Tips to prepare for your Carpet Cleaning Service

Quinn | March 28, 2022, 10:35 p.m.

Prepping Your Home for Carpet Cleaning

One of the questions we get most often when setting up carpet cleaning appointments is something along the lines of “What do I need to do to prepare?”. Especially for first time customers, this is a very common and important question. 

1. PICK UP and remove personal and decorative items that are on the floors we are there to clean prior to our arrival. 

Easily moved items such as plants, boxes, baskets, toys, dog toys beds or chews, clothes & shoes, breakables, fans, electronics, light chairs, and small tables are best moved by you before we arrive so that we can focus on cleaning your floor and you can avoid extra charges.

2. CLEAR AWAY breakables and personal items from furniture we will be moving. 

We can move A FEW pieces of LIGHT to MEDIUM furniture ( items that can be easily moved by one person) per room at no additional cost, allowing that there is space available to move the items and work safely. 

Items to be moved should be cleared of breakables and personal items before our arrival, and lightened as much as possible. Personal items such as picture frames, lamps, decorative pieces, collectables, toys, books, dishes, or anything of that nature that may make it difficult to move a given piece of furniture safely. Those pieces will be left in place.

We CAN MOVE most of the following:

Nightstands, end tables, chairs, ottomans, loveseats, some couches, coffee tables, and dining chairs.

Items moved will be replaced to their approximate location (as close as possible) and set on tabs or blocks to prevent damage. You are responsible for removing blocks and tabs after 24 hours. If you would rather we not place blocks, please let us know. (We can return and remove the blocks and tabs for a small charge. - If you need assistance, please let us know.)

We generally DO NOT move Heavy couches (recliners, etc), Sectionals, Beds, Dressers, Desks, Hutches, Curio Cabinets, Grandfather Clocks, Large Plants, Electronics, Exercise Equipment, Appliances, Antiques, Musical Instruments, Firearms, Gun Safes, Live Animals, or items exceeding 50 pounds. 

For some services, and in some situations, larger or heavier objects DO need to be moved.  These will be moved at the Lead Technicians discretion and will be priced ON SITE before work is performed. As with any other item, we ask that it be cleared of breakables and personal items and be made as light as possible. In many cases it makes sense to move or arrange a moving company to handle these items before we arrive.

We edge around stationary furniture and clean all areas of visible and accessible carpet.
 

3. Vacuum - If you have pets or excessive hair, soil, or debris on the carpet, it is best to vacuum prior to our arrival. 

Dry soil and hair removal are THE FOUNDATION of cleaning carpet. We utilize a dual motor, self adjusting, HEPA filtered commercial vacuum. Our goal is to remove the soils deep inside the carpet. Every bit of vacuuming will help.

Some homes may take more than the standard amount of dry soil removal and we may charge additional for the extra time involved.  Some homes may have a pet dander, hair, and oil odors and we utilize additional efforts before we get the carpet wet to achieve the best results.  Some houses have worn in traffic lanes, and lifting the pile before cleaning is in order. Vacuuming before we arrive helps to identify if these are issues we are facing and can help avoid unnecessary extra charges. 

4. Provide Access - We will of course need access to all areas of carpet you would like cleaned.  We will also need power, water, and a place to park.

We will need clear pathways (about 2 feet wide) to all areas we are cleaning so that we can access the area safely. Usually we begin at the furthest point from the front door and work our way towards the door in waves. Our crew moves through the house in a wave of dry soil removal visiting all areas, followed by an application of cleaning solution and extraction of a couple of rooms at a time. We set fans to speed dry and groom the carpet as we go. We utilize multiple cleaning methods for various soiling conditions and may visit an area multiple times.

We ask that other workers, children, and pets are not walking around in the areas we are working.  We can certainly share the space, but we want to avoid muddy boots, slip and fall accidents, barking dogs, and crawling babies as we clean the floor! We strive to create a safe work environment for ourselves and our customers and appreciate your cooperation. If you have any questions about how we share the space and what is appropriate, just give us a call.

5. Be Ready - For the best experience, have your home ready before we arrive.

We try really hard to be on time for all of our customers.  We have tight appointment times as opposed to big arrival windows and one way we are able to do this is through the cooperation of our customers.  Most customers don’t want us in their house all day either! If you take the time to prepare before we arrive, that allows us to maintain that STATE OF FLOW and get the results we all desire and return your home to you sooner.  

6. Communicate - If you have any questions, special issues or requests, changes, people working in the house at the same time and are worried, kids or pets and not sure if it's going to be comfortable  - just give us a call or email.  If anyone in the home is ill, let us know.