Three Basic Carpet Cleaning Methods...

5/16/2018 (Permalink)

SERVPRO of San Leandro provides carpet cleaning services for residential and commercial clients. Both owners of the company have a long history of performing carpet cleaning. Both owners learned carpet cleaning from their fathers.

There are three primary carpet cleaning methods available to consumers on the Peninsula. 1 - Shampoo. 2 - Steam (Hot Water Extraction) 3 - Low Moisture Cleaning.

Which method is best? Service providers and consumers debate this issue. Let’s review the three methods of carpet cleaning to see if one is better than the other.

Shampoo method is the original carpet cleaning system. It employs an electric powered rotary brush to apply cleaning detergents with a brushing action. Shampooing does an excellent job of cleaning but leaves detergent residue on the carpet fibers. Shampoo cleaners say this residue and the suspended soil particles will turn into tiny crystals that can be vacuumed away.

Steam – Hot Water Extraction is designed to apply cleaning agents to attack soils and then the residues are flushed away using a hot water rinse that is removed with a “wet” vacuum machine (an extractor). This system will do an outstanding job of cleaning carpeting that is very soiled. However, it has the potential of leaving carpets damp.

Low Moisture Cleaning is a category that includes “dry cleaning”, “bonnet cleaning” and “encapsulation.” Basically all low moisture cleaning is based upon a delivery system in which the cleaning agents (and a minimal amount of water) are applied to the top surface of the carpeting using soft brushes, swirling cotton pads and the like. The cleaning agents (especially encapsulation) are designed to grab onto soils, dissolve them and turn the residue into crystal that can be vacuumed away. This may sound a lot like what happens with shampoo detergents, but the chemistry is far more advanced and works better.

SERVPRO of San Leandro can perform each type of cleaning. However, our preferred method is called “show case”. We use a shampoo machine to gently scrub the carpet and loosen deep down soils and then we use steam (hot water extraction) to flush everything away. Our certified technicians spend extra effort in the vacuuming phase to leave as little moisture as possible in the carpet. We believe this provides the best combination of cleaning systems.

Our customer service department would be pleased to talk with you about your carpet cleaning needs…. 510-352-2480.