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May 09
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What’s That Smell? Dealing With Sneaky Carpet Odors

By Carpet Cleaning, Deep Cleaning

carpet odorsCarpet odors can sneak into your home over time, undetected until someone points them out or you return home after being away. Over time, we become accustomed to smells from pets, cigarettes, mildew, and foods, so it’s difficult to notice them.

Once you discover them, you’ll need to persistently work on removing the odors. Here are several strategies you can use to get those pesky smells out of your carpet and keep them smelling fresh and clean.

Using Carpet Cleaners and Deodorizers

There are an abundance of carpet cleaners and deodorizers on the market today that deliver great results. Some of them use synthetic solvents, but there are also natural cleaners if you want to avoid using harsher chemicals. Using carpet cleaners regularly will help keep your carpets fresh.

Baking Soda

If you want to save money and use natural ingredients as a home remedy, baking soda can help with pet odors and smoke. It works by trapping smells and absorbing moisture. Sprinkling it on your carpet overnight and then vacuuming it up the next morning will help clean and deodorize your rug.

If you’re focusing on deodorizing, mixing baking soda with ground spices and borax will remove odors and leave your carpets with a pleasant scent. A popular spice to use is cinnamon but avoid it if you have light-colored carpets. You can also add essential oils for a nice scent.

Vinegar and Vodka

Vinegar is another natural solution that removes unpleasant odors from your carpet. It works well on pet odors. White vinegar is recommended, and although it smells at first, the scent disappears once it dries. Spray it evenly onto your carpet and let it dry. You can repeat the process until the odor is completely gone.

Vodka also works well on stubborn odors. It kills bacteria and removes stains. For spot cleaning, apply vodka over a stain for 10 to 15 minutes, then blot the moisture with a paper towel. To deodorize your carpet, spraying it evenly and vacuuming afterward will remove unpleasant odors. You can mix vodka with baking soda to absorb excess moisture before vacuuming if you desire.

Preventing Carpet Odors

Regularly cleaning your carpets will prevent odors from settling into your carpets and keep dirt and residue from building up. Steam cleaners in combination with other cleaning solutions can penetrate deeply into your carpets, forming embedded stains and odors. If you’ve tried several cleaning solutions and none of them work, it may be time to hire a professional to clean your carpets.

Carpet odors are inevitable but taking these steps and consistently caring for your carpet will help keep them cleaner for longer.

Contact our team or call (419) 705-8693 today to schedule a free, no-obligation demonstration of our amazing carpet cleaning system in Toledo for your home or business.

May 09
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5 Cleaning Tips to Maintain Your Concrete Surfaces

By Concrete Cleaning

concrete surfacesWith summer right around the bend, many homeowners will be pursuing their deep-cleaning plans to prepare their homes for the warmer months. Many homeowners forget to include the cleaning of hard surfaces, such as concrete and natural stone in their cleaning efforts. These surfaces require routine maintenance and cleaning, especially if you want to keep them looking great between professional cleaning and sealing services.

To make sure the concrete surfaces of your patio and around your pool are ready in time for the spring and summer months, check out the following five ways to keep your hard surfaces looking as good as possible:

  1. Use Baking Soda or Vinegar-Based Solutions

Baking soda and vinegar are two great ingredients for cleaning cement and concrete patios. Both are safe and natural options. To remove heavy stains, use a mixture of equal parts vinegar and water. For a gentler cleaning solution, mix ½ cup baking soda with one gallon of water and 1/8 cup of liquid dishwashing detergent. Simply spray your patio thoroughly, scour, and rinse completely.

  1. Pressure Washing

If your patio is severely stained or mildewed, it might be a good idea to utilize a pressure washer, which can be rented or purchased at a tool rental center or your local home improvement store. Be sure to follow the directions when using the machine and to wear eye protection because these machines send water out in quick, forceful streams.

