Author: Packerland Team

The carpet cleaning industry saw its first new fiber in many years back in 2009 when the FCC (Federal Trade Commission) recognized polytrimethylene terephthalate (PTT) as a new class of fiber. Previously it had been recognized as polyester. Consumers now have the option to purchase carpets that may be identified as Triexta, Smartstrand or Sorona.
PTT was initially developed by Dupont back in 1941. In 1999 Shell started marketing PTT under the trade name Corterra. Use of this fiber was limited and mostly used in clothing fabrics not carpet.
Shaw Industries began marketing Cortera as a carpet fiber in 2001. Mohawk began making PTT under the name Smartstrand beginning in 2004.

A version of PTT including 37% of a Dupont resin that originates from corn was brought to the market by Mohawk. It is called Smartstrand with Dupont Sorona.
This could be spun into fibers and tufted into carpet using the same equipment as was being used for nylon fiber carpets. With the ability to be processed on existing equipment and the green appeal of using corn, a renewable resource, PTT now holds a small but growing share of the carpet fiber market.

As a certified IICRC carpet cleaning company, Green Bay Floor Restore is committed to knowing how to clean all fibers. It is anticipated that Triexta fibers will resist staining with acid food dyes and be somewhat resistant to disperse dyes (yellow of turmeric in mustard is an example of disperse dye). PTT does have an affinity for oil and grease, but should respond well to cleaning if it done on a regular basis., at least annually for typical family use.

In closing please remember that dry extracting ( vacuuming) is the single most important thing you can do to your carpets for look and longevity.

Jamie Strohmeyer
Green Bay Floor Restore / IICRC Certified

920-664-1288

The season for cleaning is in full swing. Although, in reality, cleaning has no season but traditionally, residential consumers have their possessions cleaned and maintained in the warmer months in the North East part of Wisconsin.
When I am contacted by a potential customer that finds out about my services in the yellow book or on an internet search engine, the one question I can be sure to be asked is “what is different between your service and some of the others”? This question usually comes after the potential customer asks for a “ball park figure” on the cost of the areas or types of surfaces they are looking to have cleaned.
Let’s take carpet cleaning for an example. The consumer wants their carpets cleaned and they are calling for price comparisons between other carpet cleaning companies. Did you know there are many different ways to clean carpet? Encapsulation, Absorbent Compound, Dry Foam , Absorbent Pad, Shampoo and Hot Water Extraction. What is the method you are comparing my price and service to? Green Bay Floor Restore utilizes hot water extraction method in almost all residential settings. Hot water extraction is the recommended method by all major carpet manufacturers as well as the Carpet and Rug Institute of America. HWE, is almost always required to maintain any carpet fiber warranty you may have. We utilize Encapsulation cleaning mostly in commercial settings like offices, churches and schools and other areas where high productivity, lower costs and fast dry time is critical.
Some other benefits you can expect from Green Bay Floor Restore’s carpet cleaning service are, each area is thoroughly vacuumed, corner guards are placed as to not damage any wood work when pulling hoses, floor runners are placed as needed, basic spot treatments are included, fiber rinse which neutralizes alkaline cleaners are run through the system to prevent dull looking or “crusty” carpets after cleaning, grooming the carpets to help dry quicker and utilizing the best air movers money can buy to assure you are back on your carpets within a few hours after they are cleaned. On top of that, you get a company that is held to specific standards by the IICRC (Institute of Inspection Cleaning & Restoration Certification) and is a registered Clean Trust Firm.

Hiring a carpet cleaner that is a certified Clean Trust Firm has benefits to you, the consumer. You can be assured that you will always be presented with accurate information and business will be conducted with honesty and integrity. Cleaning technicians require continuing education to keep up on the latest changes in the industry. We will always maintain liability insurance to protect all parties in the event of an accident. Green Bay Floor Restore a certified Clean Trust Firm will also maintain a written complaint policy and agree to Better Business Bureau or similar arbitration to resolve disputes, and accept the conclusion and recommendations of arbitration.

