In this issue:

Missed the last issue? You can read it in full here…

Ben Toovey, 2V Cleaning & Property Maintenance tells us he has to thank naughty kids for some great repeat business!

“Back in May, a young lad opened up a pot of nail varnish and daubed it over his mum’s lovely brand new grey carpet.

“I got over and after assessing the situation, applied Prochem’s Ink Solv with a rinse extract of Fibre & Fabric Rinse, using my lovely brand new Steempro Powerflo. It took an hour or so, but worked a treat and I posted some before and after pictures on my Facebook page.

“A couple of weeks back now, I was driving from my base in Bromley to a job in central London when I got a call from a tearful lady who had seen my page and was clearly in distress over a similar incident. Her youngster had got a pot of Sudocrem open and smeared the contents into the fabric of a £2,500 sofa. I told her to leave this well alone and that I would drop by after I finished the job I was going to.

“Four hours later, I was at the scene of the kid’s crime. The sofa was a mess, but I knew I could beat it.

“After removing any surplus cream from the fibre surface, I worked Prochem Citrus Gel into the residual matter and then rinse extracted it, again, with Fibre & Fabric Rinse.

“It worked a treat. So, many thanks Prochem, for the machine, chemicals and the training!”

Is Chessington a bit of a stretch to get to training?

Don’t forget our one-day carpet and upholstery cleaning courses are also being held for north-west England customers at West Didsbury’s Britannia Country House Hotel on Oct 3rd and 4th respectively.

Easy to get to (access from Junction 5 of the M60 motorway), this super facility is a popular venue for our Manchester region courses, providing an opportunity to boost your knowledge of carpet and fabric care – right on your doorstep!

Dependent upon numbers, Prochem aims to run an NCCA membership examination after this upholstery course. Contact the Sales Department on 020 8974 1515, if you are interested and require further details.

And best of all – book and pay now at this link for both courses and a get a 15% discount on the upholstery course!

If we believed everything we read in the tabloids, UK care homes would be in a state of terminal decline.

But while it’s true failing homes are closing, the sector enjoys robust health elsewhere, with more enlightened businesses investing in their assets to ensure they meet the expectations of regulators and customers.

It’s no big surprise to hear from specialist suppliers like Prochem customer and Distributor Award winner Berwick Care how important a clean environment is to that important first impression for every home visitor.

Brassey brothers, Tristan, Carl and Nathan, run the Shrewsbury business established by their father, Mark, in 1997.

“We’ve been having an encouraging year and expect to see steady growth continued in the next,” says Tristan. “Stain and odour issues are critical to residential, nursing and care homes and our clients are becoming more discerning about cleaning solutions.

We tend to recommend Prochem on the basis of the company’s strengths in dedicated solutions for stain removal and odour control solutions as well as some select technologies.”

Indeed, Berwick cite clinical success achieved with Prochem solutions such as Neutra-Soft®, Citrus Gel, Urine Neutraliser and specifically the Fivestar self-contained, upright extractor machine.

“The Fivestar is a case in point,” says Tristan. “It can spray, agitate and extract, all facets of a good clean, and it’s smaller size enables it to be used around beds and visitor chairs without any fuss – plus it has terrific extractor strength.”

Berwick Care operates a showroom and warehouse and enjoys consistent repeat business from the local area and further afield, supported by an active e-commerce offer.

The company utilises Prochem training to ensure its team is familiar with the issues customers encounter and it’s this knowledge that is so welcome when it comes to selling in Prochem brand products.

Says Tristan, appointed a Care Homes Award judge back in April of this year:  “Demonstrate Prochem stain removal solutions with one of its machines in a direct comparison with a cheap, retailer-sourced unit and you convert the home owner to Prochem because while the purchase price may be higher, the outcome is so superior, the benefits in cleanliness and presentation outweighing any cost negatives.

“Solutions like Neutra-Soft – we like the thinking behind a single product that does three jobs – and Citrus Gel are real lifesavers in environments where time and results are of the essence.

“Care homes are becoming more discerning – they are raising their game and they are not accepting the status quo anymore,” concludes Tristan.

“Investing in a better home is winning business and ensuring more than just survival.”