  1. Protect Stains with Concrete Sealer

When your patio is thoroughly cleaned, you can ensure it is safe from additional stains with the use of a concrete sealer. Always begin at the center of your patio and use a paint roller to spread the sealant out to the corners. When your patio is dry, it will be shiny and clear just in time your first barbecue of the season.

  1. Use Walk Off Mats

Dirt can erode the exterior layer of a hard surface, and it can cause serious damage if it is not kept at bay. If you have concrete flooring inside your home, experts say having at a walk off mat with a length of at least 5 feet can reduce approximately 35 percent of the soil from reaching a hard surface. Even better, a walk off mat of 25 feet can deter nearly all of the soil from getting to and deteriorating your hard surface floor covering.

  1. Conduct Routine Maintenance of Concrete Surfaces

The best way to avoid lasting stains and surface erosion to your hard surface flooring is to reduce the amount of debris and dirt that accumulates on a regular basis. Basic weekly or monthly upkeep means starting with dry maintenance procedures including sweeping, dusting, microfiber mopping, and vacuuming, and then moving on to wet maintenance procedures, such as spot and wet or damp mopping.

For questions about how to maintain your concrete surfaces, call Professional Surface Restoration at (419) 705-8693 today.

Apr 11
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5 Common Infections in the Elderly that Deep Cleaning Can Help Deter

By Deep Cleaning

deep cleaningUp to 33% of elderly people in the United States die every year because of infections. Infections that are harmful for younger people can be even more dangerous for the elderly. The following are some of the most common infections in the elderly and tips on how deep cleaning can help prevent them.

Flu

Influenza is a common ailment in the United States. Elderly people often have weaker immune systems and other diseases that make it more difficult for their bodies to fight off the flu. Additionally, nursing homes serve as ideal locations for the flu to spread, because of the close and sometimes cramped conditions.

Pneumonia

More than 60% of people older than 65 are admitted into hospitals for pneumonia. In the elderly, the symptoms manifest less in chills and coughing and more in confusion and delirium. Elderly people are at a higher risk of getting pneumonia because of exposure in community settings, preexisting diseases, and various other factors.

Gastrointestinal Infections

One of the most common gastrointestinal infections that occurs in elderly people is Clostridium difficile, or C-diff. C-diff often occurs in nursing homes when someone has been taking antibiotics that kill off healthy intestinal microbes.

Urinary Tract Infections

Urinary tract infections (UTIs), are common in all age groups and can usually be treated with antibiotics. However, UTIs can become extremely dangerous if the infection goes unnoticed and it spreads to the kidneys. Not only are elderly people anatomically predisposed to experience UTIs more frequently, the catheters that some use can cause UTIs.

Skin Infections

Elderly people are at a higher risk for skin infections because their aging skin is more damaged and less capable of fending off diseases. Most skin infections are very treatable, but they can become dangerous if no one notices them, especially for the elderly.

Preventing Infections with Deep Cleaning

Along with antibiotics and various other medications, deep cleaning is an extremely effective way to prevent infections in the elderly. Deep cleaning includes both the person and the environment. Make sure the elderly person is washing his or her hands and body thoroughly and frequently. Have the tile or carpet floors in personal and communal spaces thoroughly cleaned as often as necessary. Seniors are more vulnerable to infections, so it is important to do all you can to limit the potential diseases, germs, and bacteria in their environment. Keeping each room as clean as possible could prevent an elderly person from contracting a serious, possibly fatal disease or infection.

Have a need for carpet deep cleaning? Give us a call at (419) 705-8693 or click here and we’ll come out and take a look.

Mar 29
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3 Reasons to Hire a Professional Post-Construction Clean-Up Crew

By Construction Clean Up

Construction Clean-UpPlanning a construction project is an all-encompassing job and requires you to consider a wide range of issues. An often-ill-considered aspect of construction is clean-up at the end of the project. Before scrambling to do the clean-up yourself, consider hiring a professional construction clean-up crew that has the experience and knowledge to clean a site to avoid safety issues.

Why Hire a Construction Clean-Up Crew?