So next time you call my competitors for price comparisons, please make sure you are comparing “apples to apples” when shopping on price alone.
I look forward to having you as a new customer or repeat customer. And of course if you have used my carpet cleaning services your referrals are always rewarded.
Stay tuned for next week’s blog on the difference between a carpet cleaning company’s tile and grout cleaning service and Green Bay Floor Restore’s Service. In this case the details are in the pressure.

Jamie Strohmeyer / Owner Green Bay Floor Restore.

920-664-1288

WOW! I’ve been busy taking care of customer’s. I simply ran out of time last week to write the last and final article in the “Carpet Series”. However, educating my customer is the second most important thing I offer, proceeded by 100% customer satisfaction on service results..

Let’s take a look into the most popular carpet fiber used in carpeting today. Dupont created nylon in 1938, and it became a commonly used carpet fiber by the 1960’s. The combination of nylon’s many performances and it’s relatively low cost (compared to wool) helped make wall to wall carpeting affordable for the majority of consumers. Installed, wall to wall carpeting is the reason why carpet cleaners are in business today. Thanks Dupont! My family and I are grateful.

THE ADVANTAGES OF NYLON ARE:

Strength: Nylon will not “wear out”. It will “ugly out” from color loss and staining, however.
Resilience: Nylon’s ability to ” bounce back” means it will hold up better to traffic and the crushing of heavy furniture than any other fiber.
Dye-ability: Nylon’s ability to accept a wide range of acid dyes, give the consumer a wide variety of color’s to choose from. Nylon’s dye-ability can also be a disadvantage.
Cleans Easily: Nylon releases soil, including oily soils, readily when cleaned and maintained properly.

THE DISADVANTAGES OF NYLON:
Discoloration: Unless solutions dyed, nylon is subject to discoloration from sunlight, atmospheric pollutants, and bleaching agents found in many household products.
Staining: Nylon is permanently stained by the disperse dyes found in some food products such as mustard, herbal teas, flavored coffee’s and instant soup mixes. Non stain resistant nylon and improperly maintained stain resistant nylon may be permanently stained by acid dyes, such as are used in artificially colored red beverages.

Throughout the years nylon has been improved based on studies and consumer input. You may have heard of the term ” generations of nylon”. There are 5 generations of nylon carpet fibers. Here are some highlights and low lights of each generation

1st generation – strong and resilient fibers but did not hide soil very well. It actually magnified soil and fiber damage. Cleaned well but appeared to re-soil rapidly.
2nd generation – changed the cross fibers so it would hide soil better and diffuse the light better to prevent magnification of light and fiber damage. This helped reduce apparent re-soiling , but static electricity is produced by nylon when humidity is low. This characteristic attracts soil and contributes to considerable discomfort as well as causing problems with computers.
3rd generation – the static problem was solved with chemical treatments. However, durability was compromised. Today fiber producers incorporate a carbon wedge or core into the yarn bundle to produce an anti static product.
4th generation– the problem with soiling was not entirely solved by hiding it (2nd generation) or by static resistance (3rd generation). In the 70’s carpet began to be treated with fluorochemical treatments to aid in primarily soil resistance. This treatment eventually wears off and may be reapplied by cleaning professionals. These products cannot resist acid dyes, which are common in soft drinks, powdered beverage mixes and gelatin’s

5th generation  – fiber mills determined that “red stain” dyes from foods and beverages were the primary staining problem that consumers faced. It was found that this staining could be prevented, or at least reduced by treating the fiber with and acid dye blocker. This generation is commonly known as ‘stain resistance” carpet fibers..

