Clean It Up
UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: M.Acorn on December 11, 2007, 03:01:34 pm
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Hi all new to this forum,been running for nearly 4 years .Was a chef for about 18 years but was made redundant so started up on my own,been a gradual thing spent lot`s of money on ads and website listings etc but most of my work is coming from repeat business at the mo ,which means i am doing something right !
was chatting to a service engineer on Monday who had tried to clean his own carpets and made a bit of a mess of them over wetting them and using too much B109 made them sticky.he had been talking to another carpet cleaner who gave him this advice when pre spraying mix the B 109 with the pre spray and only put water in the tank of the machine as a rinse .I use Prochem steempro machine and have been trained by Prochem and was not shown this way ..I there anyone else who uses this method ?
i don`t over add chems to my tank i tend to use a bit less than Prochem specify gradually stepping up the strength for anything that won`t come out.
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Mostly using products that I pre spray, then usually requires agitation and a dwell time for it to work, then rinse with water.
In my opinion better for the carpets and better for the machine.
Some situations make me deviate from that, but few.
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whats B109?
Mike
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B109 is wool safe approved fiber and fabric rinse from Prochem.
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Have read your thread again.
Mixing cleaning fluids is something not normally recomended.
Exception could be when the "tin" says you can - this means its been tried and tested properly and the results are known.
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Mark,
I would reccommend that you only use hot water through your machine. This normally lengthens the life of your pump plus leaves no sticky residue in the carpet or fabric been cleaned.
Pre-spray with Prochem Pure Clean and rinse with plain water.
Richie.
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Ok so it`s best to prespray with just the pre spray gold let that sit for a bit then another spray with the B109 then rinse extract with just plain water ?
need to try another method i have had my machine for nearly 4 years and i am on my third Flotec pump !
Not seen Prochem pure clean but will def look out for it ,getting a bit expensive replacing pumps every year ..Cheers for the reply`s
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no that is not correct, i could swear your website says you are a proffessional carpet and upholstery cleaner...shouldn't you know this stuff by now??!!!
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Its someone else that has used the B109 mixed with the prespray as I read your post.
You probably do not have a "tin" of it in front of you but it says
"apply thro soil extraction machine as a cleaning and rinsing agent after normal cleaning or prespraying proceedure. Alternatively apply B109 by pressure sprayer after normal cleaning. Upholstery fabric should be rinse extracted or sprayed with B109 solution and then blotted with a clean white towel. DO NOT MIX B109 WITH OTHER CLEANING AGENTS"
I'll agree with what Richie said.
I have used Prochem Pure Clean, or Nemesis Super from Retormate, or M-Power from Solutions UK as a prespray and then rinse with water. Good results.
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Yes i am professional ! it`s not me that cleans like this which you will see if you read the post !
i was just saying that another carpet cleaner had told a service engineer that his method was best,something i was not taught by Prochem..Looks like i have opened a can o worms here
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Mark - sometimes we dont read correctly, or interprete correctly. I had to read a few times to get it right but hopefully the reply earlier helps you.
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Yes cheers Joe ! been looking on the prochem site and found the pure clean stuff going to get some in and give it a go ,if it makes my pump last longer with the same cleaning power then it`s all good ..
I have never had any problems with overdosing detergents to leave sticky residue or overwetting carpets either , i would rather go back the next day at my expense to have another go rather than overwet them.
I tell all my customers that if they are not 100% happy with anything that i will come and do them again f.o.c have never been called back in the 4 years i have been running ..the cleaning industry is constantly evolving new chemicals are made and new ways of cleaning come about and i just want to keep abreast of all the new stuff especially if it takes some of the expense of replacing parts out of the equation
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"no that is not correct, i could swear your website says you are a proffessional carpet and upholstery cleaner...shouldn't you know this stuff by now??!!!"
Thought that was a BIT rude, especially for your first post and no profile.
It`s remarks like this, that makes people reluctant to post.
Rab.
proffessional, ::)
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never been called back in 4 years!! hmmm , got to admit I have :-[ :-X
I dont believe, however good , thorough, vigilant you are their will not be a time when you get a call back.