Specialty Cleaning Services

Post construction cleaning is not like cleaning the interior of a home – not everyone can do it. You don’t want your site to look like a disaster hit it when the carpenters, electricians, plumbers, HVAC workers, and finishers complete their jobs, and you don’t want your crew stuck doing clean-up when you could have them on another job, making the company more money.

Saving Time and Money

Reassigning carpenters and other construction workers to clean constructions sites after a project is a waste of resources. These professionals will not only leave remnants behind, they will also be disgruntled if they think you are squandering their talents. This causes slow and incomplete work. Maximize your time and money by hiring a professional clean-up crew. Professionals can begin cleaning parts of the site before construction crews have completed the project, which leads to a faster turnaround time.

Making Sure Your Site Gleams for the Inspection

Cleaning up after a construction project is a tedious, but very important job. You want the site to look perfect when the building inspector checks out your newly finished project. Whether it’s a beautiful new residential home or a top-end commercial building, you want the floors and walls to shine, you want the appliances to sparkle, the carpets to be spotless, and the air systems dust-free.

A professional pos-construction cleaning service can clean the floors (carpets, vinyl, and hardwood), polish all the mirrors, wipe down and polish countertops and cabinets, sanitize bathrooms (sinks, toilets, and other fixtures), make the windows sparkle, the appliances shine, even sweep out the stairs and walkways and make sure that they are free of debris.

Making the Decision

Hiring a professional, experienced cleaning crew is always recommended for construction sites. These individuals are efficient and can help make sure that your company passes its final inspection with flying colors. Your crew does the building; let us do your cleanup and we’ll make sure that your building is a shining example of the kind of work your company produces.

Give Professional Surface Restoration a call today at (419) 705-8693, and let us help you deliver a great first impression every time.

Mar 16
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4 Reasons to Deep Clean Carpets in Your Assisted Living Facility

By Carpet Cleaning, Deep Cleaning

deep clean carpetsAny type of carpeting requires regular, thorough cleanings for it to function properly, and a carpet’s purpose goes beyond just providing a soft surface for your feet. Carpets also function as air filters, trapping dust, dirt, debris, and bacteria. Performing regular deep carpet cleaning is important for any homeowner or business owner with carpets, but it is especially important in assisted living environments.

Elderly people are more susceptible to disease and illness, so the benefits of a thoroughly cleaned carpet are especially important in nursing homes and assisted living facilities for several reasons:

Greater Comfort

Deep cleaned carpets enhance overall comfort in more ways than one. Not only are cleaner carpets softer and more pleasant to walk on, they are also more visually appealing as well. This can make a space feel more calm and inviting, while dirty carpets convey a sense of untidiness and can sour a person’s perception of a living space.

Better Insulation

Clean carpets are better at retaining heat than dirty ones. Older individuals are more vulnerable to temperature changes and extreme heat and cold than younger people. Thoroughly cleaned carpets will trap heat and help regulate a room’s temperature.

Increased Safety

Millions of Americans suffer slip and fall injuries every year, and this is especially an issue among senior citizens. A deep clean carpet provides more traction while walking and can even help prevent some slip and fall incidents. It will also offer more cushioning after a fall than a dirty one. A dirty carpet will compress and harden over time, providing little in the way of cushioning if someone were to fall on it.

Improved Air Quality

Carpets function as air filters, trapping dust particles and other debris in their fibers as they drift along the floor’s surface. One square foot of carpet can trap up to one full pound of airborne allergens and debris, so regularly cleaning your carpets keeps this air filtering aspect in shape.

Tips for Deep Cleaning Carpets

Deep cleaning carpet requires several solvents and chemicals to ensure a thorough cleaning, but it’s important to select senior-friendly versions of these substances. Abrasive cleaners can damage carpets or alter the texture, and the scent from some cleaners can irritate elderly residents’ eyes and respiratory systems. Some cleaning substances can actually cause dirt to accumulate more quickly in carpets, increasing the need for regular cleanings.

