Here’s one last carpet cleaning nightmare. Just know that Hansen Steam Way is nothing like these nightmare companies!

The third company was better than the first two but was found to be very lacking for a company considered a “top” company. Booking the job was about as average as the other two. Incorrect information and ignorance ran throughout this experience. This company gave a two-hour window for arrival. They called the day before to confirm—which was good. The morning of the appointment, they called to confirm the arrival time. Good.

When the technician arrived, he was very nice. But due to his inexperience, that was not enough to get them more than a “C average.” He didn’t know anything about the carpet, although he claimed to have been around carpet for a long time. He was baffled, and it was a basic nylon carpet! This technician pre-vacuumed the carpet, pre-sprayed the traffic area, and rinsed. Upon completion, he requested a signature beside several cleaning steps that were not provided. When pressed, we got the tired, old “well, I didn’t have it on the truck.” Duh!

Both companies that actually made it to the job site had cleaning steps on their work order that they were unwilling to do. One step was grooming the carpet. In both cases, that step was on the ticket (put there by their operational system to make sure they do it). Both blew it off as unimportant.

Obviously, any company has their bad days or days when employees just don’t want to perform. The scary part about these three companies is that they are very visible companies in the market they serve. The inadequacies and poor attitudes were obviously routine.

At our company, we are extremely passionate about raising the standard of our industry. We commit to be courteous, to do our very best to show up on time, to educate you, to inform you, and to give your carpet the absolutely most thorough cleaning we possibly can. If we ever fail you on that, we will not only express deep regret and concern but will insist on refunding your money if we can’t satisfy you.

Internet Tidbit: Mailinator
There are many times when you need to use your email address to browse a website or check out a service. If you use your regular email address, you will be opening yourself up to spam. Instead, you can use an email address from Mailinator.  Mailinator is a receive-only service. You can use any email address name you can think of, and then use it when signing up at a website. The email address is in the form name@mailinator.com. The  email address stays live for a few hours, then all email at that address is  deleted. This service is free and there is no need to register for an account. The email is obviously not secure, but it helps solve the problem of  needing an anonymous or temporary email address to help reduce inbox spam.

Can We Go Home Now?
Shopping Strategies with Small Children

Holiday shopping can be chaotic, tiring, and frustrating. It becomes even more so when you have a small child with you, both for you and your child. These tips will help you cope with the job of holiday shopping with a little one.
Respect Limits

Children have only a short amount of time before they become bored, hungry, tired, or overstimulated.
Limit your excursion to one or two hours. Be sure to bring some snacks and remove your child’s coat
once you are indoors to prevent overheating. If you expect to have to wait in line, bring a book or small
toy to keep him or her occupied.

Remember That Children are Curious

Children are naturally curious.  Explain to your child before enter the store that they are only to touch items with your assistance.  Engage your child in conversation and questions as you shop to make it more fun for both of you. This natural curiosity can lead a child to wander, so keeping within eyesight
all the time is your best strategy.

Have an Escape Plan

If you’ve reached the limit of your patience, take a break. Plan on leaving the store if you or your child gets too impatient, cranky, hungry, or tired. Trying to complete your purchases with this stress is counterproductive and will probably result in your disappointment in the outcome. If your child begins have a meltdown, go outside for a few minutes, visit the food court, or just leave the store with a plan to return at another time. Remember that shopping can wait. An exhausted, hungry, or overexcited child cannot.

Avoid the Crowds

Avoid shopping just before dinner, when the stores are crowded or the days right before Christmas.   If possible, visit stores in the morning or early afternoons on weekdays or later in the evening between  6:00 and 7:00 pm.  Bring Some Help Shop with another adult to help share the child care load. You can take turns browsing and spending time with the children. You will also probably enjoy the experience with a friend or family member shopping with you.

Ready for another Carpet Cleaning Nightmare story?

The second company sounded more promising at first. Their telephone courtesies were somewhat better but not anywhere near what they should be. This company gave us a 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. arrival window. At one o’clock the consultant called to check on the arrival time. “Toward the latter,” he was told.

At 4:10 p.m. he called again. “The crew is still at their previous job. They should be about an hour.”

