Understanding Injection-Extraction Carpet Cleaning

To clean your carpet thoroughly, why not try the injection-extraction method? If you don’t know how to proceed, you’re in the right place to understand the method and breathe new life into your carpet. Dry cleaning and cleaning with shampoo are effective at maintaining and reviving a carpet, but the injection-extraction method lets you clean the carpet in depth, to the heart of its fibres.

What is the injection-extraction carpet cleaning method?

The injection-extraction method is carried out using a specific machine called an injector extractor for rugs and carpets. You can find this special machine for sale or rely on a cleaning company for a complete cleaning of your interior and your hardest-to-clean items. The injection-extraction machine works by spraying a special, non-foaming cleaner suited to the machine, which is spread over the carpet, then sucked back into the machine again. This method, which cleans then sucks the product up right after, ensures a deep cleaning of the natural or synthetic fibres of your carpet.

The steps involved in the injection-extraction carpet cleaning method

1 – Prepare the entire surface of the carpet

Start by putting on shoe covers, then remove everything on your carpet, as well as the furniture in contact with or nearby the surface to be cleaned. Then, vacuum the entire surface. Use a powerful device such as a vacuum cleaner with a brush nozzle to try to remove as much dirt as possible before using the injection-extraction method. You must also remove the stains with a stain remover suited to your carpet.

2 – Cleaning your carpet with injection extraction

Begin by placing the injection-extraction machine in a corner of the room, then plug it into an outlet as close as possible to the floor. If the surface of your carpet is extremely dirty, you’ll need to pre-spray with the injector-extractor rod so that the solvents can break up the dirt and free it from the carpet fibres. If your carpet isn’t very dirty, however, you can go right to the injection extraction. Begin the injection at the edges of your carpet. To do this, deposit the solution, then return to the surface with the suction head of the rod to remove the solution that you’ve just deposited. Proceed like this along the entire surface of the carpet.

Be careful: When you’re about to finish depositing the solution, make sure to stop the spraying a few centimetres before the end of the surface that you’re cleaning.

3 – Rinsing the solution on the carpet

To remove the excess cleaning products, and only if this is necessary, you can rinse your carpet with a small, portable cleaning device in which you insert clear water instead of a cleaning product. If you used a product specially tailored to the injection-extraction machines, you normally won’t need to perform this rinsing step.

4 – Drying the surface

To finish your carpet cleaning, you need to dry the surface that you’ve just cleaned. To do this, you can use fans that you should make blow in several different directions to facilitate the movement of the air across the carpet fibres.

If you don’t want to purchase this machine, rely on a cleaning company that has the right equipment. An injection extraction cleaning will clean and disinfect your carpet thoroughly while taking care of the delicate fibres of your carpet.

How to Clean Tiles in the Kitchen?

How do you clean tiles? Often, when you’ve just bought a house or after renovating, the floor gets so dirty that a simple, ordinary floor cleaning isn’t enough to make it shine again. Whether it’s old tiling, in a room inside, or a floor on a patio or balcony, follow our advice to clean very dirty tiles.

When you’re facing lime, grease, bacteria, embedded stains, or burns, don’t despair! You should know that there are solutions for getting rid of all sorts of dirt in the simplest way for you!

Cleaning Dirty Wall Tiles

Many people invest in wall tiles to cover the walls of their kitchen, because it’s a very attractive and decorative element. However, even if it’s easier to degrease than a traditional wall covering, when it takes on grease every day and isn’t cleaned regularly, degreasing it becomes increasingly complicated. To say goodbye to accumulated grease, you should arm yourself with a good concentrated soap. Then, prepare a mixture by diluting this soap in a bowl of water and add a small amount of ammonia. Using this mixture, scrub the dirtiest areas of your wall tiles then the entire surface until there’s no more grease at all.

The Best Economical and Eco-Friendly Degreasers for Your Tiles

To degrease the tiles found on a floor, in your bathroom, or in your kitchen, you should equip yourself with an effective degreaser. It’s best for it to be both economical and eco-friendly in order to protect the health of the people who live there by avoiding chemicals. To do this, turn to black soap, white vinegar, soda crystals, and citric acid (a natural, plant-based acid). If the grease or the burns don’t disappear with these products and all the elbow grease that you’ve applied to this task, you can also use a steam cleaner. Steam mixed with a cleaning product is highly effective at making all sorts of dirt, grease, and embedded burns disappear.

