Mighty Kleen Carpet Services, Carpets & Rugs, Houston, TX 77068

832-573-4933

How many times have you read a carpet cleaners web page and read words like pre-spot, deep scrub, or certified. These words are commonly used by industry professionals, but most consumers do not have the slightest idea what we are talking about.

Mighty Kleen Carpet Services prides itself in consumer education. We will make sure you understand all of the technical terms and lingo. How can you be sure you are getting the best carpet cleaning process if you don't understand what 's being done and why.

Glossary of Carpet Cleaning Terms

Anti-Resoiling Agents: Solution that helps repel dirt and stains, making carpet care & cleaning easier each time.

Biodegradable:The surfactant (or detergent) in the carpet cleaning product that can be "broken down". This reduces the amount of surfactants discharged into the environment. This breakdown prevents the product from being toxic to fish and other aquatic life.

Bleaching: Term used to describe color loss to the carpet. For light color carpets, the color appears whiter and brighter, for darker color carpets, the color can be a lighter shade of the original color or a different color entirely.ie: bleaching on a blue carpet can turn the carpet peach.

Bleeding: This is a loss or transfer of color from one section of the carpet to another, usually under hot-wet conditions.

Bone Scraper: A flat blade-shaped tool that is made of bone or plastic. Used to remove or loosen encrusted dirt or material from the surface of the carpet.

Browning: A yellowish or brownish discoloration of the carpet's face, usually caused by impurities in the cellulose fibers, such as cotton and jute, which wick up to the face fibers on over

wetting. Most often caused by: excess alkalinity in the cleaning agent used in steam cleaning; activated alkaline residue left by previous cleaning efforts; over wetting; a combination of any of these. May sometimes appear in shades other than brown or yellow depending on color of effected carpet.

Burn Test: A method of identification by noting the odor and ash from burnt fiber.

Certified Technicians: Carpet cleaners that have completed and passed certification classes and testing by th IICRC.

Cleaning Agents: Detergent or emulsifying agent used in the carpet cleaning process.

Clouding: Usually caused by over wetting. Residue from previous cleanings which is not removed and left too wet will wick up the carpet fiber and cause a cloudy appearance on the

surface. Customer complaint may state that carpet looked dirty after it dried.

Colorfast: Means the dyes used in the carpet will not bleed or run when odor remover or carpet cleaning products are applied to them.

Crocking: This is a loss of the carpets excess color when rubbed in either the wet or dry state.

Deep Scrub: Agitation of carpet or upholstery fiber to work cleaning agents deeper to clean heavily soiled carpet or furniture.

Defoamer: A surface-active agent that is used in cleaning to reduce detergent foaming.

Degreaser: Solvent used in the cleaning process to remove heavy oils or grease from the carpet.

Deodorizer:Solution used to neutralize odors in carpet and upholstery.

Detergent: Any substance which is capable of dislodging, removing or emulsifying soils. Generally, the term is used for formulated products that contain surfactant builders, solvents etc.

Dry cleaning: (or dry-cleaning) is any cleaning process for clothing and textiles using a chemical solvent rather than water. The solvent used is typically ...

Emulsification:The formation of a mixture of two liquids, such as oil and water, in which one of the liquids is in the form of fine droplets and is dispersed in the other.

Enzymes: Help breakdown complex soils, especially proteins such as those in blood, urine, egg or grass stains, so they can be easily removed.

Filtration Soiling:Filtration soiling is the accumulation of airborne soil, dust, smog, tobacco smoke

and other pollutantsâwhere airflow is concentrated and directed over or through a carpets pile. The carpet filters out these pollutants and gradually becomes soiled and dark.

Floor Machine:A power-driven machine equipped with a scrubbing or buffing brush used to clean or polish floors.

Grout: Concrete or similar substance used between ceramic tile.

Hot water extraction: The Hot Water Extraction (HWE) method, is a method used in chemistry for extraction and for "steam cleaning" (e.g. carpets. as listed by the IICRC to be the primary method for cleaning carpets. Residential, and Commercial)

IICRC: The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certificationis a non-profit organization that sets standards for the cleaning and restoration industry. Many professionals follow these guidelines when cleaning a commercial or residential property.

In-plant Cleaning: Any cleaning process in which the carpet is brought to a plant for cleaning; as opposed to on-location in which the carpet is cleaned in the customer's home, business

etc.

Manufacture Clean ability Codes:

Furniture is coded using the following symbol which refers to solubility of the dyes in the upholstery fabric. Carpets will occasionally use these codes:

S- Dyes Stable in solvent only

W - Dyes Stable in Water only

W/S - dyes stable in Water and solvent

X - Dyes not stable at all

Mildew: Fungus growth that can occur on carpet fibers. Causes odor and fiber degradation.

