What to Look for When Choosing Your Carpet Cleaner

Not all carpet cleaners are the same.

Choosing a professional carpet cleaner is a much more involved decision than you may realize. Carpet cleaning is an unregulated industry with far too many unscrupulous individuals posing as professionals. A very small percentage of carpet cleaners are actually even trained and certified to clean carpet, not
to mention upholstery or any other surface in your home or business.

It is very important that you find a professional cleaner who has been properly trained, insured and experienced. If you do not, you may have saved yourself a few dollars on the cleaning, but may end up having to pay thousands to repair or replace carpets that have been damaged or even ruined by improper cleaning methods and inexperienced cleaners.

Below are some key points to consider when choosing your professional carpet cleaner.

1. IICRC CERTIFIED FIRM

Use of an IICRC Certified Firm is either recommended or required by most major Carpet Manufacturers. Certified Firms are committed to provide cleaning and restoration services based on the highest standard of honesty and integrity, pledge to carry adequate liability insurance, and to implement quality assurance programs. Carpet and fabric manufacturers prefer IICRC Certified Firms

EcoClean Carpet Care, registered with the IICRC as a Certified Firm, has earned the right to display the IICRC Logo and symbol of quality by meeting rigorous standards of business ethics and expertise, and attending comprehensive training programs.

2. IICRC CERTIFIED MASTER TEXTILE CLEANER

If you want the very best, you want an IICRC Master Textile Cleaner!

Master Textile Cleaner (MTC) is an advanced designation by the IICRC of knowledge and training in cleaning and restoration that is respected and recognized internationally by fiber producers, carpet and fabric manufacturers, and insurance company representatives.

Make sure your carpet cleaner has a current, valid IICRC Certification Card, issued by the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) with AT LEAST ONE certification, preferably in the specific area of work he/she is performing for you. Each category of certification has its own unique requirements and certification process, covering specific areas of expertise. These designations are earned through formal study, field experience, and successful completion of written examination. In all cases, an individual must attend an IICRC- approved school, successfully complete a written examination,
and document his or her skills in the subject. IICRC Certified Cleaning Technicians are required to maintain and further their education; to learn about the latest in technology and techniques.

The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification Board of Directors recognizes Mark Cermak and Andrechelle Cermak of EcoClean Carpet Care for having completed the highest technician level of certification through the IICRC including continuing education and meeting the requirements of the Institute as Master Textile Cleaners.

3. CARPET AND RUG INSTITUTE

Most major carpet manufacturers now require the use of specific cleaning systems,
including equipment and cleaning solutions that have been tested and approved by the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI)

Industry Research by the Carpet Manufacturers has shown that the majority of WARRANTY CLAIMS ARE THE RESULT OF POOR OR IMPROPER CLEANING. Because the majority of these costly warranty issues are a result of poor or improper maintenance by the consumers, Carpet Mills are now REQUIRING THE CONSUMER FOLLOW SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS FOR CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE – Most Consumers are not even aware of these requirements!

EcoClean Carpet Care, has been recognized by the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) (www.carpet-rug.org) as a Seal of Approval Service Provider – the carpet cleaning industry’s most important certification. This prestigious designation is reserved for only
those firms using carpet cleaning systems and products that pass the industry’s highest standards of excellence.

EcoClean is proud to be one of only 227 companies nationwide to be awarded “APPROVED SERVICE PROVIDER” status for all the major brands of Carpet manufactured in America including Mohawk, Shaw, and Beaulieu. We are the FIRST and ONLY CRI approved service provider in NorthEast Ohio.

4. WHO ACTUALLY CLEANS YOUR HOME or BUSINESS?

The person performing the cleaning is the single most important factor in getting a “good” carpet cleaning. Make sure to ask whether the company owners, or employees or sub contactors perform the cleaning in your home or business.
No one will work harder for you than the company owners.

If referred to a multi-truck company, be sure to get the name of the employee that performed well. Quality can vary greatly even within one company, depending on which employee is sent to your home.

Some companies are actually just marketing companies (not a carpet cleaning company). They advertize, book the cleaning jobs and then send a local sub contractor to your home to do the cleaning. The “marketing” company that booked the job has no control over the sub contractor who is in your home. If the sub contractor performs poorly, breaks or steals something,

We do not send employees or sub contractors to your home. The company owners, certified Master Textile Cleaners, come to clean your Northeast Ohio home or business. No other local company sends 2 Masters carpet cleaners, in fact there are only 3 Masters (MTC) in this entire area, and we are 2 of them!

Industry standards state that carpet should dry within six to eight hours or less, and should never stay damp more than 24 hours, or microbial growth and odor may occur.

Carpet cleaning machines – and operators – vary in their ability to control wetting, to properly extract solution and soil, and to implement drying procedures both during and after cleaning. The Carpet and Rug Institute evaluates equipment to determine how well it cleans and removes moisture. IICRC-Certified Firms provide technicians with on-going education and training in effective carpet cleaning and drying.

