Anyone who has spent time cleaning carpets knows the approach to cleaning a carpet/rug, you should follow 5 basic actions:
* Removal of dry land
* Floor suspension
* Soil extraction
* Hair placement (finishing or preparation)
* drying
For the sake of this conversation, I’ll skip to the second bullet point because I really think this is where operators have a distinct advantage over other methods. Regarding the suspension of the floor, what we can do is use:
* chemical action
* heat
* hustle
* time to maximize removal. And as you’ll see, some steps carry more weight than others.
chemical action
Our first step in soil suspension is to use products that reduce surface tension and dissolve the various soils (chemical action). What is different about OPers is that when we use encapsulation we are emulsifying some dirt, but generally we are growing macroscopic/bulk particles for vacuuming. I maintain that this is a great approach that works quite well. However, when we use colloidal chemistry products (like Orbit Natural and Abstraction) we are using a “technology” that most other cleansers overlook.
Dirt and grime on carpets are layers of thin films made up of grease, oil, grease, bacteria, dust mites, and fur, etc. These films are bound to each other and to the surface of the carpet fiber by amino acids and fatty acids. Most cleaners emulsify some of these films, but they don’t break down the amino acids and fatty acids that attract more dirt to the carpet. Colloidal chemistry cleaners use plant-based ingredients to remove these films and acids.
Nanoparticles called micelles that represent the active ingredient in the products effectively cut carbon bonds in organic molecules and emulsify organic matter. Oil, grease, and urine are safely broken down, suspended, and removed from the carpet fibers. The rapid degradation of organic waste causes a significant reduction in the unpleasant odor caused by the naturally slow process of decomposition, and the reduction of organic waste will cause a decrease in the population of disease-carrying insects. Our OP process returns the bounce to the carpet fiber and effectively removes organic soils without damaging the textile fibers.
Elevated temperature (heat)
Heat reduces the surface tension of the water and allows for faster and more efficient cleaning than cold water. It is simply a matter of thermodynamics: heat accelerates the molecular activity of the chemicals used and therefore helps in the separation of unwanted material from the fibres. The problem here is that our first step, either encapsulation or colloidal chemistry, does a great job of either isolating the dirt as a bulk particle or emulsifying the dirt thoroughly and therefore eliminating the need to generate heat at through a large amount of hot water.
Hustle
Agitation is required to achieve uniform penetration and distribution of the chemical throughout the carpet. In the absence of agitation, the soil suspension tends to be non-uniform, which is often indicated by streaking of soil after the removal process. Again, what’s great for operators is that our equipment offers aggressive agitation that other carpet cleaners can’t provide. The best a “steam cleaner” can do is comb through the preconditioning chemicals. The other option would be to employ a hood/OP machine prior to HWE, but this approach would be too labor-prohibitive, as well as cost-ineffective.
Time
Regardless of the cleaning technique, we all have time, but it is often the least considered when it comes to getting dirt suspended. Those stains on the carpet did not appear overnight, they were deposited and compacted over time, so we must give the products time to perform their chemical action. Let “dwell time” be your friend and get proper fiber penetration and maximum soil suspension will occur. If in doubt, follow the chemical manufacturer’s instructions.
Miguel
centex green
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http://twitter.com/centexgreen