Berwick Care sponsored the Good to Great Care Seminar in July 2017. Attended by many of the area’s leading care providers they were rewarded with passionate and inspirational speeches. Watch the highlights here.

http://www.berwickcare.co.uk/

Prochem Europe fields a wide range of portable extractors to choose from, but the good news is that choosing the right one for your needs has just got easier courtesy of this issue’s handy comparison charts!

We all know how trying it can be looking for facts and figures about technology so as to build an effective guide to what to buy. These make the process straightforward.

Let’s look at the line-up firstly, and they’re all terrific performing machines:

(* model dependent)

Next, we’re going to look at the differing tasks they can carry out:

…and finally, let’s analyse the accessories you can get for your choice…

(* these models require the appropriate accessory hose first)

And that’s it.

Well, almost – next you need to get in touch with your local Prochem Europe distributor for a proper demonstration of your machine of choice, in action. Call 020 8974 1515 or email sales@prochem-uk.com and we’ll take it from there!

With semi-retirement found wanting, former air-con engineer Nick Salter of Redhill, Surrey invested in becoming a cleaning professional. His route took him via Prochem Europe and on more than one occasion!

“Training is where I started and Prochem’s courses came out top, plus they are fairly local to me,” says Nick. He has completed all the Prochem training courses – carpets, hard floor, stain removal and upholstery – and having joined the NCCA is now waiting on completing a WoolSafe Approved Carpet Care Specialist training course in October with the company, too.

“The training sold me the Prochem solutions and machines, too, because you see them at work and they are just fantastic,” explains Nick.

His brand new business, Artemist Ltd, has bought a Galaxy and Steempro machine, and a broad selection of Prochem chemicals.

For Nick, favourites include Multi Pro, Stain Pro, Citrus Gel, Trafficlean and  Fibre & Fabric Rinse.

Before and after – Nick gets results

“They’re my standouts because they’re my standbys,” he emphasises. “I believe those solutions are fundamental to an effective clean, so I always have them to hand.”

Nick has invested substantially in his new business. “My total budget was £35,000 and that’s gone on the van, machines and solutions. But it’s gone wisely, because I am completely set-up to go to work.”

And that work is coming in: Nick has sorted out a good web site and is picking up local business via social media, friends and family to start with. “Lots of referrals coming, which is always nice” – and he’s not concerned about travelling. “I have just picked up a substantial contract in Gloucester,” he says.

Nick is no stranger to work, starting his career with an apprenticeship at Citroen Cars, before joining a cleaning business, part owned by an air conditioning company, where he learned about window, carpet and hard floor cleaning, specifically in fire stations, commercial buildings, hotels, retail outlets and residential premises.

“It was here I had the dream to one day start my own carpet cleaning business,” he says. But that was not to be, at least not until he had served his term in industrial cleaning and the sanitation of air conditioning systems and cooling towers.

“And then the day came when I decided I’d had enough and it was time to do my own thing, and I always loved cleaning.”

His meticulous planning bearing fruit, Nick is now planning a Christmas advertising campaign. “Reigate is a good catchment area – the festive season is likely to be a very busy one for this particular Nick,” he laughs.

https://artemist.ltd

When it comes to choosing the correct tools for the job, you have to hand it to Prochem!

The market offers a wide range of hand tools to the carpet cleaning professional and this can make the process of choosing the best suitable solutions daunting.

This month we walk you through the Prochem Europe offer in a bid to explain more about what these tools do and when they should be used.

Some hand tools have a specific purpose and are not, ideally, multi-use.

The most popular hand tool chosen by carpet cleaners, or suggested by distributors along with a machine enquiry, is the AC1021 Glidemaster (below) …

This heavy-duty, stainless steel unit is designed for use on stains, stairs and edges, such as those black/grey draught marks around the edges of rooms or under doorways (by the way, pre-treat these marks with A217 Ultrapac Renovate before using the hand tool to rinse).

Fitted with an 0.04 jet and having a 4” vacuum head, it is not a suitable unit for cleaning upholstery as this could lead to over-wetting of the fabric and/or cushion areas. Also, if the head of the hand tool is “burred” by touching protruding gripper rod nails, then using it on fabrics could lead to rips or damage.

Professionals often opt for a dedicated hand tool when cleaning upholstery and in turn their search takes them to the PM2502 Easy-Grip Upholstery hand tool (below) …

This unit comes fitted to a 1.8m 32mm hose, which is far more flexible when cleaning and moving around the sofas and chairs than the heavier, 38mm vacuum hose with most carpet extraction machinery.