EcoClean’s dry time averages 15-60 MINUTES. Yes you read that right. DEEP cleaning that DRIES IN MINUTES, not hours or even days! No matter which carpet cleaning system is used to clean your carpet, we get it clean and we get it dry!

CARPET CLEANING METHODS

Beware of companies claiming their method or equipment as best (or that bash other carpet cleaning methods). No single method is the best solution in all situations.
All carpet cleaning methods offer various advantages, but also have some limitations.No single method is superior to all others. Properly performed under appropriateconditions, each method can provide satisfactory results. There are currently five methods of carpet cleaning available. Some carpets may need a combination of these methods to enhance the thoroughness of soil removal.

To achieve maximum cleaning results with any of the carpet cleaning methods, certain procedural guidelines must be followed. These guidelines are called the IICRC S100; Carpet Cleaning Standard, The Standard Reference Guide for Professional On- Location Cleaning of Installed Textile Floor Covering Materials.

Look for a company that offers more than one carpet cleaning method, but realize the most important factor in good carpet cleaning is the person perfoming the cleaning, not the particular equipment or method used. An educated, experienced, dedicated professional carpet cleaner can get your carpet clean with any of the accepted methods. The “bigger” truck is not always an indication of the best cleaner. Many companies own powerful carpet cleaning machines but very few companies teach their employees how to use them properly.

Many carpet cleaners simply recommend a particular cleaning method because it is the only one they happen to use. Would you want a carpenter that used only a hammer to fix everything? This is why it’s important that you choose
your carpet cleaner carefully.

The experts at EcoClean Carpet Care are knowledgeable in all methods of cleaning and will know exactly which cleaning method is best suited for your carpets particular cleaning needs. We have been involved with the IICRC S100 Committee in writing new updated S100 Carpet Cleaning Standards. We know the standards set in our industry for maintaining your carpet and upholstery and we exceed them.

Price is what you pay. Value is what you get. Carpet cleaning is really no different then anything else, you get what you pay for.

When you select a carpet cleaner, you’ll choose from a wide variety of cleaning methods and prices. You spend a lot of time in your home and a lot of money on your carpet, rugs and furnishings. Don’t waste your money on cheap cleaning! Cheap cleaning is not good, and good cleaning is not cheap.

Choosing a carpet cleaner based soley on price is a very bad idea. Beware of any carpet cleaner that makes excessive promises and gives a firm price over the phone. Remember, phone estimates are just that…estimates. Does the offer sound too good to be true? Then it probably is. Misleading advertizing
and sales tactics are common and can attract you to unreputable companies.

The price you may see advertised might not be the price you pay. Many homeowners have learned that the low price they saw advertised lasted only until the carpet cleaner got into their home. Then they were pressured into paying a lot more for a variety of add-ons. (Some carpet cleaners even break the law by using illegal bait and switch tactics)

Affiliation with a professional organization can indicate that the carpet cleaner stays abreast of changes in the industry and is able to give you access to the latest information and methods. It also indicates that they maintain certain standards of professionalism. For example, members of the Low Moisture Carpet Cleaners Association advocate certification in formal training programs and are generally committed to advancing their knowledge and quality of services.

The Low Moisture Carpet Cleaners Association (LMCCA). is an internatioinal trade association dedicated to setting and improving standards of service for the carpet cleaning industry and protecting consumers. EcoClean’s owners have served on the Board of Directors of the LMCCA for years.

9. RESEARCH, REFERENCES, REFERRALS, REVIEWS, RECOMMENDATIONS.

“Who can I trust?” is a common question. Checking with neighbors, friends, family is a good place to start. Do a little homework on the company, ask for referneces. Research on the Internet for references, referrals, reviews, recommendations, and testimonials.

HouseKeepingChannel.com, CertifiedCleaners.com, Carpet & Rug Institute, MerchantCircle.com, Google, Yahoo, Local-Cleaner.com

Expect to have to make an appointment in advance for a Master Cleaner. Please keep in mind, a carpet cleaning truck can properly service a couple homes a day, a couple hundred days a year. This works out to only a few hundred available cleaning appointments each year.

Same day or next day service will usually only be available by a carpet cleaning company with employees or sub contractors. These companies are quantity not quality based and clean as many as 6-10+ homes per day. They are much more likely to be able to “squeeze in” an extra job today or tomorrow for those
who did not plan ahead.

Many companies avoid the necessary steps in the cleaning process because they are always in a hurry to arrive at their next scheduled appointment. We never overbook, so that the necessary time and care is taken at each home or office to ensure the highest level of service possible. We believe that each step in the cleaning process is as important as the next one and will not rush through (or skip) one to get to the next. We will not rush through the cleaning appointment before yours to get to your home, same as we will not rush through cleaning your home to get to the next appointment.

We are the premier carpet, rug and upholstery cleaners in this area and in great demand. We are generally booked one to three weeks in advance. Advance appointments recommended.