Well there you go, a bit of history on nylon carpet fibers and the 5 generations. Consumers should know that if you have a warranty on your carpet fibers, you should know exactly what the interval of cleaning is and who can clean it. Most carpet manufactures require the method of hot water extractions as well as using a professional carpet cleaner certified by the IICRC. Green Bay Floor Restore meets both these requirements. All I ask is that you give us a try. When you do, you will see and know why you will never use another carpet cleaner again. Green Bay Floor Restore is the professionals professional.

Jamie Strohmeyer / Owner Green Bay Floor Restore.

It appears that Spring may finally be here? I question this only because I remember back in the late 1980’s I was playing in a baseball tourney on Memorial Day weekend and it snowed. Well, after all, I do live in Northeast WI and one never knows what the weather will be like in April and May.

Let’s continue looking at the the different carpet fibers available to you the consumer. Again, like part 1, I will include some advantages and disadvantages of these fibers. It’s up to you choose which one fits best for your home or business. Either way, Green Bay Floor Restore being a certified IICRC company, we can clean any of them. Green Bay Floor Restore gets carpets cleaner and drier than our competition in the hot water extraction category of cleaning and we guarantee it! Hot water extraction method of cleaning is recommended by all major carpet manufacturers as well as the Carpet & Rug Institute of America.

What are Synthetics? Synthetics are derived from chemical synthesis; which is the combining of two or more chemicals to produce a third compound significantly different from the components. The vast majority of the fibers used in todays carpeting is synthetic. There are 4 major categories of synthetics, Acrylic, Polyester and Olefin. Nylon is the fourth but that will be discussed next article along with the 5 generations of Nylon.

Acrylic was introduced to the carpet industry in 1957 as a synthetic imitation to wool. Acrylic carpet has the appearance of wool with a far lower price tag. Because of several performance problems acrylic disappeared from the carpet market in 1988. In 1990 it was re-introduced in Berber styles for it’s wool like appearance and it being used as a blend with nylon. Acrylics advantages are that it is resistant to water based stains and has low absorbency. Disadvantages are that traffic areas maintain a dirty appearance after thorough cleaning. Poor resilience means that crush marks from heavy furniture may be permanent. Acrylic area rugs may be susceptible to color bleeding.

Polyester was introduced for carpeting in the 1960’s. Unlike nylon, polyester is dyed with disperse dyes, which makes it both colorfast and resistant to the acid dyes that are commonly used in soft drinks, cake icing and cough medicines. Did you know, plastic beverage bottles are being recycled to create polyester fiber for carpet?
Advantages of polyester are that it has a soft luxurious feel. Polyester resists bleaching from chemicals and sunlight and it resists dye stains including discolorations from urine. Disadvantages are that polyester is less resilient than the most popular synthetic fiber, nylon. Polyester is less durable for high traffic areas. Polyester is “oil loving” oily soils and spills are difficult to remove from polyester.
Polyester is becoming popular once again, and manufactures are claiming that some of the above disadvantages have been overcome.

Olefin is a synthetic fiber used in both carpet face yarns as well as for synthetic primary and secondary backings. Olefin is often solution dyed and therefor very colorfast; however, some commercial grade olefin carpet is being dyed with disperse dyes. Because of olefins low cost and availability, the majority of commercial carpet installed is olefin. Low cost area rugs, including “imitation oriental rugs” are made from olefin.
Advantages of olefin is that it is not stained by dyes and is not damaged by bleaches or other strong chemicals. Olefin is the lest absorbent fiber. Olefins very low absorbency may make drying it easier it also leads to many wicking problems. Olefin is economical.
Disadvantages of olefin are that it is heat sensitive. It can be easily damaged by friction, such as from dragging heavy items over it. Oily soils may be very difficult to be remove. If allowed to remain in a heavily soiled condition, oily soils oxidize and often cause yellowish brown discoloration that may be impossible to completely remove.
Olefin has poor resilience and traffic lanes become permanently distorted in a relative short period of time. Areas of or carpeting that are crushed from heavy furniture will not be restorable during cleaning. Because olefin’s low absorbency soils and spills accumulate at the base of the tufts and often will cause soil or spots to “re-appear” after cleaning or spotting is undertaken.

