Carpet Appearance Management
Whittaker’s Patented Method of Carpet Management
Whittaker’s comprehensive approach provides a cost-effective carpet care and maintenance program. Our integrated, four-step process prevents the buildup of sticky chemical residue and soil, protecting the life cycle of the carpet and improving its appearance month-to-month. Keep your carpets looking great all year long with our four cornerstones of carpet maintenance.
Four Cornerstones of Carpet Maintenance
Your carpet can be one of your company’s most expensive and abused assets. Protecting that asset can not only save you money in the long run but also says a lot about the character of your organization. At Whittaker, we believe that your carpet should always look its best.
The Whittaker comprehensive planned approach identifies the total program of maintenance for the proper care of any facility’s carpet. Our integrated, four-step process prevents the buildup of residue, soil, and carpet cleaning products, protecting the color and appearance of expensive, carefully chosen carpets.
The following is a comprehensive carpet maintenance program that Whittaker has cultivated over 50 years of industry experience. Following these steps will ensure that you save time and money so that you always have clean carpet.
1Preventative Maintenance
Preventative maintenance is the least costly yet most important and effective means to protect carpet appearance. Since 80% of soil is brought in by the feet of building visitors and occupants, the goal at this level is to reduce the amount of soil that contacts the carpet to limit its accumulation no matter the foot traffic. Components include:
- Walk-off mats at all entrances and hard-to-soft transition points to remove dirt, grease, and oil from shoes before tracking.
- Protective mats in areas where excessive matter is tracked onto carpeted areas, such as underneath a water fountain, coffee bar, or print station.
2Daily Maintenance
Frequently using a vacuum cleaner on high-traffic areas will remove 80-90% of dry soil accumulation. Choose a commercial-grade backpack, canister, or upright vacuum that meets the certification criteria of the Carpet and Rug Institute.
High-filtration vacuum systems have been proven to have longer life cycles and increased effectiveness while containing dust better during daily vacuuming cycles. Check your filter bag daily. Assemble a kit of stain and spot removers kit for the immediate cleaning of spills and tracked-on discoloration resulting from oil, grease, wax, beverages, and other foreign substances.
It’s best to treat potential staining spots before they have time to dry, so daily visual inspection by members of the vacuum crew is recommended. Ideal solutions for daily stain-removal needs are the Carpet Roamer® Spotting Tool and CRYSTAL® spot cleaning agents from Whittaker.
3Interim Maintenance
At Whittaker, we have discovered that the most effective, cost-efficient, and safest way to maintain a great carpet appearance is with low-moisture encapsulation interim cleaning.
Typical scenario in a facility that uses no interim maintenance and hot water deep extraction quarterly:
Result of implementing monthly interim maintenancewith the Whittaker Smart Care® Systems:
By reducing hot water extraction to once per year with monthly Whittaker treatments, you will maintain your carpet appearance at less cost while extending the life of your carpet! The goal of interim maintenance is to keep the carpet clean and maintain a consistent appearance level at the lowest possible cost. The primary focus is frequent low-moisture pile lifting and removing sticky residue that would otherwise trap soil in the carpet fibers.
Whittaker Smart Care® Systems are the next-generation approach to effective interim maintenance — which involves three simple steps:
- Apply CRYSTAL DRY® cleaning solution to carpeting using a manual sprayer or a machine-mounted electric applicator. CRYSTAL DRY® cleaning solution is non-hazardous, contains no VOCs, and is approved for use on wool and stain-resistant carpet fibers.
- Agitate CRYSTAL DRY® cleaning solution immediately into the carpet fibers with a Whittaker Smart Care® System. The Smart Care® TWIN is specifically designed to maneuver in smaller facilities with sensitive equipment or furniture. The Smart Care® TRIO provides 50% more brushing action to clean large square footage facilities 50% faster. The Smart Care® agitators carry the CRYSTAL DRY® solution deep into the fibers, scrubbing each tuft in multiple directions while lifting and opening the pile simultaneously.
- Vacuum in as little as 20 minutes or at the next vacuum cycle. The CRYSTAL DRY® cleaning solution will completely encapsulate sticky soils in clear polymer crystals that are brittle enough to vacuum away easily.
4Deep Extraction Cleaning
This level of a deep clean should only be performed annually, except in special cases such as poor scheduling of interim maintenance, flooding, or otherwise extraordinary conditions. Only pure water should be used unless other types of chemicals have been allowed to accumulate. In this case, we recommend the application of CRYSTAL EXTRACT® encapsulating pre-spray or CRYSTAL® QUICK RESTORE™ as a pre-spray before hot-water extraction. For best results, agitate the pre-spray with a Whittaker Smart Care® machine to increase cleaning effectiveness by lifting and opening the pile.
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