Advice on picking a carpet cleaner

Desk Jockey

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Rico Suave
Thanks for your kindness.
My son actually has SPD, you're welcome to look it up.
Actually, you guys are all a bunch of uneducated dicks. No wonder you're cleaning carpets for a living.
Thanks for nothing.
Look up this!

151146.jpeg
 

Nomad74

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Thanks for your kindness.
My son actually has SPD, you're welcome to look it up.
Actually, you guys are all a bunch of uneducated dicks. No wonder you're cleaning carpets for a living.
Thanks for nothing.
Where do you live. I’ll give you a freebee.
 
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FredC

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My son actually has SPD, you're welcome to look it up.
You mentioned sensitivity to smell but your concerns seem to be focused on the chemical composition of products rather than what might negatively effect your son's condition. I get they are likely connected now but let's be honest.....you were probably a little kooky before you ever procreated. You even described yourself as a "green freak". I can understand being concerned and wanting the safest for your fam but it seems like you are really looking for confirmation of irrational fears. If that is the case the way to avoid "chemical exposure" is simply not using them but doing so isn't likely to achieve the results you want.

As Matt mentioned your exposure to the chemicals in question is negligible. There are far more potentially dangerous "chemicals" and materials in your home no matter how "green" you build not to mention products you probably use daily.

You aren't likely to be in the area being cleaned, chems are heavily diluted, and in the case of hot water extraction they are rinsed out even further diluting them (you can never get everything out). The "scary" things that happen with exposure to these products generally happen at levels that you or even the cleaner will never be exposed to. Granted this hasn't always been the case and an argument can be made that we don't know what will be found harmful 10 years from now. Still, your exposure is minimal.

Hell you missed a big one with zerorez in that the magic water derives it's magic from LYE. Go read up on that. :D Yes they use other "chemicals" too as will the guy who uses procyon most likely. Why? There are simply spots and stains that can't be removed with a "green", or non-green for that matter, prespray. Of course, you could always ask that no additional products be used or even that just water be used as long as you tempered your expectations. You could also do it yourself as Chavez mentioned.





Actually, you guys are all a bunch of uneducated dicks. No wonder you're cleaning carpets for a living.
lol
 
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BIG WOOD

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Matt w.
Hi,

I am looking for a good carpet cleaner for our house. The carpet is by no means in bad condition, no pets etc. But it has accumulated a few stains, mainly from a lot of construction foot traffic we had last year.

Anyhow, my family is very sensitive to smell, and we are a bit of "green" freaks when it comes to using toxic cleaning agents. So I am looking for a good cleaner that won't use chemicals. A lot of folks around here use ZeroRez. But upon further research, they use a pretreatment which uses...guess what, chemicals:
sodium percarbonate, D-Limonene and Diethylene glycol monobutyl ether. Doesn't sound like something I'd want to drink, to quote their ads...

Another company I found claims to use "organic" solution. It is actually a product called Procyon. Doesn't seem very organic either, but potentially less harsh than ZeroRez...
Honestly I don't know anymore, feels like there's not a lot of transparency in this field.

Anyhow, what are your thoughts? Any tips / recommendations?
Thanks for your kindness.
My son actually has SPD, you're welcome to look it up.
Actually, you guys are all a bunch of uneducated dicks. No wonder you're cleaning carpets for a living.
Thanks for nothing.
I don't see SPD in your first post. And if you knew how many times the Karens that are "sensitive" to our chemicals, yet hire ZR all the time, not even comprehending the Lye in their process...you'd be a little more humble.

But since SPD is the reason for this request of information...Call the suggested type of company we discussed and tell them about the SPD and don't just tell them you're "sensitive" to smell tree hugger.

I have a customer who is very sensitive to getting Migraines from deodorants and there is products I have in stock that I use.
 

Brian H

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Brian H
And do you wash your car or your clothes with just plain water? Surfactants are needed to break down the soil in your carpet

If you still disagree with points we made, go buy a rug and just cover your dirt. Water wont do anything by itself

But you’re right about one thing…ZR is nothing more special than any other. And you get a totally different stranger cleaning around your personal belongings every time you hire those big, multitruck companies.
You won't with our company. All you have to do i request the crew you had last year, or last decade. I think we have 6-8 guys with 25 years or more of experience with our company.
 

Rob Grady

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Rob Grady
And do you wash your car or your clothes with just plain water? Surfactants are needed to break down the soil in your carpet

If you still disagree with points we made, go buy a rug and just cover your dirt. Water wont do anything by itself

But you’re right about one thing…ZR is nothing more special than any other. And you get a totally different stranger cleaning around your personal belongings every time you hire those big, multitruck companies.
Bulls hit. Water can move mountains.
 
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Trip Moses

IMOL
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Savannah GA
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Trip Moses
Hi,

I am looking for a good carpet cleaner for our house. The carpet is by no means in bad condition, no pets etc. But it has accumulated a few stains, mainly from a lot of construction foot traffic we had last year.

