C L E A N I N G & M A I N T E N A N C E G U I D E
A GUIDE TO THE CLEANING AND CARE OF NEWHEY CARPETʼS PRODUCTS PROTECTING YOUR INVESTMENT
Correct maintenance will significantly enhance the life of your carpet and will ensure that
it retains the best possible appearance throughout its life. By following the simple
instructions provided by this guide you can be satisfied that you have managed your
carpet in the best possible way.
Effective carpet maintenance can be thought of as comprising four separate elements:
• Preventative Maintenance
• Routine Maintenance
• Interim Maintenance
• Periodic Maintenance
By focussing on the first two elements from the outset you will not only reduce your
long-term cleaning costs but you can also be confident that you have implemented the
most effective carpet management programme.
PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE
Some would say that preventative maintenance begins at the design stage. It is fairly obvious that light coloured carpet will show soiling more quickly than darker, less vivid colours. However designs are often chosen with specific objectives in mind – perhaps to present a corporate image or create a particular ambience. Such considerations are usually out of the hands of those responsible for maintenance. It should be borne in mind however that if you do have a light coloured carpet or one in which the colours are vivid, you may need to place more emphasis on reducing soiling right from the outset.
It is generally quoted that 80% of the soil that is present in a building is carried in on the soles of shoes. In fact, at the entrance it is reasonable to suppose that nearly all of the soil on the carpet in the first few metres has been brought in under foot. Furthermore, even if the carpet is approached over a large area of smooth flooring, such as a marbled entrance hall, the carpet will show the most soiling where it is first encountered underfoot. This is particularly so in wet weather.
The solution is to install adequate lengths of entrance matting (also known as barrier matting). What is an adequate length? Well, research has shown that the ingress of dirt beyond the mat can be reduced by 92%, but only if a 7 metre long entrance mat is installed, unfortunately most locations cannot
accommodate such a long barrier zone. Nevertheless, there are some simple alternatives that can be considered.
First, is there an opportunity to place a scraper-type barrier outside the entrance, these are effective if the surrounding area tends to be muddy as is the case at a golf course or a country house hotel perhaps. Scraper type matting is often simply a metal grille although some alternate the metal with rubber slats. Is the main entrance through a revolving door? If so make sure that there is an entrance mat in the door well. People tend to shuffle as they walk through a revolving door allowing for passive wiping of the feet. They all so tend to shuffle when they are in lifts, It may look good to have a marble floor in the lift but the consequent staining in the lift lobbies of the upper floors, doesnʼt.
Make sure that any entrance mat that is laid in an open area is actually ʻcatchingʼ the focus of the traffic. It is not unusual to see mats installed as a design
feature, complementing the geometry of the area, rather than for the purpose for which they are intended. If the entrance leads from a front door to a reception desk for example, the mat wants to lead towards the reception desk.
There are a few other aspects to consider. In a restaurant for example, waiters passing continually from the kitchen to the dining area constantly carry grease on the soles of their shoes. An entrance mat on the kitchen side of the door will limit the ingress of greasy soil into the restaurant. Greasy soiling cannot be removed by simple vacuuming. The same principle should be followed too in hotels where access from a dusty back of house area meets front of house.
Finally, remember to clean the matting frequently. Otherwise it will become a reservoir for dirt and have the opposite of the desired effect.
There are two aspects to routine maintenance – vacuum cleaning, and spot and stain removal.
VACUUM CLEANING
Vacuum cleaning primarily removes superficial soiling. Soils, which are greasy or especially fine, do not respond well.
So-called spot vacuuming to remove localised debris such as biscuit crumbs for example can be effectively carried out using a simple canister cleaner. However, for effective routine vacuuming, Newhey Carpets recommend use of an upright machine that incorporates a brush or beater bar. The agitation provided by the brush or beater bar tends to loosen dirt that is held just below the surface of the pile, especially if the carpet is laid over a good underlay, and therefore provides superior cleaning to that which may be obtained with a canister. Better soil removal will normally result if the machine is operated back and forth against and with the lay of the pile. But remember, just as it is important to ensure that entrance matting is cleaned frequently, so it is important to empty the bag or dust collection chamber of the vacuum, regularly. Although there are some machines which maintain suction efficiency until the dust receptacle is almost completely full, there are others where a significant decay in performance will result once the bag or chamber is more than half full.
SPOT CLEANING
Research has shown that stain removal procedures are the most effective if they are carried out whilst they are still wet. Once dry the stain becomes much more difficult to remove and may even be absorbed into the fibre as a dye. Once the staining material has dyed the fibre, then much more aggressive techniques need to be used which may also destroy the dye that was put there intentionally during manufacture.
If the stain can be dealt with whilst it is fresh there are three ways of doing so.
The most effective is to have a small portable extraction machine on the premises similar to one which may be used domestically for DIY carpet cleaning; Newhey Carpets strongly recommend that their clients invest in such a
machine if any significant staining is likely to occur on their premises.
If a small extractor is not available simply pressing absorbent paper into the stain will remove much of it, The easiest way to do this is to press a kitchen roll or toilet roll into the stain and to keep doing so (even if it involves more than one roll) until no more staining material can be blotted up.
Alternatively, there are some proprietary stain absorbing powders that can be obtained from cleaning chemical suppliers. The idea behind these is that if a stain occurs which cannot be dealt with easily by cleaning staff –such as might occur in a restaurant during a full meal service for example, the powder is poured onto the stain and pressed in with the ball of the foot, This ensures that most of the stain is absorbed by the powder rather than the fibre. The powder can then be extracted later by cleaning staff once the area has become accessible to them.