At 5:10, still no crew. Another call revealed that they were still at the previous job. When pressed, the operator said “Well, their previous job went from two rooms to two houses.”

“Oh, so you took on more work on your previous job and bumped me, huh?” the consultant replied.

“Let me get the Operations Manager.”

The so-called Operations Manager said, “It’s only 5:10,” insinuating they weren’t actually late. They couldn’t give a specific arrival time, so our consultant cancelled the job. If a company doesn’t care enough to communicate with the client, turn down extra work, and offer alternate arrangements for their clients, they don’t deserve the work, no matter how good they are. If you’re not there, you can’t very well do a good job, now, can you?

Mystery shoppers often reveal a carpet cleaning company’s true colors, bad behavior, and dirty secrets. We’ve got a few stories to share with you about these questionable carpet cleaning service providers. Here’s the first company you’ll definitely want to avoid!

The first company that was called not only had horrible telephone manners but sent out the rudest, most unprofessional and uninformed crew you could imagine. They acted like they were being bothered the entire time they were there—which was a total of 37 minutes! This crew did not pre-vacuum the carpet, didn’t pre spot it, and didn’t groom it.

Even though the spots were not satisfactorily removed, the crew was unconcerned and unwilling to try harder. Their one-step method doesn’t even come close to meeting minimum standards of The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). Because the crew just brushed over the carpet with the cleaning tool, the soils returned before the day was even over!

At the end of the job, our consultant was required to sign a lengthy document even though the company couldn’t clearly state any reasonable guarantee. And the company had stressed their guarantee to secure the job over the telephone.

To top it off, these idiots never said thank you. Not even a smile the entire time proved that a customer was just another bother in their day. How sad.

Seniors Face Financial Vulnerability

Geriatrics experts report in the Annals of Internal Medicine that treating   older patients means doing more than just treating their physical  conditions. Doctors can be a first-line defense to help senior citizens from losing their control over their finances.

Age-Associated Financial Vulnerability (AAFV) can result from health-related issues,  including  dementia, hearing or vision loss, or mental states like fear or loneliness.  There could also be some cognitive changes, impacting everyday math   skills or reasoning to help prevent senior from becoming victims of  financial scams or theft.

Of course, money matters should not be  medicalized. But experts recommend discussing these issues if they notice that their patients might need some help. It can be helpful to bring up the issues of assigning a power of attorney for anyone who is worried about  money matters. And evidence of money management problems might be  an early sign of some cognitive decline. Doctors are encouraged to include  assessment of financial vulnerability along with regular comprehensive  assessment of falls, mobility, daily living skills,isolation, and other cognitive
changes.

Everyone loves a deal, but too often, seeking a cheaper carpet cleaning service will be the most expensive mistake you make.

Beware of low-priced carpet cleaning

If their price is truly low, you should be concerned about their quality. What are they leaving out? How can they pay their technicians a decent wage and have the best products and equipment at the lowest price?

They can’t.

Some companies advertise a low price then charge you more when they get there. Be clear about what is included and what is not.

These so-called “cleaning” companies also happen to be the ones that don’t educate themselves or their employees. The result is that carpets and fabrics are ruined every day by uneducated, uninformed, and downright unscrupulous carpet cleaners.

They are facing soiling conditions they have never seen or heard of due to a lack of education. Or worse, they create a problem on a carpet or fabric, and they have no idea how to fix it. One example is they leave sticky residues in the carpet that cause the carpet or fabric to re-soil rapidly or to discolor.

Top-notch education is readily available in our industry. There is no excuse for cleaners not to educate themselves (and provide useful education to their clients). Part of the problem is that they have fallen into the trap of viewing cleaning as a commodity, and they can’t afford to educate themselves. Education is expensive, but ignorance can result in disaster—on YOUR carpet!

Our company invests a great deal in education. Not only do we spend thousands of dollars per year on education, we are heavily involved in our industry, which makes us well-connected with our industry leaders.

This way, if a unique situation arises in the field, we have experts we can call on, thereby bringing the cutting edge of cleaning technology to you.

Our industry provides courses in carpet cleaning, repair, fabric cleaning, marble and tile cleaning, area rug cleaning, customer service, marketing, management, and other related courses.

