PROPER WALL-TO-WALL CARPET

MAINTENANCE TIPS

Carpet maintenance involves vacuuming efficiently, effectively, and consistently, and scheduling a professional cleaning on a regular basis. This will ensure the beauty of your wall-to-wall carpet will last and your indoor air quality will improve for years to come.

IMPORTANT CARPET MAINTENANCE TIPS

Remove spots and spills as soon as possible.

Use our ABC Spot Cleaning Guide or our ABC Spotting Solution as per instructions. Call or text our office at 607-272-1566 if you cannot thoroughly remove the offending material.

Soil is the real enemy.

The ground-in dirt in an excessively soiled carpet can cause serious damage to the fibers, especially in heavily trafficked areas such as at entryways and areas not vacuumed properly or frequently enough.

Be sure to place walk-off mats inside and outside all entry and exit doors to help prevent outside dirt from being tracked inside.

It is better to vacuum ONLY the heavy traffic areas if time is short.

When time is short, vacuum the heavy traffic areas more frequently or repeatedly rather than try to cover everything or everywhere with a once-over-light vacuuming.

Light vacuuming vs. thorough.

Light vacuuming is covering the same area with three or four overlapping strokes. More thorough vacuuming could be 6 or even 8 strokes over the same, heavily soiled areas.

Vacuum against the nap.

Do this especially in high traffic areas. Using a carpet rake to lift the carpet pile could also be helpful in removing ground-in dirt.

When vacuuming area rugs, especially room-size ones with fringe, always vacuum from side to side (opposite the fringes).

We have fringe rakes for sale in our plant which can be used to remove soil from the fringes and also straighten them (with the added advantage of not having to bend over!) This will save the fringes from being pulled up into the vacuum which can damage the fringes and even the vacuum. If you prefer to use a vacuum tool to vacuum fringes, cover it with an old nylon stocking to prevent damage to the fringe as well as the vacuum.

Maintain your vacuuming equipment.

Never allow dirt collection bags to become more than ½ full. If your vacuum has a cloth bag, make sure to turn the bag inside out at least every third emptying and sweep it off. Check for damaged belts and brush rolls and change or have them changed when needed.

HOW OFTEN TO VACUUM

An easy way to determine this is to vacuum 1 time a week per the number of people (and pets) living in the home. Thus, 2 adults, 2 children, a dog, and a cat would require 6 cleanings a week. If this is impossible due to time restraints, at least the high-trafficked areas should be done once a day. This will make a big difference to the health and appearance of your carpet.

By following the above procedure, you will not only be removing the loose soil and grit from the heaviest-soiled areas, but cleaning these areas will effectively stop this soil from spreading throughout the house.

Carpet maintenance in commercial settings involves thorough vacuuming at least 3 to 5 times per week. High traffic areas, such as traffic lanes and entrance ways should be vacuumed nightly. 

HOW OFTEN TO SCHEDULE A PROFESSIONAL

CARPET CLEANING

Please continue reading here for the answer to that question as well as well as how ABC can help.

UPHOLSTERY CLEANING

SPECIAL NOTICE!!

ABC will no longer be cleaning residential upholstered furniture in customers' homes.

We will continue to clean residential upholstery in our cleaning plant by appointment only (because of space restraints).

A pickup and delivery service will no longer be provided for upholstered furniture in the home. Please arrange to deliver your furniture to our plant and pick up your cleaned items when done.

If you will need help in off-loading or loading your upholstery, please call or text us first at 607-272-1566 so we can have the necessary people on hand to help.

Commercial cleaning of upholstered furniture in businesses and fraternities and sororities will continue as usual. 

We look forward to privilege of continuing to serve the professional upholstery cleaning needs of our customers in our cleaning plant.

MAJOR ADVANCES IN

CLEANING METHODS FOR UPHOLSTERY

In the last several decades, cleaning tools and equipment have changed dramatically. Upholstery cleaning equipment is designed to produce high heat and lower water pressure, which helps to clean heavily soiled fabrics more safely and efficiently.

Today, the ability to precondition with neutral or acidic upholstery cleaning products and rinse with clear water, acidic rinse agents or special dye stabilizing agents has allowed ABC's upholstery cleaning procedure to combine hot water (steam cleaning) extraction's effectiveness and residue removal benefits with the safety of the most popular methods in the past--dry foam or dry solvent cleaning.

