Keep a Healthy Indoor Environment

As much as 90 percent of our time is spent inside, especially during colder weather. Yet the Environmental Protection Agency estimates the air inside homes is two to five times more polluted than the outside air. The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) recommends the following tips to help maintain a healthy indoor environment for you and your family:

• Maintain a humidity level below 60 percent. Higher humidity creates an environment for mold growth and produces allergens.
• Vacuum frequently. Carpet and furnishings can hold dust and particle soil, mold spores and other allergens.
• Have furnishings cleaned professionally once per year by an IICRC-certified firm to ensure the use of proper extraction procedures, to make certain that soil is not just redistributed, but removed.

To locate an IICRC-certified inspection, cleaning or restoration professional, visit www.certifiedcleaners.org or call (800) 835- 4624. If you live in Roswell, NM or the surrounding areas, visit www.pro-steamer.com or call our toll-free consumer awareness hotline at 1- (888) - 509-3974

What Air Duct Cleaning Is All About...

This weeks tip is about air duct cleaning. Not all air duct cleaning companies are the same, and having you ducts cleaned incorrectly can actually be worse than not having it done at all. No doubt you’ve seen or heard a lot of advertising for air duct cleaning. Many of these ads offering incredible deals are very misleading. Often times your are quoted a price that sounds good until all the “add on charges” are applied.

Due to increased awareness of the importance of having your air duct system cleaned, many states have set standards for how the works should be performed. New Mexico has not yet done this, so everyone with a vacuum cleaner can say they are in the HVAC cleaning business. As a way of introducing you to Pro Steamer and helping you protect yourself, I have provided some information for you.

Here’s What Air Duct Cleaning Is All About...

A company with the right equipment and training will remove the molds, bacteria, fungus, original construction debris, and dust from your air ducts and furnace, to be sure the air you breathe is the cleanest possible. (BONUS: by removing the dust and debris, your heating system will operate at peak efficiency.)

• Step 1: A trained technician will inspect the HVAC system to determine performance and degree of contamination. (Before, we get started we will protect your floors and furnishings from any escaped debris)
  
• Step 2: The technician connects a powerful vacuum to the main trunk line, then seals off the outlets in each room to create a vacuum within the air duct system. Then uncovering one register at a time, he cleans just the air duct.
  
• Step 3: Next, he inserts specially designed air tools into the air duct to loosen dirt and lift debris into the vacuum stream for removal of the contaminants that are clinging to the walls of the air duct. The air duct is cleaned from the register, through the entire duct--all the way back to the furnace. Contaminants are removed.
  
• Step 4: An access door is installed in the plenum to access the return side of the air duct system. Now the technician can clean the cold air and return and plenum. This is where we find the majority of contamination. (NOTE: This step requires very powerful vacuum system that most air duct company’s DO NOT HAVE)
  
• Step 5: Attention to the furnace--Vacuum out the inside of the furnace chambers, remove dust and debris from blower and blades. Clean your filters, or if you choose install new filters, and inspect.
  
• Step 6: Sanitizing of the air duct system. Sanitizing reduces odors, kills molds, bacteria and fungus.

THOROUGHLY CLEANING YOUR HOME WILL GIVE YOU A SENSE OF WELL BEING AND ADDED HEALTH BENEFITS.

PLUS, only the Video-Aire has a built in camera system that allows you to watch the cleaning process as it is taking place!! Keep a video-tape of the cleaning to show your spouse--or your insurance company.

If you live in Roswell, NM or the surrounding areas such as Artesia, Dexter, Hagerman, or Portales, call us at 575-623-0993 to schedule your air duct cleaning.

Upholstery Cleaning and Care

Here are some upholstery care tips...

Regular Maintenance

• Dirt, dust, and body oils are hazards of everyday use, but you can minimize wear and tear by vacuuming and rotating cushions weekly.
• Be aware of potential stain-makers. Newspapers and other items with ink or dyes (including new denim jeans) can bleed onto light-colored upholstery
  Vacuuming is your first line of defense against big cleaning hassles.
  
• Avoid positioning furniture in direct sunlight to minimize fading, and keep it at least 10 inches away from vents or fireplaces, which could cause over-drying and cracking (especially in the case of leather upholstery).
  

Cleaning

• Have your upholstered furniture professionally cleaned by Pro Steamer every year or two, before it becomes visibly soiled.
• Except for emergency cleanups, never remove the fabric cushion covers to wash separately. Have the entire piece of furniture cleaned to prevent uneven fading, wear, and discoloration.
• Don’t remove that tag. You won’t be arrested, but it may have cleaning code that will help you determine the best method for cleaning your furniture. For more information on manufacturers’ cleaning codes, see this HC-Pedia entry: Upholstery.

Spot Removal

• Test spot-removal products in an inconspicuous area, even if the cleaner has been recommended for your particular upholstery. Vacuuming is your first line of defense against big cleaning hassles. Do not over-saturate upholstery fabric, even if it is water-washable. Never scrub or use vigorous motions, which could damage the fabric.
• Blot up spills as soon as they happen with a dry, white cloth or white paper towels, using a light touch. Turn or replace the cloth or towels frequently. Excessive pressure can push liquid deeper into the fabric.
• Don’t use a wet cloth initially to clean a dry spill. Instead, remove with a soft brush or vacuum with a brush attachment. Spatters, spatters everywhere? Whatever you do, don’t spread them around.
  
