INTRODUCTION
We will limit our discussion of residential carpet cleaning to the most common types of carpet found in homes and refer you to other Technical Bulletins and resources for "specialty" carpets.

The most common style of residential carpet is a cut-pile made from synthetic fibers. By far the most popular fiber is a nylon but olefin is also common. You will also encounter the occasional polyester or acrylic. Specialty carpets include area rugs, woven or tufted wool and cotton face yarns. Berber carpets are also discussed in a separate Technical Bulletin.

Quick Guide

PROCEDURE Vacuum the carpet. Pre-Spot using the Bridgepoint Spotting Kit. Pre-spray using Zone Perfect boosted with Citrus Solv and Boost All. Extract using End Zone or Point Blue. Optional - Neutralize with Fab Set. Apply Maxim Advanced protector. Set the pile and dry the carpet. PRODUCTS NEEDED Bridgepoint Spotting Kit Fab Set Point Blue Maxim Advanced Citrus Solv Power Point Grandi Groomer Zone Perfect End Zone Traffic Slam Pro Force Vacuums

PROCEDURE
Virtually every residential nylon carpet that you see will be protected with stain resist technology. This keeps the carpet from being soiled and stained easily, but no carpet is completely stain proof. In order to maintain the effectiveness of the stain and soil resistance you should follow certain guidelines. Going outside these guidelines can cause damage to the protective coating and even result in warranties being voided. The recommendations that follow will keep you within these parameters and produce excellent results.

STEP 1:DRY SOIL REMOVAL
Begin by vacuuming the carpet to remove dry soil. It is easier to remove most soils before they are mixed with cleaning solutions. Use a quality commercial vacuum.

STEP 2:SPOTTING
Determine which spots will need attention prior to cleaning and go to work with your Bridgepoint Spotting Kit. See our Technical Guides on spotting.

STEP 3:PRE-SPRAY
Apply Zone Perfect to the carpet using a quality sprayer. On olefin fibers use Traffic Slam as your pre-spray. A quality pre-spray will soften and loosen the soil for quicker, more thorough cleaning. Agitate the carpet with a Grandi Groomer. This will work the solution into the carpet and the physical agitation will loosen the soil. For faster removal of oily soil add Citrus Solv to your pre-spray.

STEP 4:EXTRACT
This step is the "rinse cycle" where you wash the dirt away that was loosened in the preconditioning phase. Use End Zone in the chemical injection system of the truckmount or in the solution tank of your portable machine. For extra heavy soil, rinse with Point Blue or Power Point.

STEP 5:NEUTRALIZE (OPTIONAL)
Spray the carpet with a dilute solution of Fab Set. This will neutralize any alkaline residue left from the pre-spray or the emulsifier in the rinse stage. (For lightly soiled carpet many cleaners like to use Fab Set in place of the emulsifier. This cuts out the neutralization step but you may lose some cleaning power.) The neutralizer step is not required if you used End Zone as your rinse agent.

STEP 6: PROTECT
Apply Maxim Advanced Carpet Protector to the cleaned area.

STEP 7:PILE SETTING
Groom the carpet in one direction to remove wand marks and footprints. This creates a good visual impression but even more importantly it aids drying by straightening and separating the fibers.

STEP 8:DRYING
Be sure that ventilation is at optimum levels by opening windows, turning on ceiling fans, turning on the heat or air conditioner, etc. If the customer has an evaporative cooler you may turn on the fan portion but don't turn on the water pump as this will slow drying by adding humidity. Placing an air mover in each room as you clean reduce drying time and enhance customer satisfaction.

STEP 9:FINISHING TOUCH
Leave your customer a bottle of Home Pro Spotter with your customized label so they can remove spots and spills while they are fresh. They will have your company name and phone number in their hands when they need help on future spots or spills.

CONCLUSION
You may go after several markets but residential cleaning is the foundation for the majority of cleaners. The Technical Resource Guides available at www.ecleanadvisor.com/public/department63.cfm can help you build a solid foundation.