Cleaning traffic patterns/Your procedure?

**Rob Allen** · 03-24-2009, 03:27 PM

OK we all see them, dingy,dirty traffic patterns. Usually coming out of a kitchen, bathroom,hall or in front of sofas. So what is your procedure for getting the really dungy dirty looking traffic patterns looking there best. And when all is said and done and it doesn't still look right, what do you tell Mrs. Jones?

**Jason Whaley** · 03-24-2009, 03:30 PM

I do my usual procedures with a little extra effort in these areas such as more prespray, agitation and dwell time. If it needs I will hit the area a second time maybe with a little citrus. If this all fails I tell the customer why it looks the way it dose. I explain the way sand and soil scratches the fibers and the way light reflects off of them differently than the areas that are not used as much. Generally I tell the customer what they can expect before I even start the job so that their expectations are not that when I'm finished the carpet will look brand new. It is nice tho when I exceed my own expectations and a bad traffic pattern looks like new such as the one in your photo.

If you really want it clean a rotary works well for agitation.

**leofry** · 03-24-2009, 03:32 PM

Rob that looks GREAT so i want to know your procedure... not sure what i do would have done as well... so please tell me

**leofry** · 03-24-2009, 03:34 PM

Rob I think it look great cant belive ms jones would be unhappy... but if she it the truth is carpet gets damaged traffic lane gray i now i am not telling you anything you dont already know.. but the carpet is scratch i would guess and thats what i would tell her....

**Jamie Cooper** · 03-24-2009, 04:20 PM

clean at different angles , trigger on the front AND back stroke to help hit both sides of the fiber , chop strokes and finally a rinse stroke and then a couple of dry strokes .

**c_adkins** · 03-24-2009, 04:30 PM

pre-qualify

**CarpetWizzle** · 03-24-2009, 07:24 PM

Originally Posted by c_adkins

pre-qualify

No offense but I think he is looking for procedures, pre qualify is a pre requisite.

Prespray, plenty dwell time, rake and choppy cleaning strokes!

**Richard Baldwin** · 03-24-2009, 07:28 PM

Degreaser boost in the prespray or directly on the rug, lots of agitation, some dwell time, super hot water and clean it several times.

Make sure Mrs. Jones can see that you have done your best, show her the area while you are trying to clean it, most of them are pretty good with that.

Something this heavily soiled has a good chance of wicking back the next day, even if it looks as good as Rob got it there, lately i've been
sprinkling wick areas with absorbent powder after cleaning and then just leave it, instructing the customer to vacuum it out the next day, havent had any wicking
callbacks since using this procedure. Have to be careful with the powder tho, make sure its really evenly distributed or you can get a splotchy look.

**TechnicRay** · 03-24-2009, 08:39 PM

Originally Posted by Jason Whaley

I do my usual procedures with a little extra effort in these areas such as more prespray, agitation and dwell time. If it needs I will hit the area a second time maybe with a little citrus. If this all fails I tell the customer why it looks the way it dose. I explain the way sand and soil scratches the fibers and the way light reflects off of them differently than the areas that are not used as much. Generally I tell the customer what they can expect before I even start the job so that their expectations are not that when I'm finished the carpet will look brand new. It is nice tho when I exceed my own expectations and a bad traffic pattern looks like new such as the one in your photo.

If you really want it clean a rotary works well for agitation.

++++

**ACD** · 03-24-2009, 08:55 PM

All of the above and I will add severe agitation of the prespray. As a minimum with a carpet rake and preferably with a floor machine and brush. Customer does need to be told in advance of the effects of wear and what it means to appearance before you clean.

Aaron

**jim1of6** · 03-24-2009, 09:59 PM

Originally Posted by James Cooper

clean at different angles , trigger on the front AND back stroke to help hit both sides of the fiber , chop strokes and finally a rinse stroke and then a couple of dry strokes .

This is my procedure also while using prozyme and traffic slam.

**bensurdi** · 03-24-2009, 10:05 PM

I will vacuum the area thoroughly and rake it before applying my pre-spray. I will apply pre-spray heavily- Then I will agitate with the brush head of my Rotovac360 and let it sit for about 15 minutes. Than I will clean and extract with my wand. Last I will rake again to lift pile.

**Matt Strader** · 03-24-2009, 10:43 PM

Tell them to get a Rug-Dr

**SeriousHeat** · 03-24-2009, 11:57 PM

Originally Posted by James Cooper

clean at different angles , trigger on the front AND back stroke to help hit both sides of the fiber , chop strokes and finally a rinse stroke and then a couple of dry strokes .

Thats how I do it. I usually will scrub with a 175 prior to HWE. Let the chemical dwell and hit it with the wand using several chop strokes triggering both directions.

**farleycarpet** · 03-25-2009, 12:27 AM

Dwell Dwell Dwell then Rotovac 360, also helps to tell the customer ahead of time but that's a given.

Sometimes after hitting it with the 360 I'll let it sit for a few and hit it again has helped a few times...

Then groom

**Mr. Slide** · 03-25-2009, 12:55 AM

I do my usual cleaning, using a lot more prespray in areas like this and more dwell time, and put my "Washboard Slide" on for some real agitation!

Cheers, AL

**wandwizard** · 03-25-2009, 04:19 AM

I would heavily prespray and go with a higher concentration or just remove the yellow metering tip from the Hydroforce and use my regular concentration with maybe some Hydramaster Grease Breaker added. I would rake it in and give a little dwell time and hit it hard with the RX-20 and wand the edges and rake again trying to make it go in the direction of the nap to give as good an appearance as possible. If it still just doesn't look that great even though it's clean as I can possibly get it I will point out the worn areas and point out that I usually recommend at least an annual cleaning and that high traffic areas may need it more often than that, and ask them the following question, "Mrs. Jones, when was the last time this carpet was professionally cleaned?" More often than not the answer is never or a very, very long time. In other words, I'm putting the blame for the condition of the carpet back where it belongs, on them. I'm a carpet cleaner, but I can't make a carpet that's lost maybe 50% of it's fiber and been let go 10 or 15 years look like new again. That falls under the category of a miracle which a few of my customers have actually accused me of performing. Reality is that you do the best you can and sometimes you can't get them all perfect and the owner has to take on the blame when they let the carpets go for an unreasonable amount of time.