These are just a few of the reasons why regular deep carpet cleaning is crucial for assisted living facilities and nursing homes. Not only does regularly cleaning carpets maintain their healthful benefits, it also creates a more welcoming and comfortable atmosphere.

Have a need for carpet deep cleaning? Give us a call at (419) 705-8693 or click here and we’ll come out and take a look.

Feb 24
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3 Reasons to Hire a Professional Upholstery Cleaning Service

By Furniture Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning

upholstery cleaning service_Toledo OhioWhen the furniture needs cleaning, most people try to save money by attempting to remove the stains themselves. Many don’t realize that furniture is commonly upholstered with fabrics that don’t react well to certain chemicals and that typical cleaning methods often cause even more damage. In fact, most furniture requires specific chemicals and tools that most people do not own.

Professional upholstery cleaning service technicians are experts in handling these chemicals and working with specialized tools to clean and remove stains of all types. If you’re on the fence about whether to hire a professional, consider the following three reasons you should call an expert for your next upholstery cleaning.

Knowledge

When it comes to cleaning furniture, one must understand that the fibers in furnishings are often fragile and need to be handled with care. To prevent needless damage, it is important to know which chemicals can be used on which fabrics. The truth is that most people do not have this type of knowledge on hand, whereas professional upholstery cleaners have the expertise to determine what fabrics and chemicals are incompatible with one another.

Many fabrics are also difficult to handle, making them more likely to be damaged when an untrained person tries to remove a stain. Professional furniture cleaners know how to deal with a variety of fabric types and can agitate each correctly and safely. Having a professional’s knowledge of chemicals cleaners and fabrics is extremely helpful if you have furniture with no cleaning tag attached.

Tools and Equipment

In addition to being fragile and difficult to manage, the fabrics in furniture upholstery do not work with generic cleaning products and procedures. Often, upholstery stains require specific types of cleaning solutions, which most homeowners do not own. Also, specific furniture designs require the use of special tools to achieve a thorough cleaning. At the end of the day, purchasing these tools is not a cost-efficient option for homeowners, so the best idea is to hire a professional cleaner and save yourself the expense and hassle of learning how to use the equipment.

Protection

Many homeowners value their furniture and see it as an investment. And like any other type of investment, furniture requires attention and care to stay in good condition. A genuine attempt to save money by cleaning the upholstery yourself can end up costing you more in the end if you ruin your furniture. Professional cleaners can also offer you advice for handling spills and keeping your furniture in the best condition possible, so you have the information you need to manage stains in the future without accidently damaging your upholstery.

Professional Surface Restoration offers free upholstery cleaning service estimates with no obligation. Contact us to set up an appointment.

Feb 08
Love1

3 Benefits of Regular Furniture Cleaning

By Upholstery Cleaning

furniture cleaningHow many times have you left for work unknowingly covered in pet hair? When you finally discover the faux-pas, you vow to clean your furniture immediately. Then weeks or months fly by, with your furniture still gathering dust, hair, and who knows what else. Putting off regular furniture cleaning is extremely common, but most people do not understand how detrimental it can be.

Here are 3 reasons you need to stay on top of your furniture and upholstery cleaning:

  1. Vitality and Appearance

One of the most satisfying benefits of keeping upholstered furniture clean is how fantastic it looks after the fact. Chances are good that if you have stains on your furniture, you have not completely lifted them with your own cleaning. A professional cleaning will lift these stains, giving your couch a “just off the showroom floor” look. If you don’t have stains, the accumulated dust, pet hair, and bodily grease will all be removed to make your room look inviting once again. Guests will not have to question how safe it is to have a seat!

  1. Keeping That Money in Your Bank Account

In addition to immediate beauty, cleaning upholstery and furniture on a regular basis will make it last longer. When dirt settles on your furniture it is rubbed into the fabric with a grating effect. As you can imagine, this damages the fabric, breaking it down. Stains also have a detrimental effect, attracting excess dirt and debris. Wear and tear of this sort will significantly reduce the life span of your couch. Furniture should be viewed as an investment to be taken care of.

