An Important Carpet Cleaning Consumer Warning & Awareness Guide

Included are the dirty secrets most carpet cleaners don’t want you to know when you're choosing a carpet cleaner

From the desk of: Mark A Briody,
founder of the carpet cleaning consumer guide.

Thank you very much for your interest.

Although I did NOT personally write this guide I found it to be truthful and very helpful with total accuracy that many honest and reputable carpet cleaners and certified education companies agree with. This is an opportunity to learn information about carpet and upholstery cleaning and help you choose a good, honest, and reliable carpet & upholstery cleaner.

I myself was an owner of a carpet cleaning company and a certified & licensed member of the IICRC (Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification) also the ARCCA (Australian Restoration & Carpet Cleaning Association). I was in the carpet cleaning industry for over 16 years and in that time; I learned that carpet cleaning is the subject of much confusion.

People have so many false impressions about the carpet cleaning industry, so I decided to give out this FREE consumer information guide to help you when you select a carpet cleaner, (whether it be a carpet cleaner I recommend or one you choose) so you can make an informed intelligent decision based on the facts rather than the lies.

Here is what happens when carpet cleaning technicians get caught out on Hidden Capers Trying to Rip off the public 

I’m about to share with you six VERY COSTLY false impressions about carpet cleaning. Plus I’ll offer four of my personal recommendations as a former certified & licensed carpet cleaner. I’ll also give you six questions you should ask a carpet cleaner before you invite them into your home.

False Impression 1: You should wait as long as possible before cleaning your carpet.

No. Dirt is abrasive – it’s similar to sandpaper. Every time you walk on carpet, you grind dirt into your carpet fibres. This tends to cuts your carpets fibres, causing it to wear out sooner. A dirty carpet will not last nearly as long as a clean carpet. While vacuuming helps, it’s simply not enough. The longer you wait to have your carpet cleaned, the more damage you do to your carpet and the faster it wears out. Beware the carpet sales person that tells you otherwise as they have NO TRAINING or have NO CERTIFICATIONS in carpet maintenance or carpet cleaning. The quicker your carpet wares out the quicker you are back spending money with them to purchase new carpet. Think about that.

False Impression 2: The only reason to clean carpets is to get out the dirt & stains.

No. As you probably know, outdoor air contains pollen's, fungus, bacteria, air pollution, cigarette smoke, car exhaust – and hundreds of other chemicals. When you and your family members come into your home, you carry those pollen's, bacteria and chemicals in your hair, your skin, clothing and shoes. Not surprisingly, all those chemicals, pollen's and bacteria wind up – in your carpet.

If you have allergies, asthma, emphysema or other breathing problems – the major contributors of your problem could be the pollen's, fungus, and chemicals in your carpet.

As you may know, tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 different chemical compounds, 43 of which apparently cause cancer. Even if you don’t smoke, those chemicals end up on your shoes, you track them into your home and then in your carpet.

If you’re sensitive to cigarette smoke, you might find that you’ll breathe a whole lot easier after you hire a reliable, and trustworthy carpet cleaning professional to get those harmful chemicals out of your carpet.

Therefore, in addition to getting rid of dirt, another important reason to clean your carpet is to get rid of pollen's, fungus, harmful germs and bacteria, chemicals and the tars and residue from tobacco smoke.

By the way, any honest carpet cleaner will tell you that some stains cannot be removed (depending on what they are and what type of carpet you have). So don’t be fooled when you hear the cheap & less than reputable carpet cleaner say… “Yes we can get all the stains out”. It’s only a con to get you booked in so they can “up-sell you later” and get more money out of you. Try not to fall for the cheap tricks!

False Impression 3: One method of carpet cleaning is just as good as another.

Definitely NOT. You can choose from two primary methods: Dry cleaning or hot water extraction.

First, I’ll explain dry cleaning. Many people believe that dry cleaning your carpet is like dry cleaning your clothes. This couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s just not true. All carpet cleaning methods use water in one form or another. Here are the three methods of dry cleaning carpet.