The equipment needed to clean your tile floor perfectly

• The floor cleaner of your choice,
• A sponge,
• A dry mop,
• Cleaning gloves.

Cleaning greasy tiles in 4 steps

1 – Begin by protecting your hands with cleaning gloves. Even if you’re using eco-friendly cleaning products, the thin skin on your hands doesn’t have to bear the reactions of the mixtures.

2 – Create your cleaning solution by mixing (for example) 5 large tablespoons of citric acid with a litre of hot water. If using black soap, dilute two spoonfuls, and for white vinegar, dilute 1 part product in 2 parts hot water.

3 – Clean your dirty tiles vigorously with a push broom or a large sponge soaked in your cleaning mixture.

4 – Then, rinse the tiles generously with clear water and wipe with a dry mop.

To keep a tile floor clean and healthy, you should perform this operation regularly. If the tile is in your kitchen, you can clean it when you cook and create splashes on the floor. If the tiles on your floor or wall are too dirty or if you need to clean a space that you’ve just recovered, don’t hesitate to rely on a professional cleaning company to refresh your tiles or your new home!

Disinfectant for Bedding: How to Make Your Bedding Look Like New Again

Are you looking for a disinfectant for your bedding? To stop the spread of a virus in your home, to treat an illness, or to prevent an infestation of pests and insects, you must take steps to disinfect your bedding. As bedding is a warm and comfortable space for parasites, it’s the only effective way to get rid of them in the long run.

Clean the Bedding Before Disinfecting It

A disinfectant for bedding can only be used on bedding that has been impeccably stripped and washed beforehand. Before you want to disinfect your mattress and your sheets, begin by washing your bedding thoroughly using the appropriate techniques. Bedding that has been cleaned and disinfected will be free of any bad odours that may have accumulated. Before deodorizing your bedding, you should therefore clean it yourself or with the expertise of a professional cleaning company that will use the recommended techniques and eco-friendly products for your bedding.  

Which disinfectant to use for my bedding?

• Steam from a steam cleaner

While steam alone can’t disinfect your bedding, it’s a great help if it’s combined with a professional disinfectant. A steam cleaner lets you project the steam and the product 1 cm into the bedding and to cover the entire surface. Through this process, the steam can eliminate bacteria, viruses, spores, and all kinds of fungi. To carry out this operation if you don’t own a steam cleaner, you can rely on a professional cleaning company for an optimal, lasting result.

• Hydrogen Peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide is a safe, natural, and effective disinfectant suitable for bedding. It’s easy to use: just make a mixture of two parts water and one part hydrogen peroxide, then spray it directly on the bedding. Then, scrub the surface with a clean cloth by dabbing it, then let it all dry.

• Essential Oil of Tea Tree

A disinfectant and a deodorizer, essential oil of tea tree can be used on bedding. To do this, arm yourself with a bottle with a sprayer nozzle and mix two tablespoons of baking soda, six tablespoons of hot water, and eight drops of essential oil of tea tree. Then, spray the solution over all the bedding and let dry.

Tip: To let your bedding dry while disinfecting it further, let it dry outside in full sun. Prolonged exposure to sunlight – that is, at least 5 hours – helps disinfect the bedding.

• White Vinegar and Baking Soda

White vinegar is a natural product widely known for its cleaning and disinfecting properties. To disinfect your bedding, pour a cup of baking soda into a large salad bowl, then add about 1 litre of white vinegar. Let the solution foam for a few moments and take advantage of this time to protect your hands with gloves. Once your hands are completely protected by gloves, soak a sponge in the mixture, then scrub your entire mattress vigorously with it.

To make your bedding look like new again and to clean, disinfect, and deodorize a mattress, especially if it’s a used mattress whose origin you don’t really know, don’t hesitate to call on professional cleaners. In particular, you can contact a cleaning company to do a “spring cleaning” of your interior and take advantage of this opportunity to refurbish your bedding so that it’s clean and healthy once and for all.

