I too was sceptical of the portable CFR system with its single vacuum and the fact that it recycles its cleaning solution. This was back in 1994 when they were looking for a main distributor here and although I never went down that route or even had a demonstration I found the concept interesting. ‘The cleaning power and flexibility of a truck mounted carpet-cleaning system that could also clean hard floors’. A couple of years ago I was reintroduced to CFR products through Amtech UK and purchased an Altra Pro 1000 (1000 psi) and Pro Station 400 (400 psi). I was amazed at their performance and versatility.
The patented continuous flow tooling injects atomised water in and through carpet fibres and fabrics to thoroughly wash them without the solution penetrating the backing or through into the foam filling in upholstery. Carpets can be rinsed at pressures of up to 1000 psi depending on the model purchased without over wetting or the need to use high temperatures (electric heat exchangers cannot keep up with the water flow at 1000psi). This gives dramatically reduced drying times because most of the solution is recovered instantly.
You do not need buckets to empty or refill the machine, the single tank system can be filled through its vacuum/solution hose and when the machine needs emptying it has a hard floor machine style drain hose, which can be directed over a toilet or drain. As the machine is a single tank design with internal filters it’s important to fill the machine to its fill level for optimum vacuum operation. The water level should be checked every half an hour and topped up if necessary otherwise vacuum performance can be reduced if the machine is allowed to empty. On the third to fifth top up the machine should be drained and refilled with fresh water.
The system actually recycles the cleaning solution up to 7 times through a series of filters that remove the soil with 99% + effectiveness. This combined with the unique continuous flow tooling it can recover up to 95% of the cleaning solution used. This allows the system to deep clean large carpeted areas quickly ensuring rapid dry times with maximum soil removal. The cleaning solution eventually becomes discoloured through the presence of natural water-soluble dyes found in soil from silicates and iron oxides. This doesn’t affect the ‘clean’ because of CFR’s exceptional recovery rate.
If the suspended soils present in the solution/vacuum tank block the filter screen then the pump will automatically shut down so that the operator can empty the machine.
It is a gross misconception that the CFR system cleans with dirty water. If this were the case it would make little difference to the soiled appearance of a carpet. I use this system to deep clean all wet cleanable carpet types, rugs, upholstery, curtains & hard floors that have soil loads from light to heavy.
The Altra 1000 extractor with a CAT 1000-psi pump & single 3-stage vac comfortably operates at 120ft and is well designed and easy to move around. Although it weighs 135lbs you can lift it in & out of a vehicle with ease because of the loading wheels present on the hand bar. With a tank full of water I can easily clean 300 plus metres of heavily soiled carpet and restore its appearance without having to stop and completely empty and refill the machine.
Also odour-causing problems including urine are removed, filtered effectively & deodorised with CFR odour removal products. They also manufacture the system with enclosed ozone assisted cleaning facility, which cleans, sanitises and deodorizes as it cleans. This is particularly beneficial when cleaning in environments such as hospitals, nursing homes, food & beverage processing plants where bio-contamination is a major concern.
The concept is totally different even down to operating the wand in a forward motion with the solution trigger on but it works!
Regards
Steve