Whatever process your furniture needs, wet or dry cleaning, we can provide it.

STAIN PROTECTION & OTHER TOPICAL TREATMENTS AFTER CLEANING?

Stain Protection

An application of stain protection after upholstery cleaning will keep your

upholstered furnishings cleaner longer. 

Please remember that any after-market treatment of stain protection will wear off in time and the fabric may need to be re-treated after the next cleaning. The length of time between treatments depends on the degree of usage of the piece of upholstery.

Dust Mite Treatment

It is the house dust mite waste or feces, and not the mites themselves that triggers asthmatic and allergic attacks. Research has revealed this trigger is a microscopic protein in the mite excrement called Der p1.

Our dust mite treatment is derived from naturally occurring extracts found in plants and trees. It works by instantly deactivating the allergen Der p1 by denaturing the substance. Eliminating this allergen is the initial priority because the eradication of the dust mite is virtually impossible.

Studies by doctors and universities have demonstrated that when dust mite droppings are treated with the main active ingredient contained in our dust mite anti-allergen treatment, the allergens are physically changed, rendering them permanently harmless to people who display allergic symptoms to dust mite allergens.

UPHOLSTERY CLEANING CODES

Cleaning codes are listed on some upholstered items, usually on the decking under the cushions. These codes help identify the type of cleaning process recommended by the manufacturers to be used on the fabrics.

(Please note: do not confuse this with the white 'do not remove' tag found on many pieces. This tag describes the inside stuffing of the item, not the fabric covering). While the codes serve as a general guideline for cleaning, they may not always be the optimum solution.

Four common codes can be listed by manufacturers which represent cleaning instructions and colorfastness of the dyes:

• 'S' code assures that dyes are stable to dry (solvent-based) spotters or cleaners. These should be cleaned with a dry-cleaning solvent method.

• 'W' code means the dyes are stable to water-based spotters and cleaners.

• 'W/S' signifies dyes are stable to water or solvent-based spotters or cleaners. 

• 'X' code indicates dyes are not stable to either water or solvent-based spotters or cleaners and should only be thoroughly vacuumed on a regular basis.

OUR PROCEDURE FOR CLEANING UPHOLSTERY

At ABC, our upholstery cleaning process involves carefully identifying each fabric type, through positive testing, to determine which cleaning method will provide the best cleaning results to you and still be safe for your upholstered fabric.

Your upholstery will go through a thorough investigation for the possibility of 27 specific pre-existing conditions. A complete inspection of your upholstery can reveal the age of the piece, upholstery cleaning history, consumer spotting, special problems, etc., regardless of the primary reason for the cleaning.

It is important to check the arms, skirts, cushion shrinkage, pilling, buttons, bleeding, color loss, holes, rips, tears, spots and stains, quilting, zippers, platform, wood trim, hair, oil, foam, sub-fabric, ink on the fabric, latex, color differences, and other hidden and surface areas of the upholstery. The care taken before the cleaning process begins reduces mistakes and losses that could occur otherwise.

DISCLAIMER

Unfortunately, most manufacturers of upholstered furniture give little consideration to the fact the fabric will ever be cleaned. Because of this, we cannot guarantee the results. There can be no guarantee regarding shrinkage, fugitive colors, fabric separation, change in texture, or any resulting unforeseen problems occurring from soil resistant treatments and conditions which cannot be anticipated as well as any problems that may arise from previous cleanings over which we had no control.

CUSHION CAUTION

If you plan on bringing cushions to our plant, please Do not remove the fabric covering from the cushion itself before cleaning. Cushions and upholstered furnishings should be cleaned with the fabric and foam or other stuffing material intact. This is in order to maintain their original shape and size.

CARE OF UPHOLSTERED FURNISHINGS BETWEEN CLEANINGS

Please continue reading here for the answer to that question as well as information on pet friendly upholstery, leather upholstery, and upholstery fabric ID.

RED SKY AT NIGHT...

‘Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Red sky in the morning, sailors take warning.’ Most of us are familiar with this meteorological saying used to signify the changing sky.

Variations of 'red sky at night' can be found in history at least as far back as biblical times. A similar adage can be found in Matthew 16:1-3. When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ It is believed the saying was originally used to help shepherds prepare for the next day’s weather.

