realclean
Member
Question A, anyway to tell before you clean if the carpet will get waves in it?
and B: anyway to prevent it from happing?
and B: anyway to prevent it from happing?
Waves in carpet
- Thread starter realclean
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steve_64
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- Aug 11, 2012
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To prevent, pay attention as you are wanding. If you are locking down and using heat you can stretch the carpet. Just make sure you wand evenly and stretch all the carpet the same. Otherwise you cause waves and lumps. Usually where you stop the wet stroke. You have to pick it back up and pull it to the edge of the carpet with the next pass.
realclean
Member
FYI on this job the carpet got the waves within 5 minutes of a very light prespray.
Steve Lawrence
Member
If it looks loose before cleaning it will buckle during cleaning even more but should go back to its original loose state when dry.
Papa John
Lifetime Supportive Member
Hum.. was this a rug or carpet? If rug Maybe it was made by Stark and is a bordered rug.. if that's the case then you fk up.
If its carpet You can test before hand by pulling on the carpet. If it was installed incorrectly it will pull up easily and thus prone to wave
Clean Response
Member
Not sure if you can tell before hand. I found the best way to put the customer at ease is to reference your fingers tips and how they become wavy. Once they dry everything is back to normal. It is the the top expanding from the moisture while the bottom is not.
realclean
Member
This is carpet in a commercial building.
Lee Stockwell
FOJL
Steve nailed it.
Lee Stockwell
FOJL
Seasoned guys here LOVE seeing newbies squirm when it first happens to them.
Sierra Clean Care
Member
My experience on CGD, it usually only gets waves if the the installer uses the 'edge glue technique,(lazy and cheap way to install)', you WILL get waves. I did a job last year, the waves were almost big enough to surf!!!!!.... And the client ALWAYS blames us!
realclean
Member
This is not GCD.
In 14 years of cleaning I have never had one to do this.
Also the halls did not buckle only the offices.
In 14 years of cleaning I have never had one to do this.
Also the halls did not buckle only the offices.
Mark Saiger
Mr Happy!
steve_64
Member
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It wasn't power stretched and or it wasn't acclimated before installing.
I see it apartments a lot.
I see it apartments a lot.
Cleanworks
Moderator
I did an apartment building once that had 1 year old carpet installed. Not only did it wave but shrunk at the seams. The strata contacted the installer who said, "we perimeter glued it". Which means they glued the edges only. Not an approved installation technique. The installer refused to correct the problem and the strata had to eat the cost. It is never the fault of the cleaner unless you got it too wet and it took several days to dry.
ruff
Member
If it's rippling due to installation (installer did not power stretch) it is already there, yet less visible. You just got to pay attention (look for it). And note on work order (which they sign) as pre-exting condition.
Some time you can tell by seeing areas (ridges) that are wearing unevenly (darker and more worn out) differently than the carpet. The ridges wear faster as they stick out a little. Sometime you kind of kick the carpet gently (stomp forward?) and it will bunch, buckle, showing loss of stretch or bad installation.
If you wet clean, you can't prevent it but you sure can tell the client ahead of time that it's gonna happen. Sure changes the whole experience if you do. And it will settle. 99.9% of the time
Some time you can tell by seeing areas (ridges) that are wearing unevenly (darker and more worn out) differently than the carpet. The ridges wear faster as they stick out a little. Sometime you kind of kick the carpet gently (stomp forward?) and it will bunch, buckle, showing loss of stretch or bad installation.
If you wet clean, you can't prevent it but you sure can tell the client ahead of time that it's gonna happen. Sure changes the whole experience if you do. And it will settle. 99.9% of the time
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SamIam
Member
It's moisture related, I've seen swamp coolers create swelling in residential setting.
No way of knowing when or why.
But then more water introduced to the backing the more waves.
When I know I have a carpet I'll lightly pre spray.
And release the trigger on the back stroke and continue vacuuming and not allow any puddling of water.
Dry stroke and use fans.
Helps reduce swelling and duration of swelling.
No way of knowing when or why.
But then more water introduced to the backing the more waves.
When I know I have a carpet I'll lightly pre spray.
And release the trigger on the back stroke and continue vacuuming and not allow any puddling of water.
Dry stroke and use fans.
Helps reduce swelling and duration of swelling.
Old Coastie
Supportive Member
If it swells for more than four hours, see your doctor.
Right, Jimmy?
Right, Jimmy?
Nate The Great
Member
2 & 1/2 hours was the longest for me, anything more and she just being greedy...
steve_64
Member
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- Aug 11, 2012
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- 13,371
After four hours call anotger friend.
SamIam
Member
Stunt double
Spurlington
Member
Tell em to google why this happens .. valuable info coming from another source .. takes the heat off you
You can check the stretch on a carpet by going to the middle of the room and pulling up on an open area.
If you can pull up and down on it with not much force and it causes ripples (remember the parachute game in elementary gym class?) then the carpet will need a restretch regardless of what you do.
If you believe that pulling dirt out will help prolong the life of the carpet, the other side of that is maintaining a good even stretch. Wrinkles and poor seams will wear out 10x faster than anything else.
If you are finding wrinkles on a CGD it is either installer error (wrong trowel, wrong glue, wrong technique, didn't care etc...) or, an old hard set glue that has run its course and the rug should probably be taken up.
Has anyone knowingly cleaned a double stick glue down and if so how did it turn out?
If you can pull up and down on it with not much force and it causes ripples (remember the parachute game in elementary gym class?) then the carpet will need a restretch regardless of what you do.
If you believe that pulling dirt out will help prolong the life of the carpet, the other side of that is maintaining a good even stretch. Wrinkles and poor seams will wear out 10x faster than anything else.
If you are finding wrinkles on a CGD it is either installer error (wrong trowel, wrong glue, wrong technique, didn't care etc...) or, an old hard set glue that has run its course and the rug should probably be taken up.
Has anyone knowingly cleaned a double stick glue down and if so how did it turn out?
Cleanworks
Moderator
I have a condo building with double stick glue down. The first five or six years it cleaned up beautifully. The last 2 times, several hallways are buckling. The second floor, which is a crossover floor and has more foot traffic is the worst. I have advised them that the installation is failing and they need to take some action.
...nothing but trouble. Asking a glue bonded surface to perform any longer than that atop a flexible piece of pad defies logic, especially in high traffic areas where some overzealous steamcleaner is going to eventually pull the thing apart like a grilled cheese sando
Nate The Great
Member
I have cleaned double stick wool in a hotel corridor and we also installed some as well.. As long as it's installed properly you shouldn't have problems..
You have bonus points going for yourself as you can spot installation problems given your background.. My pops requires our installers to power stretch per the standards as it'd be very embarrassing to have a job come back with him being a flooring inspector.. Too many installers are in such a hurry they don't think about saving they're knees till it's too late..
Edited because of spelling
You have bonus points going for yourself as you can spot installation problems given your background.. My pops requires our installers to power stretch per the standards as it'd be very embarrassing to have a job come back with him being a flooring inspector.. Too many installers are in such a hurry they don't think about saving they're knees till it's too late..
Edited because of spelling
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