  1. General Health

For every visible particle you can see on upholstered furniture, there are millions of others that you cannot. In general, people spend a lot of time on their furniture. Bacteria, fungus, mold, and other germs from clothing are transferred to furniture each time it is touched. Vacuuming is a huge culprit, dispersing various particles into the air, which then settle on furniture. Cleaning these items on a regular basis significantly lowers the number of germs and particles present, which in turn helps keep you free of germs, asthma triggers and allergies.

Stop Procrastinating and Hire a Furniture Cleaning Professional

Make a professional upholstery and furniture cleaning part of this year’s spring cleaning. We can help you eliminate the cold and flu viruses that have been harbored in your home over the winter months. The investment in a professional cleaning will also prolong the life of your furniture and coupled with spring cleaning, make your home a welcoming environment once again. Give us a call today to schedule your deep furniture cleaning – (419) 705-8693.

Jan 26
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3 Keys to Truly Clean Carpets

By Carpet Cleaning

clean carpetsMany people know that vacuuming is a crucial element of clean carpets. But when it comes to carpet cleaning, what often goes unrecognized is the fact that a carpet is a large air filter, catching airborne particles and holding them in until it cannot work anymore. The truth is that using a standard vacuum cleaner is not enough to eliminate the amount of dirt, dust, pet dander, and bacteria that can build up in a carpet over time. In reality, vacuuming barely does more than force the dust and debris up into the air and stir them around.

You could use a dry cleaning formula and a machine that works the powder into the carpet fibers, but in reality, this doesn’t do much more than clean the first third of your carpeting; it doesn’t reach down to the base of the carpet.

Deep-cleaning your carpets not only helps your carpets stay clean and healthy, but it also makes them last longer and keeps the air in your home cleaner too. When it comes time to schedule a deep cleaning for your home, here are the three most essential elements of deep cleaning to keep in mind.

Proper Cleaning Formula

No one wants to wait all day for a carpet to become clean, and the only way to avoid it taking what seems like forever is to make sure you use cleaning formula that is suited to your carpet’s needs. Since the wet cleaning process requires a reaction between chemicals, the more soiled the carpet is, the more concentrated the chemical solution must be to complete the reaction in a moderate amount of time.

High-Pressure Agitation and Penetration

Like the use of a good cleaning solution, high-pressure agitation helps accelerate the chemical reaction, so you are not stuck waiting for too long. Besides speeding up the momentum of the process, the purpose of high agitation and penetration is to completely and evenly cover the carpet fibers with the cleaning solution and to eject any dirt particles that may be stuck to or inside the fabric.

High Temperature

Last, temperature is probably the most important aspect of this procedure. Just as applying high-pressure penetration and the use of the proper solution, high temperatures can accelerate chemical reactions. When the heating solution is hot enough, carpets need less chemicals/cleaning solution and have shorter clean-up time. Using a hot solution also helps fabric dry faster and reduces surface tension in the cleaning solution, which aids soil elimination.

Contact our team today to schedule a free, no-obligation demonstration of our amazing natural stone cleaning system in Toledo for your home or business.

Jan 15
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Why Choosing the Right Carpet Cleaners Matters to Your Family’s Health

By Carpet Cleaning

carpet cleanersCarpets can act as a room-sized air filter. They capture toxins in the air and trap them within fibers and release them when you vacuum or walk across the room. Most people think carpet cleaning eliminates the problem, but some carpet cleaners introduce even more toxic chemicals into your home environment. Keep your floors from becoming a potential source of sickness and poor health when you choose the right professional carpet cleaner.

What’s in Your Carpet

Your children play on your carpets. Your pets lie on them. You may find yourself stretching out on the floor at the end of a long day. If your carpet hasn’t been cleaned in a while, it can contain a wide range of substances that may be bad for your health.

