Top 3 General use protectors

[ruff]

From what Tom Forsythe explains, and he's one of the very few reps I actually believe. Yes a chemist but he works for Interlink, so for that matter he's a rep.

Anyhow, it seems like you'll be doing your clients a dis-service if you use the concept of one product fits all. As there will be a substantial difference in effectiveness and performance of the different products on different fibers, as they were designed specifically for that fiber.

Now it could be that I drank the cool aid and that this is a ruse to make us buy more products. But I believe Tom.

 

[Jim Pemberton]

You need to meet Tom. He's not the typical chemist....or rep.

He looks like a lumberjack and has the directness of a blue collar working class uncle.

But he's got 10 x most of our brains at least.

 

[Lint Basket]

I love talking to Tom, you can feel your brain getting smarter. When you talk for very long you can actually get a very different headache that's hard to explain..

Then a few weeks ago I found myself sitting at a table with Tom F. and Jim P. talking protector. Freaking awesome, now I get what Mikeyfests are all about.

 

[ruff]

You can tell that from his posts. All one needs is to pay attention. And I'd be delighted to meet him.

Is he coming to your dog and pony show in CA this March?

 

[Jim Pemberton]

You can tell that from his posts. All one needs is to pay attention. And I'd be delighted to meet him.

Is he coming to your dog and pony show in CA this March?

I'm afraid not. It would be fun though.

 

[Mikey P]

Freaking awesome, now I get what Mikeyfests are all about.

worth the trip I take it...

 

[Jim Pemberton]

worth the trip I take it...

I know you are asking that of Scott, but let me answer that from my perspective:

This old guy has been going to shows, customer appreciation days, etc for 42 years. Each have good and bad things about them, and the "hands on venues" like Mikeyfests were and are always the best.

But working at the Ronald McDonald House was a completely different experience for me. I had a chance to see cleaners who I mostly only knew from their posts work hard to give back. I would list each person but fear to miss one.

The person I will mention was Melissa Conway. She was down on the floor and stairs wiping baseboards. It told me everything about her.

Everyone else did things to go the extra mile as well. Nothing was done "half way". That includes vendors, most of us who are not known for "working for a living". Its easy to "talk big" about how things are done on the board, but the team there really "walked the walk".

And they did it all for free.

 

[icleancarpetz]

I’m suspect of any protector green or not. I Don’t use them and don’t trust them health wise
I have duPont, scothguard, Harvard, hardball....you name it sitting on my shelf.

 

[Tom Forsythe]

Almost every nylon carpet, the newer version of Triexta (Forever Clean) carpet and a lot of wool broadloom carpet are mill treated with fluorochemical and acid dye resistors. A lot of upholstery fabrics are pre-treated with fluorochemical protector. We had to get a special run of upholstery not protected to use in lab testing. Our industry in most cases is replenishing what has already been applied as fluorochemical wears off over time through friction and acid dye resistors are removed through extraction. Most carpet mills advise their customers to reapply protector periodically.

Recently we have been working with a mill which did not apply protector to carpet. It is a high style, expensive carpet that is proving to be a maintenance disaster. We showed them how even secondary market protector improves their maintenance dramatically. We persuaded them to work with our fluorochemical supplier to start treating their high style carpets at the mill. It is more efficient based on the ability to use high heat in a mill application to get betters results with the amount applied.

Apparently some do not believe it works, but we would like to see proof that it does not work. We have mountains of lab data and testing over the last 20 years that it does work. Wednesday, I went to my wife's second grade class to show some chemical demonstrations. One of them involved how the property of an untreated nylon carpet can be significantly changed by the addition of a fluorochemical and acid dye resistor. I did 8 different demonstrations over the course of 15 minutes (including the protector demo) to hopefully excite the students about the wonder of science. This is one of the best things that I do every year as I like seeing the awe and wonder in the eyes of the students.

However, there is a significant performance difference in some brands. Pre-sprays are vetted by cleaners every day so an average pre-spray will not survive. If protectors were pre-sprays then there would be a lot of protectors that cleaners would never use again. There was a live demonstration at Mikeysfest a few years ago that tested a few protectors. The protector was applied by a third party so that all were evenly applied. We heard that the results showed that protector works but also that it is not bulletproof. Many on this board saw it live so their recollection is more important than what I heard.

 

[Cleanworks]

I’m suspect of any protector green or not. I Don’t use them and don’t trust them health wise
I have duPont, scothguard, Harvard, hardball....you name it sitting on my shelf.

I know a lot of carpet cleaners who feel the same way. Mostly older guys and they say things like, "it's just a scam, or just have your carpets cleaned more often, etc." I don't like upselling my customers or putting pressure on them to buy something they don't need but if you do some testing on these products, you will see that they do work and sometimes can be a life saver if quick attention is paid to spills. They are no more toxic than a lot of presprays or spotters. You don't want to inhale them. For carpets, I like to use low pressure pump up or electric sprayers and for upholstery I use a low pressure handheld pump up sprayer for most synthetics or a electric high pressure paint sprayer for natural fibres. I usually wear a respirator when applying any type of protector. I have the customer leave the areas being sprayed. Water based products are heavy and usually fall out of the air quickly. I don't use solvents in homes. If you don't at least offer the service, you are depriving your customer of a potentially valuable service. Take some untreated carpet and test it. You will be amazed at the results.

 

[PrimaDonna]

We offer Scotchgard, Maxim, and FPA. All at different price points.

Cobbs for tile and grout.

 

[icleancarpetz]

How safe are they for your health? Thats my concerns. Never mind the client...I'm the one ingesting this stuff day in and day out either through the nostrils and skin.