sorry I find your statment hard to believe ::)
any body else never had a call back in 4 yrs? would be interesting to know, or shall I be the only one to admit it :)
Geoff
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I can honestly say i have not had a customer call me back in the 4 yrs i have been operating with regard to a bad clean , i have had 1 call back from one of my first jobs saying that the carpet was really badly buckled the day after ,turned out to be their fault for lifting 20ft down one side off the grip rail to put speaker wires back and not putting it back on the gripper.My mate was a carpet fitter so put it right for her and also charged her..I have been back to 1 job the day after to a really fussy customer as i made a small mark on her 1970`s vinyl tiled floor with the wheels of my tennant hoover , it took me 2 seconds to get it off with a green pad.. oh and i cleaned a white woolen rug on thursday prior to cleaning a lounge hall and dining room by the time i was nearly done the muck had wicked back up , it was a fireside rug..And yes that other post was a bit harsh new user also , take it easy geez ! we are all in this together after all the very fact that i am looking for new ways to improve what i do should speak volumes,,And yes re speling professional wrong didn`t wanna pick up on that as i know my spelling and punctuation is at the best of times a bit crap.. i am going to call prochem in the morning and get the info from them
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dont wurry aboat spelin i dont,
as long as peple no wot yer on about , ;D ;)
geoff
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Mark,
You've hit the ground running, with insults too top man.
I'm not a carpet cleaner but I can repair things so my suggestion is , would the pump be limescaled up?
We live in a hard water area and I'm sure the pump holds the water over night untill you switch on.
Come on everybody put me down and tell me to get back to my general cleaning section
Nick
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a year on a pump isn't too bad, there are a consumable item.
Mike
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Will have a look Nick i replaced it myself so have 1 spare that i will prob rebuild.my machine was leaking for a couple of months and was gradually getting worse had a look inside everytime i stopped using the trigger a jet of water shot out the end of the pump,had a word with service dept they said pressure switch so got 1 fitted it in their car park they let me test it in their w/shop after fitting new switch it made it 10 x worse water shooting out from a hole with small allen head screw pressure adjustment thing tried moving this to get pressure tried thread tape round it but still no joy ! so thought rather than mess about paying 40 p/hr rebuilding the head etc thought i would get another one, fitted that yesterday all working fine today until one of the vac motors burns out another 160+ also had new rocker switch on heat and run as back fell off that last week sleeve had also come off the wire inside and was shorting out burnt all the connector block inside.Need to replace prochem cables with decent rubberised stuff that does not split.. :)
Not sure about it being furred up i think that the chems have inhibitors etc in them to stop corrosion etc would prob help a great deal if i ran some plain water through it after every days work it`s the last thing on my mind when i get in late at night though,spoke to Prochem service bloke and he said none of the chems i told him i used would have an affect on pump ? think he just wants to sell me one every 12 months though..
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any body else never had a call back in 4 yrs? would be interesting to know, or shall I be the only one to admit it :)
Very few, less than a handful and they've all been picky people who think their paying for a brand new looking piece of carpet/upholstery. You know the sort....yes it was WHITE carpet 10 years ago but with the best will in the world after 3 kids and 4 dogs etc the chances of it ever going back to the origional white is ummm unlikely. But as aprt of good customer relations I will go back there and explain even do a towel test just to put minds at rest.
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Mark,
If youve done the neccesary training, and by that I mean independant training like IICRC courses or NCCA, as oposed to manufacturer/supplier influenced training who tell you which of THEIR products to use in different situations, then why bother about how others do the job. Stick with what you know. Some even use commercial washing powders and conditioners, then Protect the carpet by spraying defoamer (silicone) onto it, then tell you their method is the best!
Dave.
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Exactly what my wife said ! i think part of the reason is i know what my machine and myself are capable of so i tell the customer before i start ! especially when i do a clean that has been cleaned before and the stain is set ::)
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If your customers are happy with the job you do, and you are not getting recalls.
You are happy with what you do, and the Chemicals you use. Then sod anyone elses
method, you have found the method to suit YOU!
We all do different things in different ways, as long as the end result is the same,
IE a happy customer and money in the bank, then nothing else matters.
Along the way i've done things that should never be done, but using common sense
and care can be done.
12 Months from a Diaphragm pump is about the norm, unless you don't do much work that is.
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Yes seems like the norm on the pump ! i have been pretty busy and getting busier all the time .Going to have a go at rebuilding the head on the flotec i took out so at least i have a spare for when the current one pops.Been an expensive week for me as 2 days after fitting the pump one of the vac motors burnt out nasty smell lot`s of smoke and sparks ! why does it always wait till just before yule to pop though ! law of the sod .
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Not really worth rebuilding pump heads, i used to but
it's better to just buy a new head.
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Ok cheers thanks for the advice ! won`t bother with trying that then :D
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Never had a call back because i qualify before starting ;D
If a mark/stain will not safely remove in one hit, then tell customer first ....................... i charge for return visit as it states in my T&C ;)
A painter would not apply two coats of paint to a graffiti'd wall when he only charged for one and advised it would not cover it :o