The solution-feed hose runs within the vacuum recovery hose, removing the need for straps or tie-wraps that could also catch and potentially rip delicate fabrics.

The vacuum head has two drilled holes which allow constant suction to continuously draw moisture away, even when the filling of the upholstery gives limited airflow.

Most other hand tools will cause the extraction machine itself to “choke” and you will notice a pitch or noise change as the vacuum motors struggle to pull air (and obviously) moisture back. This will result in extended drying times and potential problems which an operator using a PM2502 will not encounter.

The spray tip is also a much finer 0.02, releasing less moisture than the AC1021 Glidemaster, equating to faster drying times.

Two angled detailers are also available in the Prochem range:  the AC1039 Auto Detailer and the PM2501 Plastic Detailer.

The AC1039 (above) is a durable, stainless steel hand tool ideally suited to clean in those harder to reach areas, as the angle allows the vacuum head to get it to areas other hand tools cannot.

Aimed at contractors using it on stains, stairs and those difficult to get at draught marks, the unit is fitted with an 0.02 jet and a brass trigger valve.

The lower cost option is the PM2501 (above) which has the same angled vacuum head but in clear Perspex instead of stainless steel. This is good news for contractors who like to see the staining or soiling solution disappearing away up the hand tool. Customers are usually in awe of the visible result too!

Note that the unit is not designed for use with heat boosters or hot solutions as the heat could distort the Perspex head.

The 120psi plastic trigger valve is likewise designed for use with normal, warm solutions and this clear option is also fitted with an 0.02 spray tip.

The more specialised cleaning professional can opt to use a bigger hand tool if dealing with large, wider steps and stairwells such as found in commercial properties.

The PM2503 Heavy-Duty Stair Tool (above) has a wider 6” vacuum recovery head and, due to its enlarged vacuum head, can cope with a larger 0.06 spray tip and a top-mounted grip handle for easier manoeuvrability.

If the operator is wet cleaning curtains, then the previous hand tools could often actually suck-up the curtain fabric into the vacuum recovery head, potentially causing damage and the operator constantly has to clear the fabric from ingestion.

The PM2504 Curtain Hand Tool (above) has a 6” vacuum head and a much finer 0.01 spray tip, delivering a suitable amount of solution onto the fabrics and preventing excessive overspray.

The unique vacuum head is perforated (like a smooth colander – above) to allow easy extraction without the above fabric issues.

NOTE:

Make sure you don’t change spray tips or jets unless you have like for like replacements, as that could cause over-wetting or overspray. Always discuss with your machine manufacturer as to the suitable tip size for your wand or hand tool, as it’s often based on the flow rate of the pump you have fitted. A smaller size tip for instance will increase system pressure and could damage the machine, a larger tip will lower pressure this could also cause machine and fabric/carpet damage.

Sybron in Harlow

Training = increased sales; that’s the simple message from Prochem distributor, Sybron.

The Harlow, Essex-based business is a specialist supplier to the hotels and leisure sector – and business is going well.

“Training our office-based sales and admin staff on the products they sell has effectively doubled our sales,” says the company’s Chris Henwood.

“Prochem‘s training team did a great job of educating our eight-strong team into the company’s chemicals and machines products. Phil Jones brought carpet samples in and demonstrated burn tests on these to determine what their fibre constructions were – it was fascinating stuff.

“We were introduced to dry and wet application cleaning technology and shown how these worked and under what differing circumstances. Two hours just flew by!”

Sybron UK Ltd was established in 2003 as a regional supplier of cleaning, catering and hygiene disposable products to several key market sectors within London and the surrounding Home Counties.

More recently, its product range has further expanded to include catering equipment, specialist cleaners and a tabletop offering together with a bespoke service supplying logo-printed items for customer brand symmetry.

The family run company has been successful within the hospitality and catering industry, as well as supplying to hospitals, leisure clubs, schools, airports, residential homes, food manufacturers and theatres.

Sybron has been enjoying buoyant business with sales up by 20% year-on-year and £2m worth of business added in 2017, to date.

Healthcare and education sectors are also serviced by the company, but hotels constitute its core market with recent Prochem sales made to London hotels The Curtain and Montcalm.

http://www.sybron.co.uk/

Training is a regular topic in Prochem Europe news e-zines with many business citing the added sales that knowing more about cleaning can bring.