I have a client that strictly prohibits any use of detergents in his home. Claims horrible allergies. Only wants me to clean with water and thats it. no problema señor...

 

[Mikey P]

@CJ-FL what protectors are you currently offering?


And can you use products not sold buy SS corporate?

 

[icleancarpetz]

I usually wear a respirator when applying any type of protector. I have the customer leave the areas being sprayed.

Me...I wouldn't do that. Masking up in my clients home to spray stuff on their carpets would sound off the alarms that the stuff being sprayed and left in my carpets is not healthy. No sir. Think about it. A carpet cleaner asking me to evacuate my own home for him to spray junk on the carpet all the while talking to me through his respirator. That hand book needs to be rewritten.
(Ron I am not attacking you just merely having a discussion that I wouldn't do it that way)

 

[Cleanworks]

Me...I wouldn't do that. Masking up in my clients home to spray stuff on their carpets would sound off the alarms that the stuff being sprayed and left in my carpets is not healthy. No sir. Think about it. A carpet cleaner asking me to evacuate my own home for him to spray junk on the carpet all the while talking to me through his respirator. That hand book needs to be rewritten.
(Ron I am not attacking you just merely having a discussion that I wouldn't do it that way)

It's only a problem while it's in the air. When it's on the carpet, it's impossible to breathe it in. People understand that if you explain it to them.

 

[Cleanworks]

Also, we don't evacuate the home, we just ask the home owner not to be in the same room as we spray, just common sense. It comes down to a matter of personal preference.

 

[Hack Attack]

How safe are they for your health? Thats my concerns. Never mind the client...I'm the one ingesting this stuff day in and day out either through the nostrils and skin.

I have a client that strictly prohibits any use of detergents in his home. Claims horrible allergies. Only wants me to clean with water and thats it. no problema señor...

I'd say read and understand the sds with every product you use, not just protector but spotters presprays etc. Those U.N. classifications and numbers 6.1 e.g. mean something??? The more you know the more informed choices you can make. You can then be your customers expert and provide solutions that work for you and your customer which is win win

 

[CJ-FL]

@CJ-FL what protectors are you currently offering?


And can you use products not sold buy SS corporate?

Our Protector is a proprietary mix made by Spartan Chemical Company in Ohio. It’s a water based product and is called SuperShield Plus.

We do have the ability to use whichever products we see fit but in the past they have sent out DO NOT USE letters to the franchise system with a short list of products. This is only done when a clear and real danger is associated with a product. (ie POG’s bottle staring it’s a carcinogen)

MOST franchise owners stick to Steemers products for 3 reasons.
1. All in all they work pretty well (I have
no doubt others may be better but they
work and work pretty well)
2. If an accident occurred like a kid
getting ahold of and drinking s bottle of
something or s bad batch of some
product was getting people sick. We
would have some legal backing and/or
support from our Corporate office since
they were our whom supplied us with
the product.
3. Lastly, in comparison to buying
products from Larry Cobb, Tom
Forsythe and the like , we get a hell
of a deal.


BTW Just kidding Tom & Larry. Kind of

 

[Mikey P]

Our Protector is a proprietary mix made by Spartan Chemical Company in Ohio. It’s a water based product and is called SuperShield Plus.

We do have the ability to use whichever products we see fit but in the past they have sent out DO NOT USE letters to the franchise system with a short list of products. This is only done when a clear and real danger is associated with a product. (ie POG’s bottle staring it’s a carcinogen)

MOST franchise owners stick to Steemers products for 3 reasons.
1. All in all they work pretty well (I have
no doubt others may be better but they
work and work pretty well)
2. If an accident occurred like a kid
getting ahold of and drinking s bottle of
something or s bad batch of some
product was getting people sick. We
would have some legal backing and/or
support from our Corporate office since
they were our whom supplied us with
the product.
3. Lastly, in comparison to buying
products from Larry Cobb, Tom
Forsythe and the like , we get a hell
of a deal.


BTW Just kidding Tom & Larry. Kind of

How would you describe your main residential pre spray?

 

[CJ-FL]

How would you describe your main residential pre spray?

EF - Residential Pre-Spray
(Environmentally Friendly)

Water Based, EPA Safer Choice
PH 9 - 10

 

[Cleanworks]

View attachment 77958 View attachment 77959
EF - Residential Pre-Spray
(Environmentally Friendly)

Water Based, EPA Safer Choice
PH 9 - 10

All trade secrets will be exposed here.

 

[CJ-FL]

All trade secrets will be exposed here.

 

[ruff]

Me...I wouldn't do that. Masking up in my clients home to spray stuff on their carpets would sound off the alarms that the stuff being sprayed and left in my carpets is not healthy. No sir. Think about it. A carpet cleaner asking me to evacuate my own home for him to spray junk on the carpet all the while talking to me through his respirator. That hand book needs to be rewritten.
(Ron I am not attacking you just merely having a discussion that I wouldn't do it that way)

Interesting that all who make these claims, never tried it. I am willing to bet you didn't either.

I explain to my client that I do this for a living, get exposed to it on a regular basis and I need to protect myself.
Not only that it does not act as a deterrent, they also assume that I will treat their health and their home the same- with care. Done it many times, funny part- people keep coming back as repeats.

Your clients are not dumb, an honest and logical explanation goes a long way.

The client does not need to evacuate, just step aside for a couple of minutes while the product is being applied. The book is fine. And for ****'s sake- Put on the damn respirator only after you're done explaining. They will understand your English much better

 

[Lee Stockwell]

If you were painting their living room you would take similar precautions, with similar effects.