1. When a carpet cleaner uses dry foam, he applies shampoo to your carpet, allows it to dry, and then sucks the dried shampoo into a vacuum. Can you imagine applying shampoo to your hair, allowing it to dry and then removing the shampoo from your head with a vacuum? This method can leave a residue in your carpet, which is one reason dry foam is not very effective.
   
   
2. The dry – chem method is similar to dry foam. The major difference is that when dry-chem is used, the company sets a large cotton bonnet on your carpet. Using a machine, the bonnet spins from side to side or in circles, absorbing the dirt that’s in the carpet. After the bonnet is saturated with dirt, another cotton bonnet is applied. Bonnet cleaning is like trying to use a large towel to rub the dirt out of your carpet. Like dry foam, it’s not very effective.
   
   
3. The dry-compound method spreads an absorbent mixture that looks like wet sawdust all over your carpeting. Then the machine brushes the mixture into the carpet, which in theory causes dirt to absorb into the mixture. When the mixture has dried, a vacuum cleaner sucks the material out of the carpet. Because the carpet is not rinsed in any way, this method is also not very effective.

The second carpet cleaning method is called hot water extraction or as we know it today; steam cleaning. This is a fancy way of saying that hot water (after pre treating your carpet with cleaning solution) under high pressure is forced into the carpet and then sucked out of the carpet. As I said just a second ago this method is also referred to as steam cleaning even though steam is not used.

Shaw industries, the world’s largest carpet manufacturer, recommends hot water extraction ONLY and you can choose from two different types: Portable extraction, which is done with a small machine. Or truck mount extraction which means a large cleaning machine (that runs on petrol, LPG or diesel) is mounted in a truck or van.

Not surprisingly, the truck mount extraction cleans much better because it heats the water to a higher temperature and shoots the cleaning solution into the carpet at high pressure which breaks up the dirt, bacteria and pollen's. Then the machine uses high suction to draw the dirt out of the carpet. This is the method I used when I was cleaning carpets. Most carpet cleaners won’t invest the $50,000 to $140,000 for this kind of specialised equipment. Think about this…your carpets are most likely the second or third most expensive item you own, so do you really want just any carpet cleaner working on them? Or a trusted certified professional that has invested in their equipment and themselves so they can do the right thing by his loyal customers.

Important Notice:

There have been incredible advancements to portable machines that have them producing a much better quality than some truck mount operators these days. it comes down to operator techniques and making up for deficiencies in one area by tackling in another area, e.g. using glides/slides on wands (another recent development) as well as booster boxes to assist in air flow, wand techniques, correct pressures, correct cleaning agents and application thereof, gas powered water heaters that will achieve as much as any carpet cleaning truck mount can with temperature.

In almost every case it will come down to the operator, how good he is, and how hard he is willing to work for you. If you hire a carpet cleaner with an attitude of get in and get out quick, even though he owns the most expensive truck mount you will not get a quality job. However if you were to hire a genuine operator with integrity and who has a desire to care for his customers yet owns only a portable machine you are guaranteed to get a much better job every time. So always remember to ask the 6 important questions (listen on the home page) so you can determine an honest, reliable, and genuine operator to clean your carpets.

The most powerful way to clean carpets is with a hot water petrol, LPG or diesel driven machine mounted in a truck or van. They are the most powerful cleaning machines on the market. Along with the modern day portable machines operated by a genuine operator they thoroughly clean your carpet of dirt, harmful bacteria, fungus, chemicals, pollen's and tobacco residue. If you specifically want to hire a carpet cleaning professional, please be careful not to be tricked by those cleaners who mount their portable in the back of their van or truck and call it a truck mount. The difference is a true truck mount runs on fuel and the portable will usually run on electricity or a smaller generator sitting separate in the vehicle. I’m not saying the portable will do a bad job, I am saying if you specifically asked for a genuine truck mounted machine than you should get what you ask for.

Methods that use cold or even warm water (most portables or small truck mounts) remove some of the dirt, but are not in any way as effective as the big hot-water truck mount method or the portables with a booster box and external gas attachment to generate hot water.