So, join them: there are still opportunities to attend in-house dates at the company’s HQ in Chessington.

One-day carpet cleaning courses take place on Nov 14th and Dec 5th with the one-day upholstery courses being held on Oct 11th and Dec 6th. One-day hard floor cleaning training happens on Sept 27^th and Nov 29^th and there’s a one-day stain removal course taking place on Sept 26^th and Nov 28^th.

And you can now take NCCA membership exam with Prochem; these are held at the end of the one-day carpet and upholstery courses in Chessington, as given above.

 There’s more information on these and how to book at this link

Cleaning a hard floor is easier than a carpet – a hard floor is just a hard floor, right?

Well, in fact, ‘wrong’ – but it is tempting to suppose at a glance that hard floors are less complicated and that pretty much the same processes can be employed to clean them.

However, look again and the fact is you require as much specialist knowledge to maintain and clean these as you would carpet. Like carpet, there are many different types of hard floors including resilient, porous, non-porous, stone and wood.

Categorising these in more depth, resilient flooring would take in vinyl, rubber, safety flooring and linoleum.

Commonly asked about these are problems such as polish flaking off a vinyl floor after application (the polish stripper had not been completely removed or neutralised beforehand) and more general tips on machines (such as what speed should be selected on a single disc rotary machine for buffing a polished floor – 300/350 rpm would be sufficient with a good quality polish maintainer).

Another regular question asked of the training teams on Prochem Europe Hard floor cleaning courses is how often a polished hard floor should be dust mopped to which we tend to advise daily at the very least (fine grit, sand or dust particles walked into the building will otherwise scratch the polished surface, so do recommend a good barrier mat to the customer if there isn’t one in use).

And then, just as with carpet types, it’s important to differentiate between different floor types.

You can for example tell the difference between marble and granite by applying a tiny drop of acidic toilet cleaner to a small, inconspicuous area of the polished stone. Wait to see if it loses its shine when wiped away or even bubbles with the solution’s acid content, and you will then know it’s a limestone e.g. marble.

Getting the knowledge …

Of course, the fast track to knowledge is education in any field, which is which why so many professional cleaners make a point to attending Prochem courses.

You can find out more about these in the Training section on the Prochem Europe web site and the Hard Floor Products section is also useful.

A very useful guide to hard floor maintenance can be found in the Technical Help Guide section on the Prochem site.

It includes topics such as how to clean floors ranging from ceramic, terracotta and porcelain to epoxy resin, laminate and safety floors complemented by useful advice on removing scuffs and similar marks.

West Yorkshire cleaning technology and chemicals distributor Wakefield Floorcare has had to move premises: and it’s all Prochem’s fault!

“Well, almost,” laughs owner John Haynes. “We previously operated from a shop just down the road but we were shipping in so much Prochem product on pallets that we couldn’t accommodate them all!”

So – for very good reasons – John and his team are now in 200 sq m premises at a busy junction on the town’s busy Westgate End, with customer parking.

“It’s been a positive move, all round,” says John. “We have a showroom with warehousing and footfall through the door has effectively doubled.”

John’s customers span contract cleaning businesses, independent professionals, schools and local authorities.

They could go online to buy many of the machines and solutions as well as the new janitorial lines that Wakefield has added to its offer. But then, they wouldn’t be getting the knowledge and levels of support that John and his team of three can field.

“We’ve been in this business since 1980 and we’ve accumulated a lot of market expertise along the way,” agrees John.

“And that’s what our customers come here for, not simply how cheaply they can buy goods. They know that if something’s not right, they only have to drive here and it’s put right, on the spot.”

John’s business is well-established and he acknowledges that a good reputation always holds up well enough to weather market storms.  That stands for suppliers like Prochem, also. “When customers come in and keep asking for solutions by brand, you know you did the right thing to team up with a supplier like Prochem,” says John.

“Wakefield is a pretty strong catchment area with a nicely balanced economy,” he adds. “We anticipate steady and continued growth, here.”

www.wakefieldfloorcare.co.uk

It’s a frequently asked question by truck mount users calling the Prochem Europe service department.

Limescale can give lots of problems: blocked pipes, heat exchangers and filters, damaged valves and temperature sensors leading to overheating, loss of water pressure and poor performance.

