honest opinions on Dry Carpet Cleaning

I offer all methods of cleaning including steam cleaning, encap cleaning, and a "chem dry" type cleaning. Although I offer all methods I always try to talk my residential customers into steam cleaning because it does a better job. The other methods work too, the pre vacuuming is most critical on these jobs (I pre vacuum all jobs including steam cleaning jobs). While low moisture does provide some level of cleaning it is more of a surface clean as compared to a deep cleaning you get when using steam.

Comercial glue down I use a combo of steam and encap.

My opinion on encap cleaning is that it actually cleans the carpet. I don't care what anybody says or thinks about that. It works. Big deal, ya know? Dry cleaning I don't think is advanced enough so I don't offer it. Every now and then someone will ask about it, and I tell them I can HWE their carpet with special care and see similar dry times as a dry method.

The hot water extraction method is always the best for deep cleaning and if pilated, raked, and the proper solutions are applied. If cleaned properly depending on the fiber of carpet it will last long until the next cleaning is needed. Always vacuum carpet first as the majority of the dirt, staining, etc in the carpeting is dry particles. This is the method I have always used and has always worked for me. Use a water bonding deodorization to be sure the carpet smells great after word. Make sure to ask the home owner they're preference.

I started out doing HOSt dry cleaning, did it for a couple of years but saw no future in it. I even cleaned some real nasties with host but at the end it was just as wet as doing HWE. With all the speed drying techniques out there dry cleaning is a waste IMO.
I cleaned my carpet christmas eve and put out my blowers and had it dry in 45 minutes. I am still in contact with most of the host cleaners I met in Racine at the HOST school and they are either done with carpet cleaning or have moved on to HWE.

All the chem-dry guys around here us a HWE and a RX20... I've looked in their vans and most have their water pressure set at 250-300 lbs. if I cleaned at that pressure I'm sure my jobs would dry in 1 hour. I remember seeing Chem-Dry a long time ago and they never had truck mounts. They do now but say they are still Chem-Dry.... So if I turn my water pressure down am I considered Chem-Dry????

Not too sure where the opportunity is, Guys will steam clean for same price as a dry powder.
For twice the service

Thats fine as long as you are doing half the work for twice the price and not the other way around.

Chemistry has change for encaping You have bonnet rotary and op there is difference in two methods.Op is far superior of two ,you must change with times or get left in dark.HWE as place but is getting to be a small part of the industry. Change is good .New technology is good ,cash in and you be a winner.You must do something different ,people like change or something new .

Seriously? Oh, I definitely see a rise in encap and other processes, but HWE is not going away anytime soon.

The only time i can see it being useful s in a 24 hour setting like a hospital, casino or something.
Otherwise encap is pretty easy and works well.

Um, no.

I have been using HOST for several years, over the last two years or so I have been trying out different encap solutions to try and incorporate it with the use of HOST dry compound and equipment. So far I like Releasit Hydrox the best and have found that each product works better together than either one used separately. For more heavily soiled carpet I rely more on HOST and less on the encap in most cases, you can see where the HOST powder removes more of the heavy soils in high traffic areas. If needed after HOST is used you can go back and spray a little more Hydrox in more heavily soilded areas and brush it in with the CRB HOST machine to further lighten high traffic/ stained areas. Again I have found it to be a great very versatile system when used together.

I asked a similar question not long ago. Good discussion here:

http://www.truckmountforums.com/gen...where-hwe-can-be-considered-dry-cleaning.html

And you have as many if not more people with TM's that have ruined steam cleaning for people. I have people that I clean only because I have an OP machine. They won't let a steam cleaner near their carpets.

Have multiple methods, be the expert, and use the "best" method for the job at hand. If they complain about HWE, I have OP, if they don't like VLM, I HWE.

Encap would work in a 24hr environment and from what I've seen is faster.

This is key, be a multi-option provider and make them happyl