cleaning
The first three methods, absorbent compound, dry foam, and shampoo are effective ways to "appearance clean" carpeting. Appearance cleaning maintains the appearance of high-traffic areas of carpeting primarily associated with commercial buildings such as office complexes, shopping malls and such. If your goal is to deep clean your carpet removing the deposited dirt, pollutants, allergens and bacteria, then none of these three methods are recommended. The only method recommended by the nation’s leading carpet manufacturers and the IICRC for deep, restorative cleaning is answer "D"—extraction cleaning. This is the method used by Nu-Way Systems to deep clean your carpets and restore a healthy indoor environment for your family.
That’s the end of the quiz. You now know how often to clean your carpet—we recommend every 6 to 9 months for most households and especially for those with children or pets. You also know that a clean carpet is vital to improving the quality of the indoor air your family breathes. And, you now know that the extraction method of carpet cleaning is the most thorough.
Common Misconceptions Surrounding Carpet Cleaning Misconception number one—
All carpet cleaning companies are about the same. Unfortunately, the carpet cleaning business is like many service businesses in that it abounds with quick- buck artists and with the uninformed, who believe carpet cleaning is nothing more than spraying down some soap and vacuuming it back up with any old piece of equipment. On the other hand, quality carpet cleaning companies invest heavily in learning the science of carpet cleaning and teaching their technicians. Quality companies own professional equipment and use the safest and most effective cleaning solutions to clean your carpets. True professionals take the time to diagnose your carpet problems and then make recommendations to return your carpet to like-new condition. Misconception number two—
Price should be the determining factor in hiring a carpet cleaner. We have all seen the ads—$9.95 per room for carpet cleaning, or clean your entire house for only $49.95.
Common sense tells us no reputable firm can afford to hire and train technicians, buy and maintain equipment and service vehicles, pay all the other overhead that a small business has, and still generate a profit by sending a well equipped and trained crew to your home all for only $9.95. Are there hidden catches in these types of ads? —you bet there are! They’re called "Bait and Switch" and hidden fees. If you elect to hire someone making an offer that sounds to good to be true then be prepared for the real sales pitch to start when they enter your home.
If your goal is to get your carpeting deep cleaned removing all the contaminants we discussed earlier, then expect to pay a price on par with what other professional service people charge. You wouldn’t take your car to a shade-tree mechanic for a $9.95 tune-up, or trust in a technician’s expertise to clean your furnace or repair your appliances if they charged so little. Your suspicion of the quality of their work would prevent you from doing business with these low-price operators. Hiring a carpet cleaner is no different—expect to get what you pay for. Hire a carpet cleaner based on their experience, their willingness to answer your questions, their references, a firm written price quote, and their guarantee.
Misconception number three—Since all carpets are pretty much the same and my cleaning requirements are similar to everyone else’s, I can hire a cleaner over the phone by simply shopping the yellow page listings.
First of all please understand that everyone’s carpet cleaning needs are not the same. The procedure required to deep clean your particular carpet and return it to like-new condition depends on many factors—most of which cannot be determined over the phone. Fiber composition, age, wear, types of stains, repair requirements, prior cleaning methods used, pets or smokers in the home, and most importantly—your expectations—are all factors that must be considered by the professional cleaner. Only then can the correct cleaning procedures be determined and explained, and can you be given an accurate price quote. A cleaner’s willingness to inspect your carpet prior to giving you a bid is the sign of a real pro. Don’t except per room or per square-foot bids over the phone, it’s a sure prescription for a disappointing job.
Questions to ask a carpet cleaner before allowing them into your home to clean your carpeting.
Question Four: What is your guarantee?
Question Five: Do you provide a written price quote?
Question Six: Will you inspect my carpet without charge to tell me exactly what needs to be done?
Read about Nu-Way Systems’ Carpet Cleaning Process
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