Limescale damage to female quick connectors

And with a new heat exchanger costing up to £950 plus labour and downtime costs, it makes sense to de-scale. In hard water areas, once a month should be sufficient.

Prochem Truck Mount Descaler is a liquid inhibited descaler for the effective removal of hard water deposits from Prochem truck mounts and the protection of truck mount components. Its special formulation means it is not classified as corrosive to skin making it safer to handle than conventional acids.

With a list price of £14.25 for 5 litres and only one hour down-time to carry out a full de-scale, the benefit of descaling is a no-brainer.

So how do I use Prochem Truck Mount Descaler in my truck mount?

Begin by ensuring you are using appropriate personal protection equipment such as overalls, gloves and safety glasses etc., as recommended on the label & Safety Data Sheet. Next…

1. Disconnect the truck mount water inlet and solution outlet hoses. Drain half the water from the water box leaving at least three litres behind.

2. Start the engine running on warm water (not hot) and add one litre of Truck Mount Descaler into the water box to dissolve. Let the Truck Mount run for fifteen minutes to remove the limescale.

3. After treatment, immediately re-connect the water inlet and solution outlet hoses and flush with water for five minutes.

4. Add 250ml of Prochem alkaline liquid detergent (D488 Powerclean) to the water box and run for a few minutes to neutralise the acidic conditions. Flush again with water for a few minutes to remove the detergent

5. In cases of severe limescale build-up within a machine, a more concentrated solution of Truck Mount Descaler can be used in the water box and then the solution can be circulated for a longer period of time before flushing (see Product label for more detail).

So do we need it? As you can see, the answer is yes!

Paul Ruchat – Prochem product out the door…

… a big welcome to new Prochem Europe distributor Four Seasons Cleaning Supplies!

The Manchester-based business is one year into selling a comprehensive range of Prochem products and as is so often the case, finding that having more stock options to hand inevitably means getting more sales.

The company enjoys booming trade counter sales and has invested in added Prochem chemical and machines stock to hand in its warehouse.

“It’s a brand that draws attention so if you have plenty of options, you can usually sell more because the solutions are designed to work together,” says boss Adam Ruchet. “We’re finding product flying out the door, now.”

Key sellers at Four Seasons Cleaning include Extraction Plus, Solvex, Multi Pro, and Extraclean with growing interest in powder solutions.

Four Seasons employs a staff of 8 including three cleaners and runs two vehicles at present.

Adam came to the supplies business from contract cleaning. “Yes, I have kept my hand in,” he laughs.

“We are working a long-term major contract locally. It’s a good account and more to the point reminds us what it’s like to be at the sharp end of cleaning!” 

http://www.fourseasonscleaning.co.uk/

We all need a bit of that from time to time, don’t we?

For example, when it comes to resolving those tricky moments on-site when a professional cleaner stops and thinks, “….how do I sort this one?”

Well, a good starting point is a visit to the Cleaning Technical Help Pages on the Prochem website.

There’s plenty of useful information to be found here: from answers to commonly-asked questions about carpet, hard floor and upholstery cleaning for an on-the-spot solution, to downloading Product Specification Sheets and Safety Data Sheets for bedside reading!

Simply click on the PDF link below the product description on the website.

You will also find a comprehensive stain removal guide and many other resources at the site.

Accessing this data at the click of a button is the faster way of obtaining answers to your questions without having to call one of our technical help consultants.

Here are some useful links to save, now:

Carpet Cleaning – Common Questions & Answers
Upholstery Cleaning – Common Questions & Answers
Hard Floor Maintenance – Common Questions & Answers
Stain Removal Guide
Chemical Dilution Rates
Odour Control Healthcare Guide Poster A4 size
Odour Control Products & Machines Leaflet
Rug Cleaning
How to use Fabric Restorer & Bonnet Buff
Leather Cleaning
Cleaning Linoleum

Of course, if you prefer, Prochem Europe’s Technical Help Line is free-of-charge and operates during office hours. At all other times, just email your enquiry via the ‘Contact Us’ link on the home page at www.prochem.co.uk

The Technical Helpline is on 020 8974 1515.

Good hunting!

Some cleaning products do a good job – but only one good job.

Prochem’s Extraclean  advanced micro-encapsulation extraction cleaner for carpets, rugs and upholstery finds added favour for what it brings to the process by way of ‘extras’.

