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New! How do you clean tracked in de-icers from carpets?

1. I have a coffee stain on my carpet. How do I clean it?

2. I removed a spot on my carpet, but now it's come back! What can I do?

3. What can I do to combat carpet spots in my office?

4. How can we keep our office carpet clean in the winter when snow, dirt, and ice melt gets tracked in every day?

5. How do I know how long of a walk-off mat to buy?

6. How do I know when my wood floor needs to have new finish applied?

7. How can I check the condition of the wood on my wood floor?

8. Can using "green cleaning products help indoor air quality?

9. What else can we do to improve indoor air quality?

10. What does Brainerd Lakes Cleaning and Supply offer its janitorial supply customers besides cleaning products?

11. What questions should I ask when looking for a new janitorial supply distributor?

12. When I read an MSDS sheet, what is meant by "trade secret"?

13. What information is required to be on a cleaning chemical label?

14. How often should I change my vacuum's filter bag?

15. I've heard that air flow is important - how so?

16. What can I do to make my vacuum cleaner last longer?

17. What is Team Cleaning?

18. What kind of training programs do cleaning companies use to train their workers?

19. Does Brainerd Lakes Cleaning and Supply have dilution control systems and single-use cleaning paks?

20. What is Green Seal Certified?

21.  Which ice melter is most commonly used at a commercial facility?

22.  How do I remove a water line from a toilet?

23.  I just had my carpet cleaned and it is already showing dirt! Why did my carpet resoil so quickly?

24.  What is the secret of microfibers' effectiveness?

Coffee is one of the most common carpet stains, yet one of the most difficult to remove. Removing the spot immediately is the best solution, because if it's allowed to remain on the carpet, the oils and dyes in the coffee will penetrate the pores of the carpet fiber and become a permanent stain.

Here are some tips for removing old coffee spots:

• If possible, extract the area with a portable extractor and hand tool. 
• Apply a detergent spotter to the spot, agitate and rinse the area. This removes the oils from the carpet fiber.
• Apply a tannin spotter, agitate and rinse. This step is necessary because coffee beans are acidic. A strong, acid tannin spotter is needed to remove the dye stain left from coffee.
• Finally, use a detergent spotter or protein spotter to remove any mild or creamer stains, then rinse thoroughly.
• If you don't have the necessary spotters and/or equipment, call Brainerd Lakes Cleaning and Supply - we have all the tools needed to remove all types of spots!

Sometimes when we remove a spot, it will reappear upon drying, or over time. This usually happens because residue from the original spot was not completely removed, or residue from the cleaner that was used was not thoroughly rinsed.

Sometimes spots will reappear due to "wicking".  This means that the spot was not completely flushed out of the carpet's backing, and wicks back up to the carpet's surface.

If a spot reappears, re-wet it with a small amount of water and place a thick, dry, white cotton towel over it. Then place an even weight, such as a heavy book on the towel and let it sit overnight. This will cause the spot to wick up into the towel.

Spot and stain removal is one of the most challenging aspects of carpet appearance management. Spot removal should be performed on a daily basis, because even one unsightly spot can ruin an otherwise attractive carpet.

A spot or stain is either water- or solvent-soluble. A water-based spotter is normally used as a daily, all-purpose spotter that can be relied upon to remove 90 to 95 percent of common water-soluble carpet spots.

An all-purpose water-based spotter should be as residue-free as possible to give you some margin of error when rinsing out a spot. Even if some spotting agent is left in the carpet when it is applied, the low-residue spotter will not attract much soil. This gives you and "edge" in combating carpet spots, because no one (and no spotting chemical) is perfect.

For the tougher problems, an all-purpose solvent-based spotter should be able to remove a wide range of spots such as gum, tar, ink, marker, and oils and still be easy to rinse from carpeting. The gelled variety lets you keep the product on the spot longer without risking harm to the carpet backing.

However, when tough spots and stains cannot be removed by using all-purpose water- or solvent-based spotting chemicals, you may need to use a professional spotting kit with a variety of chemicals.

A spotting kit lets you treat the most difficult spots and stains that damage carpet fiber if left untreated. A kit usually contains water-based spotters specifically designed to remove certain food, soft drink, and coffee stains; and solvent-based spotters to remove specific types of gum, tar, and oils, as well as adhesives and copy toner. Specialty spotters, to remove rusts, odors and dye stains, should also be included.

Whatever the spot, use an extractor with hand-tool accessories to rinse the area before you spot. You may speed up the spotting process by quickly rinsing out spots with an extractor.

From the February 1996 edition of Cleaning & Maintenance Management magazine.
By Peter C. Batchelder, vice president of marketing at the Technical Services Division of The Ramsey Co., a manufacturer of carpet care systems in Marlborough, MA.

Have walk-off mats at every entrance, and vacuum them daily. For heavy traffic areas, consider vacuuming twice per day. Ten vacuum passes over the first 10 feet inside doorways will remove most tracked-in soil.

Did you know that 80% of soil brought into a facility can be trapped within the first 12 feet after stepping onto a carpeted surface? In other words, if you had a 12-foot mat at your entrance, you'd eliminate 80% of the soil brought into your office.

Walk-off mats can also reduce necessary maintenance, such as carpet cleaning. By having long enough mats and performing frequent vacuuming, you can prolong the time between carpet cleanings.

This picture illustrates how many vacuum passes are needed, depending on the length of mat that you have in your office. For example; if your mat is 4 feet long, you'll need 6 vacuum passes to pick up all the soil on the mat. So if you only want to make 2 vacuum passes, you'll need at least a 9-foot mat!