Cleaning a Carpet with White Vinegar: What Are the Advantages and Limitations?

Among the most natural and effective products to have at home for cleaning, and especially for cleaning a stained or dirty carpet, white vinegar can be found in the top spot. Cleaning a carpet with white vinegar is an economical, efficient, and eco-friendly operation, despite certain limitations that we will explore.

Advantages of Cleaning a Carpet With White Vinegar

White vinegar – or spirit vinegar – is a natural and therefore eco-friendly product, since it breaks down quickly and completely. It’s also one of the most economical cleaning products because of its very low price. White vinegar is a disinfectant, a deodorizer, a cleaner, a descaling agent, and a stain remover that degreases. It can be used to make dishes and windows shine. Used diluted, it refreshes the colours of carpets and revives the colours of clothes in the washing machine. Cleaning a carpet with white vinegar is therefore quite a feasible solution in case of stains. Make sure to act fast, but also to know the material of your carpet so that you can take the right steps and avoid damaging its fibres.

How to clean a carpet with white vinegar

• If a stain appears, dilute it immediately with a little clear, cold water.
• Then, quickly use paper towels or a soft, clean cloth to absorb the excess water.
• Take a teaspoon of mild detergent, such as dishwashing liquid, and a teaspoon of distilled white vinegar and mix them in about a litre of clear, warm water.
• Apply the resulting mixture to the stain, preferably with a sprayer, to saturate it completely.
• Wait and let the cleaning mixture work for at least fifteen minutes.
• Then, scrub the remainder of the stain in a circular motion with a soft, clean cloth.
• Gently rinse the entire area with hot water.
• Make sure that the carpet fibres are in the right direction before drying to make it easier.
• Absorb the remaining liquid with a soft, clean cloth.
• Open the windows, then place a fan facing the stained area to speed up the drying time.

Limitations of cleaning a carpet with white vinegar

If the stained or dirty surface isn’t too large, you can try to solve the problem with white vinegar, but if you’re dealing with a large-scale problem or mould that extends beyond several square metres, contact a cleaning professional quickly. Cleaning small areas contaminated with mould releases spores into the air, which are very unhealthy and can cause health problems for you and everyone else in the space. Any attempt to clean mould on a carpet could cause health problems that will end up costing much more than relying on a professional cleaner.

In addition, you should know that, to sanitize, freshen up the texture of the carpet, and rejuvenate its fibres to breathe new life into it, a deep cleaning of your carpets should be carried out at least twice a year by a professional specializing in carpet cleaning. Cleaning a carpet using a steam-based process is often the essential condition for its proper maintenance and to make its beauty last. In addition, make sure that the cleaning methods are suited to the type of material and the fibres of your carpet, because certain types of carpets require special cleaning methods to avoid damaging them.

10 Tips for Using a Steam Cleaner on a Sofa

It’s a fact: a sofa is a very dirty item. Pieces of our food get stuck in the cracks, drinks get spilled on the fabric, and pets leave their hair clinging to it. All this in addition to the fact that cleaning a sofa or a chair made of fabric isn’t always easy. If you can clean a sofa with a steam cleaner, this is the simplest solution. However, you need to take a few precautions to prevent the steam cleaner from damaging your sofa.

Using a Steam Cleaner on a Sofa

Steam cleaners let you clean sofas in depth. Without any detergent, the device dissolves dirt, grease, stains, and odours very quickly. It’s a great way to sanitize the surface while respecting the environment. A steam cleaner works through the principle of injection/extraction. The water is injected then immediately sucked up along with the dirt in a single operation. Steam cleaning is therefore particularly suitable for people with allergies, and it allows for the efficient cleaning of interiors with pets. Most steam cleaners have a nozzle specially designed for cleaning fabrics and sofas of all sorts. The steam cleans any type of fibre, even leather, dislodging dirt and removing stains. Take the special nozzle for your steam cleaner, attach it to your device, and apply the steam all over the surface without spilling onto your furniture or your floors! The heat released by the steam helps kill dust mites, lift embedded dust, and – of course – remove any stains.