One sales champion for the solution is Prochem Europe Czech Republic distributor HP Trading, where Extraclean is in prime position on the company’s home page.

“Yes, it’s a very fine product, that’s why,” explains the company’s Pavel Hruby.

In fact, Pavel insists it’s his personal favourite cleaning product.

“It employs encapsulation cleaning and is anti-re-soiling. It’s simple to use with a good 1:100 dilution rate and it neutralises and deodorises, and is WoolSafe approved for wool carpets and rugs,” he tells us.

“It’s got the lot!”

http://www.extraktory-vysavace.cz/

The ‘Natural’ chemicals range from Prochem Europe plays an important role in helping you meet the objectives of customers seeking more environmentally-friendly solutions.

In this issue, chemical product manager, Paul Reynolds answers our questions on the thinking behind it.

OK Paul, what exactly is this range about?

Simply put, we’re talking six eco-considerate products formulated with superior environmental attributes without detriment to achieving the highest possible standards of quality and cleaning performance.

End users are becoming more environmentally conscious and seek to reduce their impact on their surroundings. Many businesses now include environmental questionnaires as part of their purchasing and tendering processes. And this also falls within our own policy objectives to ensure our products are as safe for the environment as possible.

What do you see as the key selling points for cleaners to share with customers? 

We’re raising the bar in relation to environmentally-friendly cleaning products and specifically their qualities of:

Safety – the ‘Natural’ range uses low toxicity ingredients considered safe for both the user and the environment.

Suitability – components and packaging materials have been selected on the basis of their suitability in terms of performance and environmental benefits.

Minimisation – of these products’ impact on the environment through the careful selection of their constituent parts and the processes used to make them.

Sustainability – where possible and appropriate, the Natural range uses sustainable and/or renewable resources, including the use of recycled and recyclable materials.

How environmentally-friendly is this range?

We looked at all elements of the make-up of each of the products and asked ourselves the question: how can we improve environmental performance? The answer lay in researching and reviewing suppliers, raw materials and packaging and only selecting the most suitable materials in terms of performance and the environment.

So – these products benefit consequently from some important environmental USPs …

• Free of artificial colours and dyes
• Phosphate-free formulations
• Excellent ingredient biodegradability
• Mild pH
• Recyclable packaging
• WoolSafe Approved (where applicable)
• Natural fragrances

Performance – will they work as well as other chemicals?

Another key objective was ensuring that they perform as well as, if not better, than conventional products already on the market. Natural range products incorporate polymer technology, which leaves no sticky residues to attract soil. The range allows cleaners to use greener, but still powerful, products without sacrificing cleaning performance.

The Natural Range – in close up …

All the solutions in the new Natural range feature environmentally and user friendly phosphate free formulations coupled with all natural fragrances including lemongrass, eucalyptus and tea.

The range is free of colours, dyes, synthetic fragrances, and contains only ingredients considered safe for the environment. It employs biodegradable complexing agents and short chain biodegradable surfactants.

Prochem Europe Ltd. is certified to the Environmental Standard ISO 14001 and is committed to the continual improvement of our environmental performance.

Natural Carpet Cleaner is an extraction cleaning concentrate with encapsulation technology and gentle pH for cleaning most types of carpets and rugs.

A biodegradable Carpet Prespray and Traffic Lane Cleaner for pre-treating heavily soiled areas of carpets, Natural Carpet Prespray incorporates encapsulation technology to help prevent sticky residues that may attract soil.

Natural Carpet Rinse is a mildly acidic professional carpet rinse which neutralizes alkaline residues without the use of harsh or corrosive acids. It also incorporates polymer technology to help prevent residues that may attract soil.

A neutral pH spot cleaner for removing a wide variety of spots and stains from carpet, Natural Carpet Spotter contains polymer encapsulation technology to prevent sticky residues and is biodegradable and phosphate free.

A powerful biological deodoriser for carpets, Natural Carpet Deodoriser is based on natural biological cultures that digest organic odours in carpets and is effective against urine and other offensive odours. Containing encapsulation technology to prevent sticky residues, it is sprayed directly onto odour contaminated carpet, whereupon the deodorisation process begins. After sufficient dwell time, the carpet is then rinse-extracted with Natural Carpet Cleaner or Natural Carpet Rinse.

