Carpet Cleaning Blog by Raytone

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Hope everyone has a happy and safe memorial day weekend! Please remember to thank a VET.

You wouldn’t wait a year to change your sheets.
Why wait to clean your mattress!!

Are you sleeping with this enemy? That’s right, these dust mites, a long with other germs, bacteria or other pollutants, can make you sick!! They can be the cause of ALLERGIES, COUGH, DRY THROAT, AND RUNNING NOSE! And can put your general health at risk.

You may have your carpets, area rugs, drapes, and upholstery cleaned to prevent these things from happening, but many people forget about their mattresses. If any of you family or friends is experiencing these types of health problems, they may very well be due to dust mites in their mattress.

The solution? You can get your mattress cleaned!!! Raytone Cleaning & Restoration, Inc. is now offering a new service..Mattress cleaning!. For those of you that did not receive our spring special, we are offering a new special for the summer! It includes complete mattress cleaning (any size); box spring and WE WILL INCLUDE DEODORIZING/DISINFECTANT FREE!! THAT IS A $75.00
VALUE!

So, if you want a better night’s sleep and a general sense of well being. Not to mention, free from allergies and other health problems, HAVE YOUR MATTRESS CLEANED NOW!!

Simple Tips to Improve Your Air Quality
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), poor indoor air quality is one of the top five greatest environmental risks to public health and well-being. Amazing as it sounds, indoor air can be five to 10 times more polluted than outdoors air! This is because there’s a lack of ventilation, so contaminants build up and stagnant air is re-circulated.
Common health problems that can be attributed to poor indoor air quality include:
Headaches
Fatigue and lethargy
Depression
Allergies
Poor concentration and forgetfulness
Rashes
Stomach- and digestive problems
Neurological problems

So what can you do about it?
Regular duct work cleanings might spring to mind, but according to Pearson getting them cleaned more frequently than once every five to 10 years is unnecessary, as this is unlikely to resolve your health issues. Here too, it’s important to make sure the duct cleaner is certified and well-trained. A good resource is the NADCA (National Air Duct Cleaners Association), which created the standards and lists qualified HVAC technicians.
In terms of making a difference to your health, Pearson suggests the following five guidelines to improve your indoor air quality:
1.Use a HEPA filter vacuum cleaner—Standard bag- or bagless vacuum cleaners are the number one contributor to poor air quality. A regular vacuum cleaner typically has about a 20 micron tolerance. Although that’s tiny, far more microscopic particles flow right through the vacuum cleaner than it actually picks up! Beware of cheaper knock-offs that profess to have “HEPA-like” filters—get the real deal
2.Provide plenty of fresh air ventilation—Open your windows and regularly “air out” your home. Opening at least two windows, on opposite sides of the house, will provide good cross-ventilation through your home. Also bring your mattress and rugs outside and use a rug beater to get the dust out. (Of course, don’t leave out in a high-humidity or wet area)
3.Clean your furnace often—A full and impacted furnace can cause the heat exchanger to crack, which can lead to carbon monoxide leaking out. In small amounts, it may cause headaches, but in high amounts, carbon monoxide is lethal. Replace your furnace filter at least once every three months. Upgrading it to a pleated Filtrate is also a good idea.
4.Avoid storing and using chemicals in your home—Storing chemicals such as drain cleaners, scrubbing powders with bleach and dishwasher powder for example under your sink can create a noxious environment. Do you get headaches when washing dishes? Check what’s being stored beneath the sink! Replace what you really need and use with non-toxic alternatives. Ditto for old paints, glues, fertilizers and pesticides being kept in your garage.
5.Avoid powders—Talcum and other personal care powders can be problematic as they float and linger in the air after each use. Many powders are allergens due to their tiny size, and can cause respiratory problems.
I would also suggest adding a few house plants, as they can act as natural air purifiers. NASA, along with the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA), conducted a classic study on the benefits of plants on indoor air, and found that houseplants were able to remove up to 87 percent of air toxins in 24 hours. They recommended using 15 to 18 “good-sized” houseplants in 6- to 8-inch diameter containers for an 1,800 square-foot house.

White Powder Residue after Extraction Cleaning

Sometimes, after hot water extraction cleaning a carpet
(especially a direct glue-down) we get a phone call from a
client the next day inquiring about a white powder on the
surface of the carpet.

The most common cause of white powder residue is the use of
powered sprinkle-on carpet deodorizers, such as Love My Carpet, Arm and Hammer, Carpet Fresh and Capture. Also,
previous shampooing and other cleaning methods, if not
done properly can contribute to this.

The first 3 are quite commonly used to get rid of spills, urine, bad odors, etc. and are often times way to over-used.

These powders and previous cleaning methods accumulate in the base of the carpet, sometimes to the point where they are visible and to the point where the carpet even becomes stiff.

After warm water extraction (steam cleaning) as the carpet dries, the remaining powder wicks to the surface where the white powder is now visible.

This white powder is usually easily removed by pile lifting or by thorough vacuuming.

If you know or suspect in advance that these powders have been used, we strongly suggest using a pile lifter on the carpet to pull all of this junk out.

It would also be wise to forewarn the customer that the white powder might still appear in the morning and it would be wise for you to check on it.

Other possible causes for this problem are; concrete (efflorescene), construction dust, detergent residue, ice melt (especially calcium carbonate), and breakdown of the carpet backing latex.

The most commonly asked question to us by our customers is “How long will it take our carpets to dry?” Unfortunately, there is no simple answer to this question. It depends on several variables:

1) The weather: Cold, wet days are not ideal drying conditions. So the warmer it is outside the faster your carpets will dry.

2) How soiled are your carpets?: The more dirty and stained carpets need more rinse and water applied to them to get them clean. So the if your carpet is in good condition it will dry quicker. If your carpets are very soiled, the more we will need to go over it- the longer it will take to dry.

3) What type of carpet do you own?: Carpets that are tightly wound without any fiber strands dry faster. The thicker and longer carpet fibers or strands absorb more water and the water gets deeper in the carpet therefore it takes loner to dry.

4) Are you able to keep your door and windows open?: Whether it is cold or warm outside having air circulate through your place helps speed up drying time.

We generally like to tell our customers allow 12-14 hours before removing traffic lane paper and walking on carpet. Also, we recommed NOT removing pads or silver tabs under furniture for 72 hours!

Hope this was helpful.!

-A

Don’t you just love the Holiday season, all the pretty decorations, kids on their best behavior, and of course the company!!

The last one can get a little tricky, with some spills here and there.

Over the next week, we will have some tips on the RIGHT ways to treat some of the most popular Holiday spots.

Be safe and get all that shopping done!!

We would like to welcome you to our new cleaning news section!! This will feature tips on cleaning, stories about our employees, what we have been up to, recipes..etc! You name it, we will have it on here! I mean that literally,  leave a comment below and tell us what you would most like to see.

Since this is my first attempt at a blog, I want to make it interesting as well as informative!

Have a great day!
Angela