Cleaning Methods
Scimitar offer a multi system approach to all cleaning services: carpet, rug, upholstery, stone and tiled floors. Hot Water Extraction (HWE) is the principle method and we use powerful, professional machines including a truckmount, typically 10 times more powerful than the portable units operated by many of our competitors. HWE is the most thorough, safe and effective system in the majority of situations. It cleans deeply (not just the surface), emulsifies soiling and stains when combined with professional solutions and equipment and uses safe non-toxic solutions. If you would prefer a low moisture/dry system please discuss your needs with us.
Where carpets & rugs are made from certain man-made fibres and of suitable construction, a dual cleaning method may be used: HWE followed by bonnet buffing with a rotary cotton pad. This is an extremely effective combination as it ensures the removal of excess soiling and aids drying. We do not use dual cleaning methods for wool however. Rotary cleaning and/or buffing (with certain exceptions) is not approved by Woolsafe due to potential damage to the wool fibre.
Some fibre and construction combinations, are unsuitable for HWE. Damage such as shrinkage, dimensional change, colour loss, colour bleed or fibre degradation may result. If you have carpets, rugs or upholstery which cannot be cleaned by HWE, we will explain other cleaning options.
Commercial maintenance cleaning is exceptionally good value and we operate low moisture encapsulation technology for this purpose.
Safe – Green – Effective
Effective cleaning does not mean unsafe or damaging cleaning. These are a few things we do to make our service as green as possible:
Extensive use of non-toxic, hypoallergenic and biodegradable solutions
Tools with fine jets to reduce water usage and heating
Using solutions capable of working effectively at reduced temperatures
No use of aerosols unless alternatives are not available
Recycling all cardboard and plastic packaging
Ask about our optional service using only natural ingredients
The Importance Of Woolsafe
As a Woolsafe Certified Operator you can be sure we are fully trained, experienced and competent at cleaning wool fibres. We do so according to Woolsafe standards, using approved techniques and Woolsafe Approved solutions.
Carpets and rugs made from wool should be cleaned by a Woolsafe Certified Operator to ensure satisfactory results without damage.
Whilst most upholstery fabrics do not contain wool we usually opt to use Woolsafe Approved professional cleaning solutions. This approach gives good cleaning results with minimal risks as fabrics are left in a pH stable condition with little chance of colour change or bleed.
Drying Times
Carpets
Drying times for cleaned carpets can be measured in hours rather than the days. The precise time depends upon:
Fibre content (wool for example is very absorbent)
The level of soiling prior to cleaning
Depth and density of pile
Atmospheric conditions (it will take longer on a wet day).
On average we look for around 2 hours for a synthetic fibre carpet to dry and a little longer for wool.
Upholstery
Drying times vary enormously and depend upon fibre content, construction, soiling prior to cleaning and atmospheric conditions. Some fabrics dry very rapidly whilst a few will take several hours or even overnight. We will give you a good idea of how long before we start the job. We try to accelerate drying by towelling if the fabric is tolerant and by using fans.
Be wary of claims that carpets will be dry in 30 minutes or even 1 to 2 hours. Such claims suggest the use of rotary cleaning or buffing which may be damaging to wool or the use of methods less effective than HWE. In the case of upholstery, short drying times may be dependent upon the use of dry solvents. The claims may of course be pure and simple exaggeration.
Rugs
Drying is a particularly important aspect of rug cleaning. The factors listed above relating to carpets apply here also. Many rugs however have an exceptionally dense and thick pile and drying can take much longer. It is for this and other reasons that we prefer to take many (although not all) rugs away to clean at our unit as we have facilities to dry them much more quickly than in a domestic setting.