• Mud should be allowed to dry, and then gently scraped away before vacuuming.
• For peanut butter, lotion, or other oil-based messes, lift excess carefully using a plastic scraper. Do not use any liquid cleaner until all of the surface substance has been removed. If an oily stain remains, dab a manufacturer-recommended spot cleaner from the outer edges of the spot to the center.

A Word On Area Rugs...

It's been a while since I've posted but now we're back to our regularly scheduled weekly tips and tidbits...

Area rugs should not get the same treatment as your wall-to-wall carpet!

Many area rugs such as fine oriental rugs are very costly and are made from fragile natural fibers, dyes, and foundation materials that cannot be cleaned in the way we usually clean synthetic carpets (such as nylon, olefin, and polyester).

Most professional carpet cleaning systems involve the use of high heat, high water pressure, extreme agitation, and intense chemical activity. Most area rugs cannot be cleaned using these tactics. A more gentle “hand washing” process must be used to safely clean area rugs.

Because more time is involved in hand washing and more complex cleaning products must be utilized to avoid damaging the fibers and dyes, you would expect that area rug cleaning would be more costly than standard carpet cleaning. It is.

WHY AREA RUGS ARE MORE DIFFICULT TO CLEAN…

• Because of the dense pile construction of area rugs, dirt particles work their way down through the fibers - to the backing foundation of the rug where they cannot be removed by ordinary vacuuming.
  
• This loose grit wreaks havoc on your rug’s delicate fibers, causing a cutting abrasive action as you walk on the rug. Abrasion accounts for fiber loss (wear) and embedded soil stains.
  
• Other types of soil including food particles and pet oils “hide” in the dense pile, making your rugs an ideal haven for germs, bacteria, and other nasty creatures such as dust mites!
  
• Dust mites are too small to be seen but are the most common cause of year-round allergy and asthma. They live in mattresses, pillows, carpets, rugs, furniture, bedcovers, and clothes – anywhere they can feed on dead flakes of human skin.
  
• All foreign pollutants in your rugs should be removed by professional cleaning on a regular basis to keep your rugs “healthy”.
  
• We use a unique and thorough high-volume clear water rinse extraction process. You see, the amount of water used to clean area rugs is directly proportional to the amount of soil removed in the rinsing process.

HOW TO GET YOUR RUGS PROFESSIONALLY CLEANED

We can arrange for a pickup and delivery of your rugs for a small fee. Please call 575-623-0993 for an appointment. Your high traffic rugs should be lightly cleaned several times a year and thoroughly cleaned at least once a year professionally. Low traffic area rugs should be cleaned every 2-3 years to rinse away accumulated dust and soil. Even if the rug doesn’t LOOK dirty…it should be routinely washed.

Rich Cleaner Conference, Catching the Flight

We're back from the conference! Boy was it a fun but exhausting time. Before I forget all the details, I have to tell you guys a hilarious story about us catching our flight home....

So Victor, Soco and I are at the Platinum Meeting Lunch eating away and listening to Joe's team. I look at my watch and it's 1:30. They said they were only going to stay 30 min and it's been about 30 min and nobody is making a move to leave. So I go back to eating. I check my watch again. It's 1:45 and I'm thinking I better say something or else we're gonna miss our flight. So I ask Soco what time we're leaving and she says 1:30. I tell her it's 1:45 and she freaks out and tells Victor. So we say our goodbyes to everyone (still didn't get our pic taken with Joe and Lisa) and rush out the door.

[Cut to freeway]

We're driving around trying to figure out where to drop the rental car off. We finally get to the drop off point and begin the process of trying to get all the stuff we can't take in our carry-ons into one bag to check in. Than we literally run through the terminal to the shuttle bus. (I still haven't crammed my books into my carry on so I'm having to run with them)

Now picture this. How many of you remember the part in the Home Alone movies where the family is running through the terminal to catch their flight? Ok, that was us. LOL! It was hilarious. I wish someone had been there to get it on tape. And what's even funnier is I had the exact music they play during those scenes in my head.

So we make it to the bus, which by the way is so crammed full of people we have to stand up.

{cut to airport}

We're running like the McAllister's towards the check in counter only to find out they can't check the bag because we were supposed to have done that 40 min. before our flight was scheduled to leave. So we stand there debating whether to let them chuck our stuff, some of which is expensive, or to take the next flight out at about 6 and not get home till after midnight. (stupid 3oz rule)

{cut to inside terminal}

Yup. We decided to let them chuck our stuff. (Thankfully, they didn't toss my clinique so I'm happy about that. And I'm getting reimbursed for the rest so it's good.) So we're running AGAIN towards the security checkpoint and arrive sweating like pigs and thirsty as camels. (Lovely visual image eh?) and...AND the escalator is broken so we have to drag our luggage up the stairs. (can you say Body for Life?)

After finally making it through security, Soco and I take off towards to gate while Victor stays behind to watch them chuck our stuff.

By now your probably wondering what else could possibly go wrong. Well.....Soco and I were in such a hurry that we weren't paying attention to the signs and went the wrong way. And THAN she thought she heard them paging her for final boarding. So we take off in the right direction a la McAllister yet again. Only Soco can't really run too fast in heels so she yells at me to go ahead of her. So I'm going as fast as I can berating myself for not being in better shape the whole time. I get to the right gate this time and it turns out they've only started to board.

Now keep in mind that by this time I'm feeling like I'm gonna pass out so you can imagine how perturbed I was to learn that we had done all that running FOR NOTHING!!

And all this just to stay as long as possible for the Platinum meeting lunch. You guys should feel reeeeally special. LOL!