How to choose the best carpet cleaning services
Do you have a carpet cleaning emergency or wanting to schedule your annual carpet cleaning and getting confused between the different carpet cleaning services offered in Cape Town or even considering renting a carpet cleaning machine to DIY clean your carpets? DIY carpet cleaning machines are freely available and can be rented at affordable rates from your local grocery or convenience store.
Choosing the correct carpet cleaning services (methods) is not only one of the most important decisions you must make as choosing the incorrect cleaning method can damage your carpets, shorten its lifespan, and even void your manufacturing warranty it is also the most difficult as you require an in-depth understanding of all the methods being used to clean carpets.
After you know what carpet cleaning method is best for your requirements the next step is identifying what pricing is fair and what carpet cleaning companies are reputable service providers in Cape Town that will not only professionally conduct your work but also use the correct method to achieve the best cleaning results possible.
Before we start exploring what option suits you best, let’s first familiars ourselves with the top 3 methods of carpet cleaning used by companies in Cape Town.
Hot Water Extraction Cleaning (Steam Cleaning)
Best known as steam carpet cleaning, Hot water Extraction Cleaning (HWE) uses high pressured hot water and micro-vibrations to break down dirt captured in the carpet fibres.
Hot Water Extraction Cleaning typically involves the application of cleaning agents which are left to settle for a short period of time. After the cleaning agent settles the carpet is brushed and scrubbed by a carpet cleaning machine that starts to loosen the dirt from the carpet fibres. Once all the dirt is loose the chemical and dirt particles are sucked out of the carpet with high-pressure suction pumps while rinsing the surface with clean water. After all the dirt and chemicals have been removed from the carpet the process is completed with a final high-pressure extraction that allows the carpet to dry under normal air-conditioned temperatures.
A well-trained carpet cleaning team with the correct equipment can clean +/- 300 sqm of carpets in two hours and typical drying times would vary between 1 and 3 hours depending on how much chemical and water had to be applied to clean the carpet. Weather conditions do not have a major impact on drying times, but airflow does play a huge factor. Leaving a window open or switching on the air conditioning unit or even a fan after treatment is recommended.
Hot Water Extraction Cleaning was invented in 1947 and has been dramatically improved over the last half a decade. Hot Water Extraction Cleaning has continued to be the leading cleaning method in the industry and is the approved cleaning method by most reputable carpet manufacturers.
Carpet Shampooing
Carpet Shampooing is often mistaken for Hot Water Extraction Cleaning due to its similarity in application but there are distinct differences between the two techniques. One of the most noticeable differences is a high volume of foam during the cleaning procedure. Hot Water Extraction Cleaning does not create high volumes of foam and the cleaning chemicals in Hot Water Extraction cleaning are of a “low foam” nature.
Shampoo carpet cleaning was popular up and until the point that improved technology was introduced. Shampoo Carpet Cleaning might appear to clean heavily soiled carpets there are some drastic disadvantages to the technology. Shampoo carpet cleaning leaves behind a high volume of wet foam residue in the carpets that takes longer to dry and becomes sticky while drying. Because this method does not include any high-pressure extraction and only normal vacuum suction at times the drying times are long and often result in mould growth which results in bad odours forming in the carpet especially in a high moisture environment like Cape Town.
The majority of the smaller carpet cleaning companies in Cape Town offer Carpet Shampooing service as their cleaning method of choice as carpet shampooing equipment is inexpensive and cheap to maintain. Should drying times be important to you ensure that your service provider of choice is not using Carpet Shampooing but Hot Water Extraction.
Most of the small domestic carpet cleaning machines that you can rent from your local grocery or convenience store are Shampoo carpet machines.
Dry Carpet Cleaning
Dry Carpet Cleaning or compound cleaning was invented in the 1980s and has enjoyed increased popularity due to its short drying times.
There are many types of cleaning compounds or powders that have been developed over the past 30 years as this cleaning technology is considered relatively new compared to other established carpet cleaning methods like Hot Water Extraction Cleaning. Many still doubt the effectiveness of this cleaning technology.
Dry Carpet Cleaning applications are as follows: The cleaning compound of powders is brushed into the carpet fibres using a motorized or round brush machine. Small amounts of activator fluids or water at times are then applied to start the chemical cleaning reaction.
Dry Carpet Cleaning compounds or powders are typically made of biodegradable materials that act like micro-sponges that can absorb dissolved dirt. These compounds or powders are typically vacuumed out of the carpet after treatment. One of the major disadvantages of Dry Carpet Cleaning is that is difficult to remove all the cleaning compounds or powders from the carpet after treatments and may result in particles surfacing from the carpet months after the cleaning treatment has been completed.
Dry Carpet Cleaning equipment manufacturers try and differentiate themselves by developing their own cleaning compounds or powders formulas which may result in slight differences in the application of Dry Carpet Cleaning.
Now that we understand the 3 most used carpet cleaning methods used in Cape Town by professional carpet cleaning companies let us start addressing some of the most important questions that you might be facing before deciding on what carpet cleaning services to use.
