ESD Carpet Tile: Maintenance

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In-House Maintenance continued…

Increasing the amount of detergent beyond the recommended level does not greatly increase cleaning performance, but makes the complete removal of detergent more difficult. Because build-up of detergent residue is the most common cause of accelerated resoiling complaints, do not use extra. ESDTile.com does not recommend the use of cleaning agents with optical brighteners.

4. Avoid overwetting the carpet. This is controlled by a combination of proper equipment and operator training.

5. Do not use any silicone-based anti-soil treatments on carpet. The only anti-soil products approved for use as needed are formulated with either Dupont’s Teflon or 3M’s Scotchgard.

6. Reduce drying time by using several fans or air movers to move air across the carpet, in combination with a dehumidifier or air conditioner to pull moisture out of the air. Carpet should be dry within twelve hours; even less is better.

Spot and Spill Removal
All maintenance procedures mentioned thus far have been planned; spot and stain removal is the reaction to an unplanned incident. Therefore, it is desirable to have the needed materials handy by planning ahead of time. Professional carpet cleaning companies have spot removal kits available in convenient carrying cases that contain all the necessary materials.

General Instructions:
Remove as much of food spills as possible by scraping gently with a spoon or dull knife. Absorb wet spills as quickly as possible by blotting with white paper or cloth towels. Always blot, never scrub or rub abrasively, as a fuzzy area may result. When blotting, work from the outer edge in toward the center of the spot to avoid spreading the spill and enlarging the problem. Always follow spot removal with a water rinse to remove the sticky residue from the spotter; the residue can cause rapid resoiling. There are spotting extractors that work well for the rinse-and-extract method. Always draw out the remaining moisture with several layers of white towels weighted down on the spot.

Removal Procedures:

A. WATER SOLUBLE STAINS - Absorb as much as possible with white towels. Blot the affected area with more towels dampened with cool water until no more color transfers to the towels. If any of the stain remains, use a detergent solution of 1/2 teaspoon (no more) of CLEAR, NON-BLEACH liquid hand dish washing detergent to a quart of water in a clean spray bottle OR use a general purpose spotter with a pH less than 10. Spray lightly onto the spot and blot repeatedly with white towels. Rinse thoroughly by spraying with clean water, and then blot or extract. Do not use too much detergent because the residue will contribute to rapid resoiling.

B. As in A, but BEFORE using the detergent, apply a solution of household ammonia (one tablespoon ammonia to one cup water) to a white towel and blot onto spot OR use an alkaline spotter rather than the detergent.

C. GREASE - For oily or greasy spots, blot with white towels to remove excess. Apply a solvent (designed for grease removal) to an absorbent towel and continue blotting. Use sparingly and do not pour or spray on the carpet.

DO NOT USE FLAMMABLE SOLVENTS. Follow up with “A” procedure.

Questions/Assistance
For questions or assistance, please contact ESDTile.com Customer Service at (617) 923-2000, Monday-Friday between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm EST.