New carpets contain volatile organic compounds like acetone, formaldehyde and benzene, many of which are known carcinogens listed by the Environmental Protection Agency as extremely hazardous. The chemicals can cause nerve damage, respiratory problems and other health conditions. That new carpet smell comes from chemicals that cause thyroid, immune system and developmental problems.

Older carpets contain dangerous chemicals and an accumulation of materials like dust mites, cockroach droppings, heavy metals and household chemicals.

Toxins in Common Carpet Cleaners

If you choose the wrong company to clean your carpet, you may introduce even more toxins into your home. Many commercially available cleaning chemicals use ingredients to mask odors that produce dangerous fumes. Even after your carpets dry, they remain in your home.

Perchloroethylene, a chemical for dry cleaning, can cause upset stomach and fatigue, and may even damage the liver and kidneys after long-term exposure. Naphthalene dissolves dirt buildup, but it can also damage the central nervous system and cause cancer. Carpet cleaning chemicals don’t just saturate your home, when cleaners rinse their equipment, they enter the water system.

The Professional Surface Restoration Difference

When you call Professional Surface Restoration, we don’t just restore your carpets to like-new condition, we do it safely. Our process uses EPA approved solvents that are environmentally friendly. We apply a safe solution to loosen stains and soils, kill bacteria and remove debris. Then we use steam heated to more than 200 degrees to penetrate and remove the toughest stains. Our process eliminates soil and the contaminated water other cleaning services leave behind.

Keep your family safe and your carpets fresh. Contact us for a free consultation today.

Jan 05
Love0

5 Dos and Don’ts of Cleaning Wood Floors

By Wood Floor Cleaning

cleaning wood floorsHardwood floors are a sought-after feature in any home. They’re beautiful, classic, and add value to a property. However, they can also be difficult to clean. Proper maintenance and upkeep of your wood floors can make all the difference in how long they look like new. Below are the best ways for cleaning wood floors to keep them shining bright for life.

  1. Do: Clean Floors Yourself

It may come as a surprise, but the best thing you can do for your wood floors is DIY (do-it-yourself) cleanings in-between professional sessions. Cleaning your floors, yourself, periodically can work wonders on how they keep up over the years. Cleaning your floors with the right products and techniques can prevent dirt from scratching the wood and making your floors look dingy.

  1. Don’t: Use a Standard Vacuum

When you DIY your wood floor cleaning, start with selecting the right vacuum. Ordinary vacuums won’t work on wood floors. The bristles (meant for carpet) can scratch the wood and scatter dirt. Plastic wheels are also risks to your wood surfaces. Instead, purchase a special hardwood floor vacuum that has padding, rubber wheels, great suction, and no rolling brushes. If you vacuum your wood floors regularly, you won’t have to clean them as frequently.

  1. Do: Use the Right Cleaning Products

About once per week, deeper clean your wood floors. Use a solution of plant-based liquid soap, distilled white vinegar, and water, or purchase a store-bought cleaner specifically for wood floors. Use a damp but not saturated sponge to wash your floors first with clean, warm water. Then, use a hardwood floor mop to spread the solution. Don’t use too much, as moisture can damage wood floors. Mop in a circular direction to lift dirt and stains.

  1. Don’t: Forget to Let Floors Dry

Once you finish mopping your wood floors with the solution of your choice, don’t replace rugs or furniture until the wood dries completely. Placing rugs on wet wooden floors can trap the moisture underneath and increase the risk of water damage. Avoid walking on wet floors, as well, as this can leave dirt and footprints. Let your floors air dry completely before allowing traffic to come through.

  1. Do: Schedule a Professional for Cleaning Wood Floors

On top of regular DIY cleanings, the best way to keep your hardwood floors spick and span is to schedule periodic professional cleanings. Professional wood floor cleaning can lengthen the lifespan of your wood floors and make them beautiful again. A mix of DIY and professional cleaning is optimal for the health of your wood floors. Professional Surface Restoration offers free estimates with no obligation. Contact us to set up an appointment.

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