Tips and things to know about using a steam cleaner

Before using the steam cleaner on a sofa

• Dust the sofa thoroughly using a vacuum cleaner with a special nozzle for fabric to remove the biggest dirt.
• Remove as much hair and lint as possible with an adhesive roller specially designed for this purpose.
• Conduct a test on part of the fabric of your sofa to avoid accidents, especially for colours that could fade.
• Close the zippers on the cover or the couch cushions firmly
• Protect any visible wood and decorative elements that may not appreciate steam, because water isn’t suitable for all elements! In particular, you can put cardboard on your floors and on your furniture to protect them during the operation.
• Never use steam on a sofa made of velvet or acrylic fibres, which can’t handle moisture.

During the steam cleaning

• Work the fabrics in the direction of their design to avoid damaging their aesthetics and even to enhance them.
• Run the steam cleaner slowly over your sofa to work the material evenly.
• Clean the whole surface of your sofa, not just the stained area, to sanitize the entirety of your furniture.
• Stop the cleaning if the dyes on the fabric of your sofa start bleeding, if the colour fades, or if the patterns on the fabrics change.

If the stains present on your sofa don’t disappear despite the use of your steam cleaner, if you don’t have a steam cleaner, or if you don’t have time to take care of cleaning your sofa, don’t hesitate to rely on a specialized company. Experienced professional cleaners can take care of this task for you and make your sofa look like new again thanks to their professional equipment and their knowledge of the products tailored to each of the different sofa materials.

How to Clean Walls with Stain Resistant Paint?

The question to ask yourself first and foremost is whether your paint is really washable. If, and only if, you’re sure that you have stain resistant paint, you’ll be able to clean your walls easily. The washing of the walls can be part of a big cleaning carried out from time to time or at each change of the seasons to freshen up and sanitize your interior.

The paints that can be washed are those that are designed to be resistant to moisture:

• Gloss paint
• Semi-gloss paint
• 100% acrylic paint
• Matte-finish paint
• Moisture-resistant paint
• Latex paint

Wash your walls yourself

To wash your walls yourself, you’ll need sponges, two buckets, a soft cloth, hot water, a tarp, a feather duster, and soda crystals or detergent suitable for walls. To start, place the tarp on the ground, put on gloves, and dust the walls with your feather duster. Then, begin the washing by making a mixture of one glass of crystals per litre of water. The best way to clean your wall is to always work from the bottom to the top of the wall, climbing little by little with circular movements. Once you’ve finished doing that, rinse your walls immediately. To do that, just moisten a large vegetable sponge in hot water, then wring it out, which will let you easily remove the product from the walls. Perform this operation as you move along the walls with the detergent or soda crystals. Then, dry the damp walls with a soft, clean cloth. If excess grease is present on your walls, you can also apply a mixture of baking soda and water to degrease the walls thoroughly and make the traces disappear.

Rely on a professional cleaning company

If your walls are very dirty, if they’re high, or if you need to have your ceilings and your whole interior cleaned for a big seasonal cleaning, you can also rely on a specialized cleaning company. Indeed, some manoeuvres can be complex to perform due to a lack of professional equipment and may even be dangerous, especially when it comes to cleaning jobs at height, which require safety equipment. A cleaning company can do a big spring cleaning of your house quickly with professional equipment and products that will offer you outstanding quality and lasting results.

Non-stain resistant paint

If your paint isn’t washable and you therefore can’t get it wet or scrub your walls, then you’ll need to opt for alternative solutions to preserve your paint. In particular, you can try to use a magic anti-mark sponge that lets you remove stains and marks. You can also try to scrub the stains on your paint with a potato cut in two, because the starch contained in potatoes is known to remove stains. If you opt for this solution, remember to wipe the wall after scrubbing it with the potato.

In conclusion, consider washing your walls after touching them up and applying new coats of paint to them to keep the paint looking fresh for as long as possible. Finally, if you’re about to choose a type of paint to renovate your walls, consider stain resistant paint types so that you can carry out a regular cleaning of your interior from the walls to the ceiling and so that you don’t have to worry about stains and splashes anymore.

