Carpet/Upholstery

[Joseph Rogers]

I'm a floor guy looking at adding detailing as a service. Saw a video where he sprayed some really foamy stuff onto a floormat, worked it in with a brush, and then wiped with a twisting motion using a MF towel.

Is this a normal, accepted method of cleaning it? Can someone talk to me about the chemistry of the standard interior carpet cleaner for vehicles?

In carpet cleaning, there's this big fuss about "shampooing" which is where you use lots of foam to bring the dirt to the surface. It's not considered to be as good as Hot Water Extraction (HWE), where you spray and extract with water. There's also a method called encapsulation, where you spray something down, scrub it until a light foam appears, and this cleaning agent is formulated to break soil loose. It has a crystallizing agent that will form a barrier around the soiling as it dries, keeping it from re-attaching to the carpet fiber, and the next time it's vacuumed, voila! This method can be boosted by scrubbing with various types of fiber pads to "pick up" dirt with the pad.

The video I saw is most similar to the last technique I listed, called "padcapping", but I much prefer HWE for cleaning. The result I get can be pretty impressive. Wondering if this can be applied to vehicles profitably, if it's a normal practice in the industry, etc...

[Kengo123]

Detailers aren't really as technical as carpet cleaners when it comes to interior and specifically carpet and upholstery. I think that technique you mentioned (spray some cleaner, scrub, wipe) is standard practice for a lot of "detailers" without an extractor. I remember first learning about shampooing car carpet at the BMW dealership. We used a mixture of high alkaline degreaser and foaming cans of carpet shampoo. We sprayed, scrubbed, barely vacuumed, wiped and made brush lines!

Is that the "right" way to do it? Ehh, not really. You could do it that way correctly if you can get all of that cleaner out of the fibers, but a lot of "detailers" learn the easy way and rarely improve on technique.

But yes, professional detailers do have extractors, and those that use them correctly have a better advantage than detailers that don't

[MDX Detailing]

I have legally owned my detailing business since last fall now, but detailing for my own customers for years. I am swamped with business ness this spring. My father owns a carpet cleaning business. I use encap for the lighter dirt and maintenance details. It is great since it dries so fast, and depending on what brand of encap you use you can have amazing results. When there is heavy soiling nothing can replace HWE.

I encap to loosen dirt, and follow with HWE on heavy soil. I have great results and so does my father's carpet business. In western PA, the dirt in carpets is ridiculous. Trying to blot heavy dirt up with towels will never get the job done. I also own a steamer. It is the best tool for certain stains but trying to clean heavy soil with it will only leave you rubbing a dirty towel back and forth spreading dirt.
I know in the carpet industry there is big arguments of encap vs HWE. I know from years of carpet cleaning that neither is better than the other. Each have their place and as a team working together they can't be beat.
I do not see many talk about encap here but It can be a huge time saver. HWE can definitely be profitable. When i tell my customers i extract the dirt instead of just shampooing it, i think it is a huge bonus. And either method i use the dirt does get extracted, if encaapping it gets dry extracted with my vac, and with HWE of course the hot water.

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[Joseph Rogers]

I have legally owned my detailing business since last fall now, but detailing for my own customers for years. I am swamped with business ness this spring. My father owns a carpet cleaning business. I use encap for the lighter dirt and maintenance details. It is great since it dries so fast, and depending on what brand of encap you use you can have amazing results. When there is heavy soiling nothing can replace HWE.

I encap to loosen dirt, and follow with HWE on heavy soil. I have great results and so does my father's carpet business. In western PA, the dirt in carpets is ridiculous. Trying to blot heavy dirt up with towels will never get the job done. I also own a steamer. It is the best tool for certain stains but trying to clean heavy soil with it will only leave you rubbing a dirty towel back and forth spreading dirt.
I know in the carpet industry there is big arguments of encap vs HWE. I know from years of carpet cleaning that neither is better than the other. Each have their place and as a team working together they can't be beat.
I do not see many talk about encap here but It can be a huge time saver. HWE can definitely be profitable. When i tell my customers i extract the dirt instead of just shampooing it, i think it is a huge bonus. And either method i use the dirt does get extracted, if encaapping it gets dry extracted with my vac, and with HWE of course the hot water.

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Nice. Yeah, I've used HWE and I've used encap. They both have situations they work, and work well in. I tend to prefer to use HWE because I can blitz a freaking carpet and not feel bad about charging what I do that way. Nice to meet you, and thanks to both of you for the input.