Do you have the following conditions? If so, you'll need finish removal, light sanding, and re-application of finish:

• Finish in nonexistent or extremely chipped and worn.
• Finish is worn completely through on traffic areas. Finish is also gouged and scraped.
• Finish is there, but is chipped and has light scrapes and scars from moving furniture across the floor.

For the following conditions, you'll need to use a screen to rough up the surface, and apply a maintenance coat of finish:

• Light scratches, scuffs, dings, and worn or dull traffic areas.
• Finish is there, but looks dirty.

You'll know you have extreme damage if you have warped boards, water damage, deep scratches, chips, or expansion cracks. You also have extreme damage if the floor feels loose or creaks when you walk on it. Floors in this condition will require deep drum sanding.

Uneven boards, scratches, scrapes, nail holes, and some cracks from expansion indicates minor warping. Floors in this condition will also require deep drum sanding.

Floors with scrapes, dents, worn areas from heavy wear, and a few expansion cracks will require finish removal by sanding.

Yes, you can limit the impact of chemicals on indoor air quality by using green cleaners. Green cleaners are defined as environmentally friendly and safe for human usage. When looking for green cleaners, consider the following:

• Water-based instead of solvent-based products.
• Hydrogen peroxide-based products.
• Products with the lowest possible VOC (volatile organic compounds)
• Products with little or no odors.

Whenever possible, use mechanical means rather than chemical means for cleaning. For example, use a microfiber cloth instead of a chemical-based dust control product. Also use a microfiber cloth instead of a feather duster, which causes dust to become airborne.

Use spray bottles instead of aerosols for applying chemicals if another means is not possible, and make sure you have proper ventilation when using chemicals. When in a commercial building, make sure ventilation systems are turned on. Inadequate ventilation allows chemical by-products to be absorbed into porous items such as ceiling tiles and wallboard.

• Never mix chemicals together
• Make sure to follow recommended dilutions
• Avoid over-wetting absorbent surfaces when cleaning
• Use dust containing equipment such as Hepa-filter vacuum cleaners

The following are just a few of the benefits our customers see when they purchase their janitorial products from us:

• Same day delivery.
• We manage your product supply for you.
• Advice on the best value for your money, based on 20 years experience in the building maintenance industry.
• Keeping you abreast of new products, new procedures, and new technology.
• Training customers on how to use the products and equipment properly and safely.
• Training in-house cleaners on proper cleaning procedures.
• Training employees of janitorial service companies.
• Putting together cleaning systems that are appropriate for your building.

• How long have you been in the industry?
• Are you locally owned and operated?
• Do you specialize in selling janitorial supplies and equipment, or do you sell everything from office supplies to building supplies to the kitchen sink?
• How do we place an order?
• How soon will we receive our product after the order is placed?
• Will you call on us periodically and monitor our supply?
• What product lines do you carry?
• Do you provide free training and support?

OSHA does not require manufacturers to disclose trade secrets. However, an MSDS that contains only the phrase 'trade secret" and fails to provide the information you need to secure the safety of your employers should be a warning to you.

Perhaps you should seek out another manufacturer who subscribes to full disclosure of information on their MSDS.

Labels are required to list the following:

• Container contents
• Appropriate hazard warnings
• The name and address of the manufacturer or distributor

Keeping the vacuum itself clean can help improve performance. Some manufacturers recommend routinely wiping the machine down, inside and out. Anything on the inside will eventually pass through the motor.

Also check the power cord and switch for worn cords and replace before they become a problem. Remind operators to pull from a vacuum's plug rather than the cord to reduce wire fraying.

Online classes, CD's and DVD's, streaming video, interactive digital training programs, PowerPoint presentations, and formal certification classes are all part of the growing selection of training materials and programs now available to cleaners, supervisors, managers, and business owners.

Ten years ago, information and training materials related to the technical and managerial aspects for cleaning were few and far between. Today independent companies, associations, manufacturers, and distributors are all providing training materials and programs for professional cleaners. Over 25,000 individuals have been certified by the IICRC and over 5,000 firms now hire only employees who have the certification program.

Yes we do! Our dilution control system and single-use cleaning paks are environmentally friendly, Green Seal Certified products.

Green Seal's evaluations are based on state-of-the-art science and information using internationally recognized methods and procedures. Thus, Green Seal provides credible, objective, and unbiased information whose only purpose is to direct the purchaser to environmentally responsible products and services.

www.GreenSeal.org

Calcium chloride and rock salt are the most common in applications around commercial, industrial, and institutional facilities. Those materials, along with potassium and magnesium chloride, are all naturally occurring salts. Urea, ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulfate are synthetic, and are more often used as fertilizers.

Treat the bowl with an acid bowl cleaner. Be sure to wear gloves when applying the product. It may take several applications.  You can also use a pumice stone; just make sure the stone is wet when using so you don't scratch the porcelain.

If your carpet is getting dirty shortly after being cleaned, it most likely was not cleaned properly. There may be residue left over from the cleaning process and the carpet may not have been properly neutralized. Other reasons for quickly soiling include: 1) Poor quality chemicals or formulating their own chemicals. 2) Incompatible chemicals, one example is mixing cationic deodorizers with anionic cleaners. 3) Improper dilution. A common mistake is thinking that if a little chemical cleans well, then a lot of chemical will clean better. 4) Inexperience.

The only thing you can do to remedy this situation is to have the carpet recleaned. In order to avoid this situation in the future, make sure you are dealing with a reputable carpet cleaning company.

What is the secret of microfibers' effectiveness?

Microfibers are densely constructed manmade fibers that are woven into thousands of loops. These loops create a large surface area that is excellent at trapping dirt, dust, bacteria and grease. The density of the material enables it to hold up to six times its weight in water, making it more absorbent than the traditional cotton mop.