Some people believe that hot water damages your carpet, but this isn’t true. I know some carpet sales people even say that you should not have your carpets steam cleaned or they say wait as long as possible before you get them cleaned. But are they trained certified professionals in carpet cleaning & maintenance? NO. By the way, if your carpet is not cleaned regularly and it does wear out quicker who do you think profits when you return to purchase new carpet? The very same salesman that told you not to get it cleaned often. We’ve been over this haven’t we? By washing and then rinsing your carpet with hot water, your carpet is cleaned completely- the same way a person who showers and then rinses off the dirt and soap will be much cleaner than the person who takes only a sponge bath.

False Impression 4: The right equipment is all a company needs to clean your carpet properly.

Not true. Many companies own hot-water truck mount petrol, LPG or diesel driven carpet cleaning machines – but a large number of employees don’t know how to use them and they may be doing more harm than good. You may know someone who purchased the newest software on the market – but didn’t learn how to use it for a year or more. The company may own good equipment, but the employees may not know how to use it properly. This is why it’s important to choose your carpet cleaner carefully. After all, your carpet is the second or third most expensive item you own apart from your home and car in most families. Very few people wise up to this fact so they hire a cheap carpet cleaner, by then it’s too late. So don’t just get any body to clean your carpets just because they fooled you with a cheap advertised price.

The best carpet cleaners are those that:

1. Have been trained and passed examination at some point in their carpet cleaning career. This does not mean they must have up to date certificates, rather that they know and understand carpet cleaning maintenance as a result of past examination achievements.
   
   
2. Those that carry a WRITTEN GUARANTEE.
   
   
3. Accreditations a cleaner can have range from the Wools Of New Zealand, Wool Safe Approved, Australian Carpet Cleaning Institute, Jena Dyco, IICRC, and many other training schools. IMPORTANT: A true professional and trust worthy carpet cleaner does not need current certification, rather just that they have passed examination at some point in their career.
   
   
4. Those who carry written and checkable references.
   
   
5. They will be insured to cover any unfortunate mistakes that are not going to be covered by a carpet cleaner who is not insured.
   
   
6. Will either give you a quote that they stick to over the phone right through to when they finish cleaning your carpets, or they will give you a written quote after inspection of your carpets and stick to the price on the written quote.

A carpet cleaning company cannot buy certifications. The carpet cleaner must earn the certification through study, experience and examination. With the certifications they have earned a degree in carpet cleaning.

False Impression 5: The Company that offers the lowest price is the company you should hire. Alright, I’m not going to pull any punches here!

Tell me...What do you believe? If they are offering a low price there is obviously a reason for it. There always is. Lets get real…You aren’t unintelligent! You know that you get what you pay for. So I hope you don’t believe that if a professional has invested $50,000 to $140,000 in their equipment alone and then spends a fortune in fuel, insurance, chemicals, certifications, licensing, tax and all the rest – that they are really going to give you a cheap and nasty carpet clean for just $15 a room. I don’t think so.

I know that it does cost a good carpet cleaner much more than most people think to clean a single room of carpet. Any good carpet cleaner is, will and should charge anywhere from $40 to $88 for an average to medium size room depending on soiling and time to do that room. That means an average home or slightly larger.

QUICK QUESTION: If you were in business and invested $50,000 to $140,000 just in equipment and with today’s petrol prices that run these high powered machines together with repayments on your equipment…WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU WOULD CHARGE? Like I said, lets get real. Some people expect to get the very best for very little. If you are honestly out to take the carpet cleaning professional for a ride then call someone else and get a cheap job done. Please don’t waste the time of the honest professional who works hard for a living to gain your trust over many years...it’s just not fair on them. Besides if you’ve read this far I know you are smarter than that.

Here are two important points to consider when having your carpets cleaned;

Point 1: The price you see offered may not be for the service you want performed.

Before you select a carpet cleaner, decide what you want. If you want the carpet cleaner to remove only some of the dirt, you can choose from hundreds of companies that use small shampooer's or other cleaning methods. Or, you can even rent a machine at the grocery store and do the job yourself. I guarantee you will do a much better job than if you hired the amateur carpet cleaner.