We tend to reject knowledge that hasn’t been updated, especially ones this old, but, as it turns out, this saying is in some ways correct. The basic idea is that a red sunset may mean good weather the next day, and a red sunrise may mean bad weather for that day.

Below is a scientific explanation (simplified) for the colors we see in the sky:

RAYLEIGH SCATTERING

'Rayleigh (ray-lee) Scattering' is the scientific phenomenon that causes the sky to have color. The light from the sun that we see is a type of electromagnetic radiation and is an energy that travels in waves. The energy of the radiation depends on its wavelength and frequency.

Visible light is the part of the electromagnetic color spectrum that our eyes can see. At one end of the spectrum are the longest wavelengths, the reds and oranges. The shortest wavelengths at the other end of the spectrum are the violets and blues.

The sun's light is white and contains the entire spectrum of visible light, even though we are unable to perceive the separate colors of the sun. That is because the amount of sunlight that streams down saturates the photoreceptor cells in our eyes making all the colors blend together.

The colors we see in the sky are due to the interaction of the sun's light with molecules in the earth's atmosphere. These molecules are primarily made up of gas molecules, with oxygen comprising approximately 21% and nitrogen 78%. Additionally, there are water molecules in the form of droplets, ice crystals, and vapor as well as particles such as dust, pollutants, and ash. 

As the white light of the sun strikes the molecules in the atmosphere, light with longer wavelengths (reds, oranges, and yellows) will pass through, while light of shorter wavelengths (blue, greens, and violets) will be absorbed by the gas molecules and then 'scattered' in all directions. This is called Rayleigh Scattering, named after John William Strutt, 3rd Baron Rayleigh (Lord Rayleigh), who in 1871 published a paper describing this phenomenon.

Although only about one-third of light is scattered, the smallest wavelengths have more energy and tend to scatter more easily. These smaller wavelengths correspond to blue hues. During the day, the scattered blue and violet light is reflected back to our eyes. This is why the sky will appear bluish.

The reason the skies do not appear violet is because the sun produces relatively little violet light, and the human eye is more receptive to blue frequencies than violet ones. (However, the violet could influence the sky color somewhat, resulting in a washed out blue.)

The colors in sunrises and sunsets, however, need a bit of further explanation:

SUNRISES & SUNSETS

At both sunrise and sunset, the sun is closer to the horizon, so sunlight has to travel through a longer distance and more of the atmospheric particles to reach our eyes. Due to Rayleigh scattering, most of the shorter wavelengths (blues, violets, and greens) are scattered off before reaching the lower atmosphere. Therefore, we see more red, orange, and yellow colors being scattered across the sky.

The red sky at night will typically happen during systems of high pressure and stable air incoming from the west, which is associated with clear skies or clear weather.

On the other hand, a red sky in the morning typically means that the high pressure has already passed, and an area of low pressure is moving in from the east bringing cloudy or stormy weather.

Some sunrises and sunsets are redder than others. This usually happens when there are many more particles in the atmosphere than usual, especially smoke and larger particles, as well as air pollution, that can scatter red light very effectively.

CAVEAT ABOUT THE TRUTH IN THE RED SKY AT NIGHT ADAGE

Since the weather in the United States, as well as the United Kingdom and Canada, tends to travel from west to east, this adage may hold some truth.

However, in places where the weather isn’t mainly from the west and, since this maxim cannot account for the time good or bad weather will take to arrive, it should definitely not be used to override any professional forecast information!

Most of us carry our weather apps with us on our phones or watch the local weather forecast, but sometimes just looking to the skies at sunrise and sunset can still give a decent indication of the coming weather conditions.

WHY IS THE OCEAN BLUE?

Please continue reading here to see the answer.

REGULAR CUSTOMER APPRECIATION DISCOUNT TIME AGAIN!!

January 2-March 31, 2024

Thank you for being an ABC customer!

Each year we send out a discount postcard to our regular customers in appreciation for their loyalty.

ALL DISCOUNTS EXTEND TO FAMILY & FRIENDS!

The story behind the ABC RCAD (Regular Customer Appreciation Discount can be found here.

Call or text ABC at 607-272-1566 to schedule today!