[Flash Gordon]

I have legally owned my detailing business since last fall now, but detailing for my own customers for years. I am swamped with business ness this spring. My father owns a carpet cleaning business. I use encap for the lighter dirt and maintenance details. It is great since it dries so fast, and depending on what brand of encap you use you can have amazing results. When there is heavy soiling nothing can replace HWE.

I encap to loosen dirt, and follow with HWE on heavy soil. I have great results and so does my father's carpet business. In western PA, the dirt in carpets is ridiculous. Trying to blot heavy dirt up with towels will never get the job done. I also own a steamer. It is the best tool for certain stains but trying to clean heavy soil with it will only leave you rubbing a dirty towel back and forth spreading dirt.
I know in the carpet industry there is big arguments of encap vs HWE. I know from years of carpet cleaning that neither is better than the other. Each have their place and as a team working together they can't be beat.
I do not see many talk about encap here but It can be a huge time saver. HWE can definitely be profitable. When i tell my customers i extract the dirt instead of just shampooing it, i think it is a huge bonus. And either method i use the dirt does get extracted, if encaapping it gets dry extracted with my vac, and with HWE of course the hot water.

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Please educate me on encap & HWE. Filthy carpets/upholstery seem to be my kryptonite

[MDX Detailing]

Encapsulation cleaners are detergent polymers that emulsify soil and suspends it away from the fibers of carpet /fabric. The polymers encapsulate or kind of create a shield around the soil and fiber so dirt cannot reattach itself to the fiber. For lighter to moderate soiling you just let it dry and vacuum out the dirt that has been encapsulated, leaving behind clean carpet. Heavy dirt you should extract or absorb before it dries. The fibers that have been encapsulated now have a protective shield also that reduces the frequency of wet cleaning. Dirt vacuums out easier.

The major benefits are greater dirt emulsifying, very low moisture, no wicking back of stains (when the carpet looks great when done, but spots return in a day or 2), restores plush feel to the carpet pyle, very very cost effective- a gallon lasts me on average 30 vehicles. Great for mobile jobs since you only need an extractor for major dirt.



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[Flash Gordon]

Encapsulation cleaners are detergent polymers that emulsify soil and suspends it away from the fibers of carpet /fabric. The polymers encapsulate or kind of create a shield around the soil and fiber so dirt cannot reattach itself to the fiber. For lighter to moderate soiling you just let it dry and vacuum out the dirt that has been encapsulated, leaving behind clean carpet. Heavy dirt you should extract or absorb before it dries. The fibers that have been encapsulated now have a protective shield also that reduces the frequency of wet cleaning. Dirt vacuums out easier.

The major benefits are greater dirt emulsifying, very low moisture, no wicking back of stains (when the carpet looks great when done, but spots return in a day or 2), restores plush feel to the carpet pyle, very very cost effective- a gallon lasts me on average 30 vehicles. Great for mobile jobs since you only need an extractor for major dirt.



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Can I get this local or something that needs to be ordered online?

Thanks for the explanation. Sounds like a product I need if I am going to continue accepting filthy interior jobs

[spoop]

Can I get this local or something that needs to be ordered online?

Thanks for the explanation. Sounds like a product I need if I am going to continue accepting filthy interior jobs

There may be a place you can get it locally:
Branch Locator | Jon-Don
Carpet Cleaning Equipment | Restoration Equipment | Carpet Cleaning Supplies

Otherwise you can order online from these places.

[Flash Gordon]

There may be a place you can get it locally:
Branch Locator | Jon-Don
Carpet Cleaning Equipment | Restoration Equipment | Carpet Cleaning Supplies

Otherwise you can order online from these places.

Thank You!

Looks like they have several options. Which one would you choose?

encap

[Kengo123]

For mdx detailing!

Where can I incorporate encap cleaning in my process?

Light vacuum loose soil
Dry brush carpet and upholstery
Air purge crevices, under seats and carpet/upholstery to loosen most dry soil
Thorough vacuum
Spray all spots and stains with folex and alkaline cleaner
Agitate spots and stains
Spray carpet and upholstery shampoo
Agitate entire carpet and upholstery with brush
Wipe with towels
Vacuum thoroughly
Wipe again
Spray water and vacuum if necessary

Do you think I can replace the carpet shampoo step if the soiling isn't that heavy? Or would the process look more like this:
Quick vacuum
Encap
Vacuum
Spray spot cleaners if necessary
Agitate, wipe and vac