On the other hand, if you want your carpet thoroughly cleaned – if you want to remove the harmful dirt, bacteria, pollen's, chemicals and tobacco residues and you want to lengthen the life of your carpet considerably – then you need to hire a carpet cleaning professional that has a genuine interest in giving you their absolute best. This is the only way to ensure that your carpet lasts longer, remains healthy and free from dirt, disease-causing bacteria and harmful chemicals. So remember, the price you see offered may not be for the service you really want.

Point 2: The price you see advertised may not be the price you pay.

Many home owners have learned that the low price they saw advertised was not the amount they paid.

See Hidden Cameras Footage of
Carpet Cleaners Ripping off the
Public & What Really Goes On

If you’ve ever hired a carpet cleaner, you too may have been the victim of false or misleading advertising. You probably learned the hard way that some carpet cleaners offer a cheap price – usually between $5 and $15 per room – and then pressure you into paying a lot more once they’re inside your home. This is because there is simply NO PROFIT in $15 per room (let alone the lure and con of $5 a room) given that the job is done correctly. In some countries this is against the law and is called illegal bait and switch tactics.

As in all businesses and professions, the carpet cleaning industry has its fair share of bad apples. Some are unethical – and many are very dishonest. Their misleading advertising and false promises cast a very dark shadow on the entire industry and make it almost impossible for the honest and hard working carpet cleaner to then ask you to invest what is the right and fair amount to clean your carpets properly. The perception of carpet cleaning prices out there is $5 to $15 per room because of all the low priced misleading advertisements. Then you may be fooled into believing that a good quality clean is going to be $20 - $25 per room at the most. You are an intelligent person, so don’t kid yourself or fall into that trap…this is just NOT TRUE.

However, it’s comforting to know that you can still find professionals who work hard to earn your trust and respect. With any carpet cleaner I personally recommend you will expect to invest around $45-65 a room on average. These QUALITY PROFESSIONALS are certified and licensed carpet cleaners who have invested over $50,000 to $140,000 in their business equipment alone. As I said earlier… don’t expect the best for a pittance. Just because you have a convincing and fast talking sales man on the phone or at your door doesn’t mean you’re not being fooled.

False Impression 6: Any honest carpet cleaner should be able to give you an exact price/quote over the telephone 100% of the time.

I wish this were true, but it isn’t always. Consumers often think that if they want to clean four rooms and the price is $65.00 per room, then the price will be $260.00. But this isn’t always true.

An honest and reputable carpet cleaner will usually price carpet cleaning by the size of the carpeted area, how soiled it is & the difficulty and time it takes to do the job. The carpet cleaner will have a pricing structure for most average size homes of course, but if your home is larger than average, has difficult access and requires extra time to complete the work or takes longer to clean than normal because it is very dirty, then it may be a larger investment. Like I said earlier and I’ll say it again… You are an intelligent person, so don’t expect a good, honest, and hard working carpet cleaner to work his or her heart out for a pittance, after all they are humans too and they got into business for the very same reason every other person in the world goes into business…to make a comfortable life for them and their families.

So if you need an exact cost for cleaning your carpet, sometimes the carpet cleaner may need to know the exact size of the carpeted area and state of the carpet to be cleaned.

Here are two things I considered when quoting a price:

1. The amount of soiling. A carpet that hasn’t been cleaned for ten years will take longer to clean than carpet that was cleaned within the last six months by a certified, licensed and trained professional. Another reason to maintain your carpets well.
2. The amount of furniture that has to be moved. If the furniture needs to be moved, the quote must include labour. But if you move your furniture, you’ll save money. Any carpet cleaner who says they move furniture for free could be hiding something from you.

If you’re thinking about having your carpets cleaned, I offer these four recommendations:

Recommendation 1: Make a commitment to yourself to get your carpets cleaned. The longer they remain dirty, the sooner they’ll wear out. Plus the longer you’ll have to breathe all the pollen's, fungus, chemicals and dust mites that live in your carpet.