6 Chronic Respiratory Diseases That Can Be Caused by Contaminated Ducts

The presence of mould and bacteria in indoor spaces has become a major concern in Canada, as it carries serious risks for the health of the occupants of a place. The inhalation of the particles and mould spores retained in the ducts of household appliances causes many respiratory illnesses. Here are 6 respiratory diseases that can be caused by contaminated ducts.

Contaminated ducts and respiratory illnesses

The ducts of your household appliances, such as those of poorly maintained washers and dryers, can quickly get clogged with mould and dust that then spread through the air, especially due to the venting of hot and contaminated air inside a home. Mould related to moisture in the ducts of household appliances proliferates and colonizes the unit and quickly finds itself in the ambient air.

Many of these mould spores produce mycotoxins, which are metabolites or by-products of mould. These particles are recognized as being highly toxic to both humans and animals. Indeed, over time, these toxins will weaken the immune system and lead to sudden allergies as well as trouble breathing.

The most common symptoms of diseases related to the contamination of the ducts of household equipment are the following:

• Irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat
• Strong, dry cough
• Nasal congestion,
• Wheezing
• Difficulty breathing
• Shortness of breath
• Fatigue
• Headache
• Trouble concentrating

When it comes to breathing problems in particular, the mould spores, dust, and germs that contaminate ducts may also increase allergy symptoms such as wheezing, trouble breathing, and shortness of breath. Children, the elderly, people with immunosuppression, and people who recently had surgery are usually the most likely to experience health problems caused by mould spores. If the mould problem isn’t treated at its source, over time, the contaminated ducts can lead to certain serious conditions such as:

• Rhinitis
• Bronchitis
• Asthma
• Hypersensitivity pneumonitis
• Allergic alveolitis
• Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis

Getting rid of the mould in your ducts

If you have one or more symptoms of a respiratory illness, in addition to consulting a doctor as soon as possible, you absolutely must try to determine the cause of your health problems so as not to make the situation worse. The cause of the presence of mould can be found in the ducts of your appliances and may be due in particular to the presence of moisture. Once the presence of mould in your ducts has been noted, it’s recommended to do a big cleaning according to the recommendations of professionals and to replace – if possible – any items that are overly contaminated with infected material or likely to reproduce the same problem. Avoid producing any dust during the cleaning, and clean your filters and ducts using good disinfectant products that are safe for your health.

The recommended cleaning method varies according to the extent of the contamination and the severity of the damage caused to the ducts by the mould. Before starting any cleaning of a contaminated duct, it’s necessary to take a few precautions; in particular, make sure that you can ensure your respiratory protection. To tackle mould problems without risking infecting yourself again, it may be necessary to rely on a company that specializes in cleaning these types of elements, that is familiar with the problems related to humidity and mould, and that has items to protect themselves as well as the appropriate equipment for long-term decontamination.

Our Cleaning Tips for Confined Spaces

The most confined spaces of a house or a building hosting professional spaces are real hiding places for germs. Unfortunately, they are also more or less enclosed spaces that are very hard to access for a truly effective cleaning. Here are our most effective cleaning tips for getting rid of germs and making the confined spaces of your home as clean and healthy as possible:

Clean your vacuum cleaner: Because the vacuum cleaner sucks up dirt but also expels air, it moves the germs and bacteria present all over the house when you use it hoping to clean your interior. To prevent the germs from spreading everywhere, or a little less, you should regularly throw away the dust bag and clean the filter as often as possible. Vacuum cleaners and their accessories are great nests for bacteria. However, you should be aware that some modern vacuum cleaners are equipped with a system that only expels clean air.

Give your interior a big spring cleaning: Once or twice a year, and especially when the seasons change, it’s a good idea to give your interior a big spring cleaning to get rid of the germs and bacteria that may be hidden in the confined spaces. A big spring cleaning lets you:

• Purify the air in your house
• Make your interior shine
• Clean all the surfaces
• Eliminate any trace of dirt
• Regain total well-being
• Put your things in order

Choose your disinfectants well: In confined spaces, there’s a tendency to clean and disinfect the space too much using extremely aggressive chemical detergents to reassure yourself that you’ve eliminated the germs. However, you should know that these products have an impact on the environment, the air you breathe, and therefore the health of the occupants. These products can be much more harmful than some germs! So consider using the most neutral detergents possible. Generally speaking, the longer a product’s list of ingredients, the more harmful it is! It’s best to use scent-free cleaning products with a plant-based cleansing base.

