Everything’s gone green. Who would have guessed that the color of envy would end up the preferred color of our era? I guess the blues never fully stood any kind of chance. Even the carpet cleaning companies are hovering towards the eco-friendly side of things. An increasing amount of carpet cleaning businesses are utilizing eco-friendly cleaning solutions as well as utilizing eco-friendly cleaning tactics.

Yet even with everything heading eco-friendly there is a misconception that eco-friendly cleaning solutions and products and earth-friendly cleaning techniques are not as effective as their chemically based brethren. This just is a fallacy. So here’s some information on earth-friendly carpet cleaning that won’t leave you singing the blues.

To begin with, back in the day, just about all cleaning solutions and products were simple and mostly non-toxic. Consumers didn’t have all the harmful chemicals that are around today. Depending on your age, mom, or grandma, utilized solutions made by pairing water and vinegar or baking soda to complete a large amount of cleaning. These same items can be used right now to take care of a good number of carpet stains and cleaning requirements.

A mixture of water and vinegar can often get rid of rust spots in your carpet. Ammonia and cold water is known to get out blood. A gentle detergent and water mixture can help with urine if handled right away. If the urine has been in the carpet over 24 hours then you can make use of the vinegar and water. The majority of drink and food items can be taken out with a simple mixture of warm water, gentle soap, and vinegar.

Quite a few carpet companies are now using cleaning solutions that derive from more organic components as opposed to unhealthy chemicals. Non-toxic ingredients such as citrus, vinegar, and salt, are now being used more often than their harmful alternatives. This isn’t saying that all of the chemicals utilized by carpet companies are 100% chemical free. But they are generally quite a bit safer and significantly less harmful compared to the alternatives.

Not only are the cleaning materials more eco-friendly, the cleaning approaches are now becoming greener. Today’s current high tech world has given us updated tools and more efficient cleaning equipment that are less wasteful. Steam cleaners work with a smaller amount of water but provide the same, if not better results. There are also “dry” cleaning techniques that use hardly any water at all.

The green movement is very fashionable right now and it seems that everyone is jumping on board. But if you had the choice between a safe, non-toxic cleaning and a far more hazardous alternative, which might you select? The bottom line is that traditional carpet cleaning products and techniques can end up being hazardous and inefficient. Wouldn’t you prefer to have a safer home environment for you and your family if the option were presented to you?

We love our pets. In fact, they are more often than not, like family members to us. And let’s face it, pet accidents are some of those things that occasionally will happen-It goes along with our Furry Family members. That’s why being well-informed, and well-equipped, will hopefully keep you, your sanity, and your home and pets happy and content.

Having pets indoors can often be a challenge but there are several great products available on the market, that will help treat, and even in most cases, eliminate pet stains and odors, on carpet and upholstery, and do it safely. What you need to do is, choose a product that will remove and neutralize not only the stain, but the odor. Not merely mask it!

This is vital, as you know how well pets can smell, even the smallest of trace odors of the stained area. This is why they will often eliminate in the same spot or area, also called “marking.”

Types of Pet Stain/Odor Removers

"it's not their fault"

Some pet stain removers are chemical based, and are highly concentrated, and they are generally used with professional steam cleaning machines. They can be in liquid form, or in a foam base, that has a “lifting” action, that when dry, it is vacuumed up. Some homemade, and less effective cleaners are made from baking soda, and white distilled vinegar. However, improperly applied homemade cleaners, and even some chemical based cleaners can make the situation worse, and permanently bond the pet proteins in the urine to the fibers being cleaned. They may also stain certain types of carpet and upholstery. Use with care.

Enzymes
The most effective pet stain removers use enzymes that neutralize and effectively remove the proteins that are in pet waste. These proteins are the main source of the odor, which are caused by bacteria from the waste. Thankfully, there are several very good enzymatic cleaners that are designed to prevent these proteins from bonding to your stained carpet or fabric. This enzyme action causes the proteins to become “neutralized”, and loosened, allowing complete removal, of both stain and odor, followed by thorough flushing with water, and extraction. Some products with enzymes are made with natural ingredients, such as Bac-out, with ingredients including, grapefruit seed extract, and orange peel. This will leave the treated area with a fresh, pleasing citrus scent.

The first element I  think is important ,does the carpet cleaning company have a GUARANTEE?I believe a guarantee communicates a desire to stand behind the work performed and a desire to please and satisfy the homeowner.What you should be looking for is a carpet cleaning company that will do the job correctly and will back up their work with a guarantee.If they don’t have a guarantee I would call someone else.

The second element I think is important is price.And what I want to say about price is please don’t base your choice on who can give you the lowest price.Remember,’You get what you pay for.’Cheap prices usually mean inferior cleaning materials,that do not clean thoroughly and resoil quickly.Cheap prices may mean someone in your home being paid minimum wages and who has minimal experience.Often cheap prices are achieved by over booking  so only 45 minutes can be spent in each home.If you want cheap, that is exactly what you will get,cheap!

The third element I think is important is ‘cleaning agents’.What chemicals are being brought into your home,and being released into the air and being deposited unto your carpeting?There are many cleaning chemicals that emit harmfulVOC’S(Volitile Organic Compounds),that are used by carpet cleaning companies.The cleaner you choose should be using environmentally friendly and safe products.Products that are safe for people,pets,carpeting,upholstery or whatever you are having cleaned.You don’t want a company leaving harmful chemicals in your home!

The fourth element I think is important is ‘Method’.What I am referring to here is the method that is being used to clean you carpets and furnishings.This is where I would like to plug the carpet cleaning method I use.Air Cell Extraction cleans deeply and completely(down to the carpets base),and dries quickly in 1-2 hours.This method uses 90% less water than a popular method used,which is hot water extraction.Therefore your carpeting will not get  soaking wet,and there will not be bad odors from wet carpeting and there will not be shrinkage or mildew from over wet carpeting.So please consider the drying time when you choose your carpet cleaning company.

Mike Smith