Recommendation 2: Think through your objectives. Do you want only some of the dirt removed, something you could do with a rented machine or do you want the bacteria, fungus and chemicals and dirt removed? Do you want to work with an honest, reputable company – or are you willing to risk working with the company that offers you a low price – knowing that company might not be in business tomorrow?

Recommendation 3: Ask questions. The best way to learn about a company is to ask specific questions and listen carefully to the answers. Here are just some questions I suggest you ask to begin with:

1. What method of carpet cleaning do you recommend? Answer – Hot water extraction or steam cleaning OR Encapsulation.
   
   
2. What type of equipment do you use to clean carpet? A – Truck or Van Mounted equipment, portable equipment with a booster box and external gas for extra heat or encapsulation equipment.
   
   
3. What does your equipment remove from my carpet? A – Dirt, pollen's, fungus, tar, chemicals, cigarette smoke, grease, food, germs and bacteria etc.
   
   
4. How often should I get my carpets cleaned? A – Every 6 to 12 month…No longer if you want to look after them.
   
   
5. What training have you had in carpet cleaning? A – Carpet cleaning certification and examination. At least once and have passed.
   
   
6. If you’re certified will you show me your certificate? –Yes. And make sure you see them before they enter your home…Please remember! They don’t have to be up to date, rather that they have passed some exam at some point.

If All This Sounds Like a Bit Much I've Listed a Number of Good and Honest Carpet Cleaners On This Site For Your Convenience

Just click on Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland or Perth to choose the carpet cleaner we recommend that is closest to you.

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning in Sydney

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning Queensland

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning Melbourne

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning Perth

Recommendation 4: Once you’re satisfied that you’re working with an honest, competent professional, invite him or her into your home and ask to see their certificates and guarantees in writing before they start the job. You now have the assurance that you are hiring a true professional.

By following these four recommendations, you’ll gain all the information you need to make an informed, intelligent decision. If you want a quick, cheap carpet cleaning job, many companies in the phone book can help you. Or you can rent a shampooer and do the job yourself and most likely get a much better result at a much cheaper price.

But if you want your carpeting to be completely and thoroughly cleaned, removing the dirt, bacteria, fungus, chemicals, pollen's and tobacco, then I invite you to do as I recommend.

I’ll be happy to answer your questions. Please feel welcome to email me anytime on   

Here’s one last point: I know that many consumers are sceptical about carpet cleaning companies. Originally before I got into the business, I was sceptical too.

So I’ll let you in on one special little secret that will separate the men from the boys so to speak, and make sure you never get ripped off by a fast or smooth talking carpet cleaner ever again. I’m going to tell you what I used that made all the difference in the world when it came time to guarantee my work when I was a carpet cleaner. I had a certificate of guarantee IN WRITING with every job I did. That’s right. I fully guaranteed every carpet cleaning job I did. If you weren’t happy with the work, it was FREE. You didn’t pay one cent. What could be fairer than that?

If you choose not to go with a certified & licensed cleaner I recommend then be sure you see a guarantee like that from the carpet cleaners I recommend. Please be sure to see it in writing and they have a copy for you to keep or have it on their website for plain viewing. TALK IS CHEAP… If they can’t give you a WRITTEN guarantee like that then you probably shouldn’t hire them.

As a matter of fact, add this question to the list. Question 7 Do you guarantee your work? And can you guarantee it in writing with a copy for me? Hardly any companies do, and it’s important that you have this information before you make a decision.

Thank you very much for listening and reading my consumer awareness guide. I hope you found the guide helpful.

On behalf of Genuine Professionals in Carpet Cleaning, I thank you for your kind attention.

This is Mark A Briody

A former Certified and Licensed Professional in the Carpet cleaning, leather care, water damage, flood restoration and upholstery cleaning industry.

Founder of the Carpet Cleaning Consumer Guide

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning in Sydney

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning Queensland

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning Melbourne

CLICK HERE for Carpet Cleaning Perth