Home About Writers Categories Recent Issues Subscribe Contact File Transfer





Aaron McPeak
Aaron McPeak has over 11 years of experience in the floor covering industry, holding various positions including sales, operations, marketing and advertising, installation, and leadership. Other significant experience was with the U-haul Company where he spent 10 years ending as the district manager for Kansas. He is degreed from Friends University in business management and is currently attending Wichita State’s EMBA program. He can be reached at amcpeak@starlumber.com or at 316-941-1753.
Carpet, Tile & Floor Covering
2007-08-01 11:27:00
The carpet forum - series
Answer: You haven’t said what you used to clean the carpet with first; it sounds like some kind of extraction system, since you mention it being wet. Heavy traffic areas do get very dirty and need to be vacuumed at least twice a week and professionally cleaned the way the carpet manufacturer specifies every 12 to 18 months. This could be dirt resurfacing, especially if you over wetted this area and didn’t have enough suction to pull up all the liquid and dirt. It could also be residue left over from the cleaning products and/or a combination of both. Another possibility is that you might be seeing “wicking” of soil to the tips of the carpet fibers. As the carpet dries to the air, moisture in the fibers moves upward, bringing minute soil particles with it. When the moisture evaporates, the remaining soil gives a brown cast to the fibers. To determine if this is the case, wipe the carpet with a damp, white cotton towel and note any transfer of soil. If you see it, you may wish to clean again using a more complete rinse and extraction procedure or you may choose to use a dampened bonnet pad to remove the soil and leave the fiber tips free of residue. I suggest you have a carpet cleaning professional clean this area as opposed to renting equipment yourself. Often times, rental equipment does not provide sufficient water temperature to effectively clean given temperature loss from the hopper to the end of the wand where contact is made. Equipment you rent also does not have the ability to completely remove the cleaning agents you put into the carpeting due to limited suction. Between professional cleanings, vacuum regularly and clean the traffic areas with CRI Seal of Approval products that won’t cause rapid re-soiling. You can find a list of certified cleaning products by going to
 
The Q & A Times Journal accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or photographs.Materials will not be returned unless accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Thank you.
 
Wildcard SSL Certificates