Well that’s all for this week. I hope this helps you decide what carpet fiber is best for you and your application. Stop in next week as I will discuss the fourth category of synthetic carpets, nylon and the 5 generations of nylon. Have a great week everyone!

Jamie Strohmeyer
Owner/ Operator – Green Bay Floor Restore
920-664-1288

My knowledge of today’s carpet construction will better serve the consumer when you call me for carpet cleaning service. Please keep in mind, not all carpets are the same and not all carpet cleaning service providers are either. Let’s take a look at a few of the carpet fibers available, their use and their advantages and disadvantages.

Fibers are the basic building blocks of the face yarns of carpeting that I clean. These fibers are grouped into two categories, 1) Natural and 2) Synthetic.

This will be the first of four pieces in a series that will assist you in not only understanding ]more on what materials your carpets are made of, but also why it is so important to not assume “all carpet cleaner’s are the same”. When it comes to getting good results and protecting the longevity of your investment, call me or another IICRC certified cleaner.

Natural fibers are derived from plants and animals. Natural fibers are also known as cellulose fibers. Cellulose fibers are rarely used in carpet face yarn any longer, but may be encountered in the backings of woven carpets. Area rugs may have cellulose fibers such as cotton, sisal and regenerated cellulose (rayon/ acetate) in their face yarns.

Think about the times you had your area rugs cleaned. Did the service provider take the time to look into the fibers that consume the carpet? Did they take the time to read the label for recommended method of cleaning? Did they just clean it and bill you?

Cotton decades ago was used in pile yarns in wall to wall installations, but because of performance problems this use was discontinued. Today, cotton can be found in some specialty area rugs.When cleaning cotton the disadvantages are slow drying, cotton is very absorbent and slow drying can contribute to mold growth, dye bleeding and cellulose browning. Over wetting cotton may lead to shrinkage. When over wet and especially left with alkaline chemical residues cotton fibers will “brown out”. Advantages of cotton are that the fibers feel soft and has excellent color dye acceptance which again is ideal for area rugs.

Wool comes from a fleece of a lamb or sheep. Wool has excellent soil hiding capabilities and are considered the first rugs ever made. The advantages of using wool carpet and area rugs are that wool resists crushing and are abrasion resistant. The luxurious colors of wool area rugs stand out in contrast to synthetic imitations. Wool is also naturally flame resistant. This feature would make it popular in commercial setting.
Disadvantages of using wool are that wool is expensive. Chemical damage can occur easily when cleaning and spotting if the pH levels of the cleaners being used are not of proper levels. Wool ‘s ability to accept dye means it is easily stained by spills containing dyes, such as beverages.

Rayon fibers are considered to be synthetic by the Federal Trade Commission because they are made from a synthesis of two or more materials. Rayon is made from cellulose materials and have many of the cleaning related problems of cellulose fibers. For this reason, as a professional cleaning technician I must treat these fibers as natural fibers. Many area rugs are labeled as “Art Silk” or “A Silk” are made from Rayon. Advantages of Rayon are that the look and feel of rayon creates the appearance of silk for far less money, considering the popularity of area rugs.
There are several disadvantages of Rayon fibers. One being that they are subject to yellowing or browning from alkalinity or overwetting when cleaning. Rayon rugs may also discolor from sun exposure. When Rayon is discolored by sunlight the condition is not only irreversible but it weakens the fibers considerably. Overwetting from cleaning may create shrinkage problems. Very few stains are removable from this non-durable, often non color fast fiber.

Well that’s enough about natural carpet fibers. Please have a look in again next week for part 2, Synthetic Fibers – Acrylic, Polyester and Olefin.

Until then, have a great week, be accountable for your actions and when in need give someone a hand.

Jamie Strohmeyer
Owner Green Bay Floor Restore
IICRC Certified / Clean Trust Firm