If your janitorial service offers steam cleaning as part of the package, you may be concerned about the potential long term effects of having them regularly steam cleaned. Will this process damage the carpets and leave you with a hefty bill when it comes to having to replace them down the line?

The first step is to discuss this with the manufacturer of your carpets – what is the suggested cleaning method and do they recommend steam cleaning (either occasionally or on a regular basis?) Different carpets can require different cleaning treatments depending on various variances in the fabric content and any treatments that have been applied to the fabrics.

Quality Matters steam cleaning serivce actually injects less water into carpets than traditional carpet cleaning machines. This is because the steam is used to clean rather than pumping in soapy water which is then sucked away. Over wetting a carpet can actually cause damage to the underlay, as well as causing mould to grow if it is wet for too long so it makes sense to steam clean a carpet if it requires a thorough cleanse.  It is unlikely that these issues would arise (eg over wetting) with professional steam cleaning as the machinery and equipment they use will be appropriate for the job they are doing. Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback from previous customers as well as references as you need to be assured that they will be doing a professional job.

Carpets should not require very regular steam cleaning unless they are experiencing very heavy usage and severe soilage. If your carpets experience usual wear and tear, there should be no reason for a cleaning company to suggest steam cleaning on a regular basis unless they can charge you extra for it – perhaps they are trying to capitalise on their income? If your cleaning company suggests that steam cleaning your office carpets on a regular basis would be beneficial, you need to ascertain the reasons for this. I would suggest that a full and thorough steam clean should not be undertaken more often than six monthly unless there are specific reasons for doing it more often. If there are areas which need more intense cleaning then you can come to an agreement as to which arrangements to make for those areas.

Steam cleaning in itself will not damage your carpets, as long as the work is carried out carefully and with appropriate training and experience, it will help to prolong the life of your carpet as it will not need replacing so soon and will look much more attractive for longer. With steam cleaning there is less of a need for strong chemicals or detergents as the heated water will do most of the hard work without needing strong chemicals. This will also help to prolong the life of your carpets, resulting in reduced costs in the long term and is often cheaper than using a typical Rug Doctor

Don’t forget that steam cleaning is not only for carpets – it may be a really useful tool for you to have chairs and sofas steam cleaned on a regular basis. If you have fabric chairs in the office with staff eating and drinking at their desks, steam cleaning them every six months to a year is a really effective way of keeping them looking smart and professional, especially if you have Customers in your office! If you have sofas in your reception area this is your first point of contact with customers. So they will be judging you initially on your reception area (including staff, appearance and decor). Stained or marked sofas are not the best first impression and may put potential customers off.

What kind of cleaner are you? When it comes to cleaning each and every one of us falls into a particular category. From the obsessive compulsive clean freak to the utterly disgusting we all have our own level of what we consider to be clean, so where do you fit in?

Well at one end of the scale are those who put cleaning at the top of their to-do list every single day. These are the people who can’t bear to see a crumb on the floor and will think nothing of following you around with a dustpan and brush completely unaware of how insulting this may be. Their home is their palace. Minimalist, as clutter just accumulates dust and we can’t have that! They routinely empty their kitchen cupboards to sanitize the shelves, their oven looks as spotless as it did the day it was purchased and their wheelie bin is so fresh you could bathe in it. We have all met someone like this, although you have probably rarely been to their house as they generally don’t make visitors feel very welcome, they will probably whisk your empty cup away before you have even finished drinking. Maintaining such high standards is not easy and inevitably comes at a price. Cleaning products have to be incorporated into the monthly budget and each time a new product comes onto the market they need to be the first to offer a comprehensive performance review. Cleaning to this degree takes up the majority of their time and allows little room for spontaneity or social activities. The dishes must always come first!

From this we plummet to the dark and scary depths of filth. Those people who NEVER clean. I’m sure you remember the popular television show How clean is your house? Well until this show hit our screens it was impossible to imagine just what disgusting conditions a human being could actually survive in. We are talking maggots in the oven and the sink, worktops littered with mouldy plates and cups, overflowing litter bins  and worst of all dog mess trampled into the carpets! Yet these people were almost oblivious to the mess around them and were actually insulted by peoples reactions when they entered their homes. This is of course an unhealthy way to survive. Their homes must be riddled with breeding germs that cause all kinds of illnesses but some people really do live like this. If anything seeing  homes like these made many of us feel much better about our own slightly less than perfect standards.  For some, a bit of mess is what makes a house feel like a home, the lived in look rather than the sterile show home opposite.

Most of us fall somewhere in the middle between these two extremes. Although we enjoy living in a clean, fresh environment we can tolerate a bit of untidiness and there is no doubt you need to have your own belongings around you to make your house more homely. If you have children clutter is something you really do just have to get used too! In the average home the dishes are washed daily, the carpets are hoovered 2-3 times a week, the oven is cleaned every few months and the dog does his business elsewhere! This is considered a normal, healthy level of cleanliness that satisfies most people who have other more important things to be getting on with in their lives.