Regularly air out confined spaces: When we allow the air to renew itself by opening the windows for a few hours or even a few minutes a day, the results are there: the germs and bacteria fly away. If a space is confined, you’ll have to find some way to create ventilation, such as by installing a hatch that lets the air pass through it and renew itself regularly.

Opt for high-pressure cleaning: Depending on the type of confined space that you want to clean without the risk of damaging it, you can opt for high-pressure cleaning using a special machine. Whether it’s for industrial cleaning or cleaning a rather confined space, the high pressure lets you powerfully clean the hardest areas to clean by hand, as well as furniture. High-pressure cleaning lets you clean even the dirtiest areas quickly and efficiently.

If the confined space that you need to clean to sanitize your interior is too full of embedded dirt and grime, don’t hesitate to call on cleaning professionals who have the experience to get rid of everything that’s unbearable for you to clean. A company that specializes in cleaning has the high-pressure equipment you need and will do a thorough cleaning with products that respect your health as well as the environment.

Dryer Vent Hose: How to Choose Between Aluminum and Plastic

Did you know that the poor maintenance of dryers and dryer vent hoses carries a high risk of fire in your home? Some types of dryer vent hoses are more likely to cause fires. You should therefore make the right choice between aluminum and plastic.

Our precautions to take

• It’s best to have your dryer installed and maintained by a professional capable of taking precautions against fires.
• It’s best to choose a material such as rigid metal for your dryer vent hose, which is much less flammable than plastic or aluminum.
• If you install your dryer yourself, follow the instructions from the manufacturer before installing the dryer vent hose. Run your hose along the most direct possible route to the outside to prevent the accumulation of lint in the curves and bends of the hose.
• Using rigid or flexible metal vent hoses is the best alternative. Plastic hoses are more likely to warp, sag, and get crushed, which encourages the accumulation of lint. Plastic hoses are also much more likely to melt and catch on fire.
• For better removal of the hot air, choose the shortest and straightest possible exhaust air hose.
• Dryers installed in a closet or a confined space in a small apartment, for example, must have an air intake sufficient for their proper functioning.
• Avoid the formation of condensation and the accumulation of lint as much as possible from the very beginning of your machine’s operation. Don’t wait for it to get clogged.
• Insulate your hose if it runs through an unheated area such as a basement.

The ideal dryer vent hose:

The ideal dryer vent hose is made of metal, preferably smooth and rigid, and 4 inches in diameter. It is also as short and straight as possible, and its corner connectors are assembled without screws or fasteners that extend inside the device. Finally, it is connected to an exterior element equipped with a valve that opens automatically when the device is working and protected by an insulating sheath if it runs through an unheated space.

Daily precautions:

• Make sure that your dryer’s connection hose and exhaust duct are always in good condition, not damaged, and well placed.
• If you have a dryer with a white plastic hose, try to replace it to reduce the risk of fire.
• Consider inspecting and cleaning your dryer filter after each load of laundry by removing the clumps of material.
• Clean the inside of your dryer regularly as indicated by the manufacturer.
• Stop the dryer if you are going out so as never to leave it running unattended.
• Make sure to never put a flammable object near the dryer while in use to prevent fires.
• Make sure to have a fire and smoke alarm installed in your home on each floor, especially near the bedrooms.
• Avoid drying too much laundry at the same time and avoid drying laundry that may have come into contact with flammable chemicals.

To choose a hose for your dryer, follow the advice of professionals and consider having your device maintained by people who specialize in duct cleaning to prevent any risk of fire, whatever material the hose is made of. Relying on a specialized company means avoiding the obligation to replace your dangerous and defective equipment. Indeed, professionals can repair your dryer and give you great advice for better maintenance.