Neutral Cleaner: Detergent with a pH at the 7 range in its concentrated form normally recommended for use on stain protected carpet to clean without stripping protection chemistry.

Over wetting: Over applying a product. If a carpet becomes over wet, the primary or secondary backing may release a dye like substance. The carpet may appear clean at first but in time the dye like substance may resurface on the tips of the fibers as a yellow or brown residue.

Optical brighteners: Whiteners or fluorescent whitening agents used in cleaning process.

Ozone: A highly reactive gas and oxidizing agent formed by passing a high voltage current through air. Used as a deodorizing agent.

Patch:To remove a damaged section of carpet and replace it with an undamaged piece.

Ph: Used to express the amount of both acidity and alkalinity on a scale whose values run from 0-14, with 7 being neutral. Numbers less than 7 represent increasing acidity, numbers greater than 7 represent increasing alkalinity.

Power Stretcher: A carpet installation tool used to stretch carpet for installation with a tackless strip. According to industry standards, residential carpet, installed over cushion with a tackless strip, must be power-stretched to prevent wrinkles and ripples.

Pre-Conditioning: To cover the entire area of carpet, tile, or upholstery to be cleaned with a cleaning agent and to give it dwell time to break down soils to be extracted.

Pre-spotting: Prior to the overall cleaning of the carpet, pre-spotting is done to stains.

P.O.G.: Used to describe agent for removing paint, oil and grease from carpets.

PSI: Pounds per square inch. Measure used in determining solution pressure in carpet steam cleaning.

Sealers: Specialized formulations which quickly fill porous floors and provide protection from abuse and wear.

Seams:Connection points in carpet held together by hot glue seaming tape.

Shampoo: A high foam detergent preparation usually used for rotary brush cleaning.

Spill: Is a fresh accident. With most carpet, fresh spills will come out with ease, if removal is attempted quickly

Spot: A grouping of dirt molecules easily removed with steam cleaning.

Stain: A spill or discoloration that may be permanent. Requires special

treatment or has to be physically removed.

Stain Protector: A chemical solution designed to protect carpet and upholstery from stains caused by spills etc.ie(DuPont Teflon,3M Scotchgard)

Steam Cleaning: The cleaning method in which the detergent solution is forced through jets under high pressure into the carpet pile and immediately removed along with loose and emulsified soil though a wet vacuum. The vacuum head and jets are usually mounted on the same piece of equipment.

Traffic Lane: Area in carpet that gets walked on the most.

Traffic Lane Cleaner: A heavy duty detergent specifically designed to pre-treat and disperse heavy accumulations of soil in the traffic lanes.

Truck Mounted: Steam carpet cleaning equipment which is mounted in a vehicle. Usually only the cleaning head and hoses are taken onto the premise to be cleaned.

Wicking: When the residual stain underneath the carpet resurfaces to the top.

Yellowing: Carpet discoloration caused by either the stain itself or over wetting.

Houston TX-FAQ'S & Carpet Cleaning Terms

Houston,Tx 77068

832-573-4933

Q: How long does it take for the carpet to dry ?

A: The normal drying time is from 1 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours depending on type of carpet and weather conditions. However you can opt for our speed dry process for a small additional charge. Your

carpet could be dry in as little as 30 minutes.

Q: What is the difference between pre-spotting and pre-conditioning ?

A: Pre- spotting is the application of spotting solution only to spots and spills that are visible,

where pre-conditioning is the application of a solution to the entire area to be cleaned and allowing dwell time for it emulsify soiling.

Q: How often should I have my carpets cleaned ?

A: Under normal conditions you should have your carpets cleaned every 12 to 18 months. The amount of traffic from humans and or pets can reduce this to every 3 to 6 months. Every household is different.

Q: What is carpet protection and how does it work ?

A: Carpet protection is a solution applied to your carpet forming an invisible barrier to help protect

your carpets from permanent stains. It will also help by limiting wear and aging of carpets giving

your carpets longer life, thus saving you money in the long run.

Q: Why should I use Mighty Kleen to clean my carpets ?

A: Mighty Kleen use a multi-step cleaning process which includes hot water extraction(Steam Cleaning) to clean your carpets. This is the method supported by Shaw Industries the world's

largest carpet manufacturer. We used high quality cleaning agents and all our technicians are

trained and certified by the (IICRC) The Institute for Inspection Cleaning and Restoration.

If you have a question that we have not answered here please feel free to call, e-mail or you may submit your question here and we will respond with an answer within 12 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

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