Anyhow, my family is very sensitive to smell, and we are a bit of "green" freaks when it comes to using toxic cleaning agents. So I am looking for a good cleaner that won't use chemicals. A lot of folks around here use ZeroRez. But upon further research, they use a pretreatment which uses...guess what, chemicals:
sodium percarbonate, D-Limonene and Diethylene glycol monobutyl ether. Doesn't sound like something I'd want to drink, to quote their ads...

Another company I found claims to use "organic" solution. It is actually a product called Procyon. Doesn't seem very organic either, but potentially less harsh than ZeroRez...
Honestly I don't know anymore, feels like there's not a lot of transparency in this field.

Anyhow, what are your thoughts? Any tips / recommendations?
Maybe my first answer was a little hasty. I’ll elaborate. The carpet cleaning field has a wide range of cleaning techniques, chemicals and technicians. Some companies give a crap and some don’t. That should be easy to figure out on your own. But instead of being straightforward with a local company who you may hire, you come on here hoping to get technical ammunition. In turn you would use the information from here to waste a busy professionals time. Possibly being a red flag customer that winds up costing the professional cleaner money and valuable time away from customers without trust and control issues. So don’t be surprised if when you call around to get quotes that some of the prices given are unusually high. They are factoring in dealing with you and your endless questions.
You want the best carpet cleaner. Any company worth their salt should have an online presence that sells itself. Pick one. Hire them. Make sure you are ready for them before they arrive. Trust them to do a good job. Leave them alone and let them do a good job. Simply ask them to go easy on the chemicals. It’s not complicated, but carpet cleaners dread customers like you with their trust issues and 1000 questions.
 

Desk Jockey

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I still say look it up. X2!!

If you're concerned about chems what are you doing about the air you breathe?

You're far more likely to see adverse affect from the smoke particles you're breathing in daily from the fires in your state.

Without any protection you're likely headed down the road for diminished respiratory issues.

Room ionizer wouldn't do the trick and breathing in that much ionized air also isn't good for you. You need a passive approach, no chems, no electrical discharge but instead a HEPA air processor that will filter the air and remove the harmful particulate through a system of filters. This adds nothing to the air you breathe, it only removes things from it.

Oh and to call carpet cleaner "Carpet Cleaners" is not a derogatory term. It's a chosen profession, we taken with great pride.

So you still have another shot if you want to take it. Let's see you've used profanity, but are still owed a derogatory term.

Fire away! 🙂
 
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danmushmush

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Dan Man
Maybe my first answer was a little hasty. I’ll elaborate. The carpet cleaning field has a wide range of cleaning techniques, chemicals and technicians. Some companies give a crap and some don’t. That should be easy to figure out on your own. But instead of being straightforward with a local company who you may hire, you come on here hoping to get technical ammunition. In turn you would use the information from here to waste a busy professionals time. Possibly being a red flag customer that winds up costing the professional cleaner money and valuable time away from customers without trust and control issues. So don’t be surprised if when you call around to get quotes that some of the prices given are unusually high. They are factoring in dealing with you and your endless questions.
You want the best carpet cleaner. Any company worth their salt should have an online presence that sells itself. Pick one. Hire them. Make sure you are ready for them before they arrive. Trust them to do a good job. Leave them alone and let them do a good job. Simply ask them to go easy on the chemicals. It’s not complicated, but carpet cleaners dread customers like you with their trust issues and 1000 questions.

I have trust issues with all contractors. Why? Because 9/10 of them suck. No offense, maybe it's a California thing. I've had a shower rebuilt that leaked several weeks after it was completed - the contractor did not follow TCNA guidelines with proper sloping and protecting the weep holes. I've had hardwood installed that isn't level, or pieces that should have been filtered out by the installer. I've had "installers" that treated my new $3k appliance like crap, damaging it and the flooring in the process. I've had a range hood installed with screws sticking through the cabinets. Plumbers that don't know they need to test the plumbing after they replace it. A detached sink that was secured with a washer (by a plumber, nonetheless). Painters that stain furniture. Electricians that installed sockets in the wrong location, even after I had very specifically told them where. I could probably go on, but I think you get it. And if you're wondering, these all had glowing reviews, most of which are probably fake.

So please, save me the bullshit and don't tell me that all carpet cleaners are professional and caring for their customers. People nowadays don't give 2 shits about their job or other people's property. So you have to watch them like a hawk, and you have to ask questions, and you have to constantly remind them what you want. Otherwise they'll screw up your job, and you'll be left to deal with the fallout.
 
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danmushmush

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If you're concerned about chems what are you doing about the air you breathe?

Great question. I've got an Austin Healthmate at my house + Blue Air purifier in every bedroom. I am well aware of the wildfires in California and the dangers they pose. We were just evacuated last year, the image of the orange sky and running to pick up my son from school through a rain of ashes still traumatizes me to this day.
 
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