Natural Multi-Surface Floor Cleaner is a powerful multi-surface cleaner for commercial floor cleaning. Its proven hard surface cleaning performance is verified by independent testing. Biodegradable and phosphate free, its heavy-duty formula removes the toughest oily and greasy soils.

Got stuck on a technicality? Let us help …

Q

My customer has walked in from the garden and had a wet red petal on her shoe and it has transferred colour on to a beige wool carpet. Would Stain Pro help?

A

Afraid not. Stain Pro is for protein spills such as food, drinks and such. This seems to be a possible colour transfer and a job for Red Rx. I would suggest you rinse with diluted B109 Fibre & Fibre Rinse first to see if anything is released and if so, luck is on your side. The natural dyes haven’t re-coloured the wool fibres. If the stain remains, then proceed by using E400 Red Rx, as follows.

Lift the flip-top lid and feed a small amount onto the colouring, gently work it into the carpet area, and rinse-extract with your machine again.

Please note that this action can be carried out no more than three times, otherwise it may affect the colour of the actual carpet itself. Also, Red Rx should only be used on white, plain, beige and natural coloured carpets.

By the way, an alternative solution is to use Red Rx with hot iron transfer. (If you are not sure about this, visit our Cleaning Technical Help Pages at www.prochem-uk.com for more information).

Q

“We have a contract with a very high-end, High Street boutique shop and they have just had a 70% silk/30% wool carpet installed, worth thousands of pounds. Obviously, this requires a different treatment to normal hot water extraction (HWE) but can you confirm what that is? Is it dry cleaning?”

A

Yes, that method of cleaning is certainly advisable.

Firstly, when you vacuum with a brush roller upright vacuum, adjust the roller to be at its highest level to prevent unnecessary wear to the fibres.

About silk: even though this fibre is merely a combination of water and proteins and can react badly to water, it is actually extremely durable, can last many years and is prized for its strength, texture and beauty – and being mixed with wool, as this one is – makes it strong.

Other silk look-a-likes or artificial versions such as Rayon (or viscose) are popular but these fibres generally break down and deteriorate over several years due to their low tensile strength (affected by water).

If the silk is in a woven carpet (which I would expect from your high-end client) then it will benefit, not only in terms of monetary value but will retain its look far longer, as well as maintaining a better resistance to foot traffic in the years to come.

Silk is ideally not wet-cleaned but is best cleaned using a low moisture method, such as C803 Fiberdri, which does not affect the fibre and therefore avoids pile burst or dye bleed.

Fiberdri is an inert compound based upon natural organic compound coated with biodegradable cleaning agents, which release and attract the soils into the absorbent compound.

Use this and either a soft carpet broom/brush or a Prochem TM4 machine fitted with soft brushes if you are dealing with larger areas.

After vacuuming, hand-feed the compound onto the floor and gently work it in with either a long handled carpet brush or machine unit. Allow 20-30 minutes to dwell and for the compound to absorb soiling and then collect it back with either the vacuum cleaner or the Prochem TM4 (now fitted with collection trays which are far more effective than a vacuum cleaner).

Ensure that the Fiberdri is fed down as a powder and not in clumps, as excessive moisture in one area could over-wet the silk fibres, resulting in longer drying times and give a potentially worrying time to both you and the client, as the “wet patch” looks much darker than the surrounding area! (See brown stained areas on the rug in the photo.)

Please also inform the client upfront that any spills of coffee, red wine etc, could cause potential problems and need to be treated as early as possible. So we’d suggest allowing an amount of Prochem Fiberdri to completely dry out and then informing the client that if there is a spill when the cleaning team are not around, to place a small pile of the dry powder onto the spill.

This will help to absorb the water/colour content of the spill into the absorbent compound.   

Note – If you would like to have a demonstration on the above system, please just contact Prochem who would be delighted to assist. This method is also suitable for the cleaning of carpets or rugs made from the following fibres – Jute, Bamboo, Wool, Rayon/Viscose, Seagrass, Coir etc. and even woven carpets or either wool or more-so, polypropylene would benefit from the process covered here. 

Some manufacturers also provide carpets with warranties and recommend this type of cleaning method, so perhaps ask upfront on newly laid, quality installations.

For information on these fibre types, please see earlier e-Zine editions, in particular June 2016. These can be found at prochemcleaningnews.com under the Ezine Archive section.