While carpet cleaning and professional cleaning are viewed as two distinct industries with their own special needs, concerns and interests, they do have many things in common.

Welcome to ICS Cleaning Specialist’s Carpet Cleaning Chemical Market Study, the 11th edition that we’ve published, which aims to gauge the preferences and opinions of professionals regarding the cleaning chemicals and suppliers they prefer.

“Jessika, I just picked-up a new account: A 350-unit apartment complex with olefin carpets. I have only been cleaning for about six months - can you give me any advice on how to clean these carpets? Anything, please!”

A pricey condominium in a Chicago high-rise was proving to be a very hard sale. The property had been on the market for over six months—a long time even considering the tough real estate market. The real estate agent decided it was time to have a “heart-to-heart” conversation with the frustrated seller, an older gentleman who had lived in the unit for more than a decade.

“Jessika, I received a phone call from a commercial carpet cleaning project I was on last week and they want me to replace the carpet. Please help me!”

I just returned from a trip to Ilkley and Otley, England to visit with my colleagues at WoolSafe^®Headquarters. This part of England is where thousands of sheep are raised - much to my surprise, for food (mutton and lamb chops). However, a wonderful byproduct is the beautiful wool fleece which is used for carpet and rug manufacturing. One of the highlights of my trip was a day spent in Manchester visiting the British Wool Bureau, two wool processing plants and finally a yarn dyeing and weaving facility which manufactures wool yarn for Karastan^®here in the U.S.

If you’ve been a carpet cleaner for any length of time, you’ve probably read or engaged in discussion on the industry forums about vacuum configuration that sound something like an argument over whether Ford is better than Chevy.

This is the final chapter of the Master Rug Cleaner Tour of Turkey. We saw the main tourist destinations of Istanbul, Izmir, Ephesus and Cappadocia and visited the rug weaving, dyeing and finishing facilities of Woven Legends.