[Macarthur]

Hi there,

This is my first ever post on this forum. I have been full time with Domestic / Commercial general cleaning and carpet / upholstery and patio cleaning for around just four months now.

I have a slight problem, and I need some advice from some more experienced carpet cleaning pro`s.

About a few weeks ago I went to clean a carpet for a Cartridge World shop aprox: 12 miles from where I live.

When I arrived I saw that the main area of concern had some quite large patches of spilt ink over it.  The manager asked me if there was any way these marks will come up, to which I then told him I will test with various stain and spot removers ( Prochem and Craftex ) using cloths that I happened to have with me at the time. I was satisfied at the time that enough had come out. I then made an appointment to come back with my carpet cleaning machine ( Truvox President ) to do a full carpet clean.
The job seemed to go quite smoothly and the vast majority of the ink came out, although it was hard work and took several hours.

At the end of the evening there, once completed, I thanked them, they thanked and paid me as is the usual case.  They seemed pleased enough with the results.

To my surprise however the next day I got call from the manager telling me that all of the ink marks had come back and could I go back to see for myself.

  This I did and yes he was indeed right. Many but not all of the marks had come back over night.

Not wanting a dissatisfied customer on my hands I agreed with him to come back free of charge and give it another go. With which I did after arranging a suitable time with them.

Again the job seemed to go very well, made sure I was as thorough as I could be, the marks came up. But yes you`ve all guest, I received another phone call from the friendly manager again. The marks have come back and can I came back to see for myself again.

I am due to go back later this week to see again for myself. I feel I have done this job to the overall best of my ability.

Please help. what should I do. I feel this could go on and on. Should I just count my losses and offer him a refund, if so how much or even the whole amount.

Any help and advice would be much appreciated. 

Thanks,

Nigel.

 

   

 
 

[Dynafoam]

Nigel,

With some deep-penetrated contamination of this nature it is impractical to totally remove all traces - you could be back and forth for some considerable time.

The thing to do is, on the next visit, try not to re-activate the ink that is still at the base of the carpet (and maybe beneath).

You have clearly found a spotter that works but are applying too much. Dampen a cloth with the solvent and, working from the outside of each spot, lightly apply the solvent cloth, then blot with a dry cloth. Do not spend too much time on any area, move on and come back to the difficult bits after they have largely dried.

As each spot is finished, apply a weighted poultice and move on to the next. When all spots have been treated, check the first one. If you feel re-treatment is required then proceed but be very sparing with further applications - your aim is not to draw more ink to the surface.

This can be time-consuming, and will not work if rushed.
 
Do not use your extraction machine. the final stage is to cover each area with several layers of kitchen towel. These need to be weighted sufficiently to remain in close contact with the carpet. As disposable weights at this stage I have used stacks of newspapers, since they can be thrown away by the shop staff in the morning, rather than you make a further trip to collect something you wish to keep.

Since you seem to have a good relationship with the shop manager, I suggest that you explain the problem and the reason for the 'return' of the marks and broach the subject of a 'small' further charge being made to cover the unexpected expense and time spent on what is, realistically beyond the scope of normal cleaning.

If unsure how to bring up the subject, print out this topic and show the manager.

See also:  http://www.another forum.co.uk/?board=cc_issues;action=display;num=1100970477

The method I recommended on this occasion was different due to circumstances.

[Macarthur]

Thankyou John for the quick reply.

I have been down again to the Cartridge World Shop, and after a long discussion with the manager (who at the moment has not really got the time to stay behind to wait for me to clean again) have come to the descision to give him back a part refund. He was happy with the amount, and although I did not make as much as I had hoped from this job, the last thing that I would have wanted was an angry customer.
We both parted on good terms.

Thanks John for the advice, I will save this information for possible use in the future.

All the best,

Nigel.
 

[Dynafoam]

Nigel,

It would have been great to read of a successful visit, but , under the circumstances, the out come was not that bad.

If the partial refund was equivalent to the value of your time and other costs of a further remedial visit, then the financial outcome was not too bad.

The big profit on the job is the learning experience which will equip you to deal more successfully with similar situations encountered in the future. I refer not just to the technical but the tactical. Pre-qualification in these circumstances can not only save you grief but often put you in a position to levy further charges should extraordinary measures (again pre-qualified) be required.

Having parted on good terms, the door is still open for a return visit next clean - that is IF you ever want to see this shop again 

[Neil Gott]

It might help to use a hair dryer for speeding up the drying between 'drawings out'. Don't overheat - particularly polypropylene