Is it worth getting carpets professionally cleaned?
If your home or office carpets are exposed to high volumes of traffic, regular accidents, spills, or even cat and dog urine you might be tempted to clean your carpets using a DIY method that might include renting a Shampoo Carpet Cleaning machine from a grocery or confident store located in your neighbourhood.
Even though this is an affordable and sometimes successful method of getting your carpets cleaned you must take the following considerations before attempting the DIY route.
Generally, rental carpet machines, or at times referred to as DIY carpet cleaning machines do not heat the water temperature to as high as what professional Hot Water Extraction Carpet Cleaning machines do, which might result in less effective cleaning. In addition, these DIY carpet cleaning machines are fitted with small domestic vacuum pumps whereas the professional carpet cleaning machines are equipped with high-pressure extraction pumps resulting in more moisture and water is extracted from the carpets after the cleaning process. Leaving a carpet with access to moisture and water does not only result in not having all the dirt removed but also longer drying times and further creates a possible environment for mould to start to grow in your carpets. If your carpet starts to smell from a bad odour after you have cleaned the carpet yourself it is the first sign of mould growth, and you should contact a professional Hot Water Extraction Cleaning specialist immediately so that the carpet can be sterilized and cleaned professionally.
When properly done, the carpet should only be damp after it has been thoroughly cleaned and should be completely dry within one to two hours after cleaning.
Another consideration that should be taken is the amount of shampoo used in the machine. Carpet Cleaning shampoos differ in the amount of foam that they create. Leaving foam particles in your carpets not only increases the drying time but also becomes sticky during the drying process.
You will need to move all your heavy furniture from the carpet surfaces by yourself before cleaning the carpets. Do not move your furniture back onto the cleaned carpet until it’s completely dry.
If you are concerned about cost remember that there is a risk of you incurring additional costs to hire a professional carpet cleaning company to correct the foiled DIY carpet cleaning attempt.
Reputable professional Hot Water Extraction Carpet cleaners are not only trained to address almost any dirt or stain that might be in your carpets they are also properly equipped with the latest and most effective carpet cleaning technologies available.
How much does professional carpet cleaning cost roughly?
Unfortunately, no agreed pricing guidelines are being used between the different carpet cleaning companies in Cape Town. This scenario does cause a great variable in pricing for domestic and commercial carpet cleaning across Cape Town as factors that influences the cost of conducting carpet cleaning is influenced by travelling charges like fuel and vehicle maintenance, different equipment costs as some providers might be using cheap manufactured (typically domestic standard equipment) carpet cleaning equipment vs expensive commercial carpet cleaning equipment and labour costs.
Do your homework and shop around! Before you commit to the cheapest quote you received ask them why they are so cheap and do the same with the more expensive service provider. Make sure you compare apples with apples. They saying you pay peanuts, and you get monkeys applies to carpet cleaning services.
Most of the reputable carpet cleaning companies in Cape Town that are professional carpet cleaners will be quick to tell you how often they are tasked to clean carpets that were not cleaned properly by a so-called cheap service provider.
Who is the best carpet cleaning company?
The best method to determine who is the best carpet cleaning company in Cape Town for your requirements is to explain your unique requirements to the service provider and listen to how they can accommodate you.
Ask them for the contact information of their references. Phone their references to get a firsthand idea of their type of service delivery.
Do not accept “before and after” photographs as the only reference since these photographs can easily be manipulated with graphic design software.
Be cautious of online review-type websites as carpet cleaning companies are offered paid review services regularly at affordable rates.
Also, keep in mind that you will have to be spending a short amount of time with the cleaning crew in your house or office so you obviously should not only consider your own safety but also the impact of our surroundings while the cleaning crew is onsite.
Some industrial carpet cleaning machines can generate a lot of noise while others are fitted with low noise extraction pumps.
How do I find a reputable carpet cleaning company?
The easiest method of finding reputable carpet cleaning companies in your area is to conduct Google searches and then look at all their websites. Professional established carpet cleaners will have professional websites explaining all their services and showing some of their well-known high-profile clients. They will also have complete and active social media pages like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, etc. Smaller type carpet cleaning companies will either have no website or an incomplete website and the same on social media.
Use specific search terms for your direct area on search engines like Google, as an example: Carpet Cleaning Services near me, Carpet Cleaning near me, Carpet Cleaning Brackenfell, Carpet Cleaning Bellville, Carpet Cleaners Cape Town South Suburbs, and so on.
You can also try and search with more focused keywords as an example include your suburb name into your search and not just the name of the city you reside in as an example “Carpet Cleaners Amanda Glen“.
Also, look at when the company came into existence. Professional carpet cleaning services companies tend to have existed for a couple of years and will not be fly by night companies.
Should you like to have your carpets cleaned by a Profesional Carpet Service provider in Cape Town don,t hesitate to give the CPT Cleaners a call on 087 821 6774 or send us an email at info@cptcleaners.co.za