Unfortunately, more commonly, stains are often not discovered until they are dry. When this is the case there must be a degree of acceptance that often 100% removal will not be achieved, Removal then relies upon the use of specially formulated proprietary stain removal products. Typically an establishment will need to keep a chewing gum remover, a neutral detergent spotter for aqueous based stains, and a solvent spotter for grease based stains. Further information follows with regard to suppliers of suitable products later in this guide. Always choose a solvent type chewing gum remover which softens the gum, rather than a freeze type which can spread the gum as small particles as it is broken up after freezing.
There is one golden rule for stain removal – BLOT donʼt rub. Work from the outside of the stain to the centre and have plenty of clean towelling to hand. Remember too that once you have removed a stain it is quite possible that there will be a cleaner patch where the stain originally was. This is because you will also have removed some superficial soil from the area in question as well.
Interim maintenance is an option to
consider but is not always required.
Certainly if you have chosen a light coloured carpet you will want to maintain the appearance at an acceptable level without the need for frequent wet cleaning. This is particularly important in the hospitality industry where, as well as presenting a satisfactory image at all times, they have an
additional problem namely that there is a very small window of opportunity for deep cleaning, either because they cannot tolerate wet carpets that take a long time to dry, and the noise which results from cleaning is often an issue.
There are two possible choices.
One is called bonnet cleaning. This makes use of a rotary brush machine (similar to those used for spray cleaning or buffing smooth floors but operat-ing at a slower rotational speed) fitted with a soft pad rather than the range of course products used for hard floor maintenance.
The pad is impregnated with cleaning agent and skims over the surface of the carpet causing some of the dirt to be absorbed onto the pad and some to be more evenly distributed thereby disguising traffic lanes. Drying times are short which is a distinct advantage in some locations. However, unless the carpet is of a dense construction Newhey Carpets do not recommend this technique. In low-density products the rotary action of the machine can cause loss of pile definition with consequent blurring of the pattern. On dense constructions the technique is acceptable.
The other choice is generally referred to as powder cleaning though this is not a strictly accurate term. A granular ʻcarrierʼ impregnated with detergents, water and solvents is sprinkled onto the carpet and brushed into the pile usually using a machine with contra-rotating cylindrical brushes. The brushing action brings the powder into intimate contact with the soil and the resultant mixture is subsequently vacuumed up. Drying times are very short using this technique and indeed there is no detriment if the carpet is walked upon whilst the cleaning is taking place. This type of interim maintenance is relatively expensive but does give a satisfying result.
Effective post-vacuuming is essential to ensure that all residues are removed.
PERIODIC MAINTENANCE_continued
From time to time it will be necessary to undertake more rigorous cleaning and it should be recognised that if the carpet is left too long between intervals, especially if there is no interim maintenance of the type described above, then a poorer result will be obtained.
Rotary shampooing must not be carried out on our products. Instead we recommend cleaning by Spray Extraction (popularly known as Hot water Extraction). This may be carried out by an experienced in-house team or by an external contractor. Whichever route is favoured only WoolSafe-Approved chemicals should be used and wherever possible only WoolSafe-Certified carpet cleaners should be selected. (see below)
If the cleaning is carried out in-house we recommend that a procedure is adopted whereby an area is treated with a suitable pre-spray, (also known as a traffic lane cleaner) which is should then be allowed to dwell on the carpet for approximately ten minutes before extracting with water or a low foaming
extraction cleaner. By treating with a pre-spray you will optimise the detergency because the time of contact with the greasy soil is increased. Imagine washing a greasy plate. If you simply dip it into the washing-up liquid without allowing time for the detergent to work, it will come out still greasy.
If you allow it to remain in contact with the detergent solution for a longer period, the detergent does all the work. So it is with a carpet.
Extract with overlapping strokes working against the lay of the pile for optimum results and if necessary, at the end of the operation realign the pile using a pile rake. Take care not to overwet the carpet.
Overwetting can result in seam splitting and in some carpet constructions may cause shrinkage. Overwetting may also result in a phenomenon known as cellulosic browning which may occur in jute backed carpets as natural coloured pigments, which are present in the jute, migrate from the backing material to the surface of the carpet. Water not exceeding around 50oC should be used in the machine. If possible reduce drying times by placing an air-mover (which is a powerful blower) on the carpet and make sure the area is well ventilated to facilitate drying. Until it is dry place discs of polythene or some other impermeable material under the feet of any furniture that is placed on the wet carpet to avoid rust or furniture-dye staining.
WoolSafe
Only WoolSafe-Approved chemicals should be used for both cleaning and stain removal. These chemicals have been independently tested to ensure that they will not damage the carpet in any way. Unapproved products may promote bleeding or leave the carpet affected by a sticky residue that promotes resoiling. There is a wide number to choose from, produced by leading manufacturers throughout the world. All suitable chemicals carry the WoolSafe logo and full details are available at
www.woolsafe.org The website also contains specific information with respect to stain removal procedures.
WoolSafe Certified Operators all have more than five yearʼs experience as carpet cleaners and have attended special courses concerned with the professional cleaning of wool carpets. If you wish to select a registered cleaner in your area, details may be found on the same website. PERIODIC MAINTENANCE
NEWHEY CARPETS LTD NEWHEY ROCHDALE LANCASHIRE OL16 3SL • T +44(0) 1706 846 375 • F +44(0) 1706 842 979 E sales@newheycarpets.co.uk • W www.newheycarpets.co.uk • REGISTERED IN ENGLAND 990472