Many of the organizations offer certification programs that involve testing, and ethics requirements. There are a variety of opportunities to stay plugged in: trade publications, websites, bulletin boards, and more.

We attend every course we can in order to bring you the very best. Many of these courses require travel across the U.S. and can therefore be quite costly. However, we believe, as fiber technology changes and as floor coverings become more complex, proper education becomes even more important.

The bottom line is that you have a tremendous investment in your textiles and flooring systems and it is our duty to know how to best care for them. Understanding cleaning technology at the highest level helps to reduce cleaning residues and creates a healthier indoor environment by eliminating invisible germs and bacteria. It also empowers the cleaner to remove more soil, thereby creating a longer-lasting fabric or floor.

Carpet Cleaning in Winter? Really?

This is the time of the year when you may wonder if it makes sense to get your carpets cleaned. Great question!  But first, let’s think about this logically… Does it make sense to clean your wood or tile floors in the winter? Does it make sense to clean your bed linens winter? Of course. But for some reason, many people treat their carpet differently.  It’s as if the carpet was somehow magically immune to soiling because the weather is cool. Of course, this is not true.

It’s what you can’t see that is the problem
It’s true that modern carpets do a great job of hiding soil. This may lead you to think you only need to clean your carpets once a year or when they “look” dirty. But according to the EPA,
most households should clean carpets at least twice a year, maybe more depending on lifestyle and other factors.This may surprise you until you think about all of the soils, allergens, oils,
pollutants and contaminants that carpet traps. In most homes, carpet is the largest filter, trapping soils, pollutants and pet and human dander (dead skin cells, which we shed by the millions every day and dust mites live for). So the fact is that, yes, winter is a great time of year to get your carpets cleaned for several reasons.

You’re worth it
One of the best reasons for cleaning in the winter is that you want your home to look great for visiting friends and relatives during the Holidays.  Nothing makes your home feel clean and inviting quite like freshly cleaned carpets. And even if you don’t expect guests, you will be  spending more time at home in the winter, so you want it to look nice for you, too.

Of course, there are far more important reasons to clean your carpet than appearance. In fact, if you wait until your carpets look dirty before you clean them, you have waited too long. Soil damages  carpet, dramatically reducing its usable life. Can you imagine waiting until your clothes look dirty before laundering them? Of course not. That would be unhealthy and they would probably begin to smell before they looked dirty. Carpet is no different.

During the summer, pollen and other pollutants enter your home and become trapped in the carpets. In the fall, mold spores are more prevalent, again, becoming trapped in your carpet  fibers. All of this just in time for you to close things up for the winter and spend more time  inside… Not a pretty picture is it?

With clean carpet now, you and your family can breathe cleaner, healthier air all winter long. It’s bad enough that winter is the time when people suffer from cold and flu without adding poor indoor air quality to aggravate conditions such as asthma and allergies. And some good news: Carpets tend to dry faster in the winter because the humidity is lower and most of us are using our furnaces. Warm, dry air is great for drying carpets!

Clean the winter blues away
Remember that in winter, days are shorter. Darkness comes earlier and lasts longer. A clean,  fresh, healthy carpet is a great way to help fight off the winter doldrums. A clean, neat home  just makes you feel better. Hansen Steam Way is usually busiest during the Holidays; everyone  wants a clean house for family and guests. Call now to book your cleaning before the big rush!

Healthy Holidays for Your Pet

It is easy for everyone to overindulge during the holiday season, so it shouldn’t be surprising to find that pets can be vulnerable to holiday binging as well.

It may take a little effort on your part to ensure your pet does not put on any extra weight this year. Make sure any treats you give your pet are just that—pet treats, not human treats. Chocolate can make pets sick and sugar is not a good supplement to a pet’s diet. If you decide to put together a gift box or stocking filled with goodies for your animal, be sure to dole out the treats slowly over time. Take these extras into account at meal times and reduce meal  quantities accordingly. Exercise is good for you and your pet at this time of year, so make time for a daily walk, too.

Festivities and decorations can also pose a health threat to your dog or cat. All cords should be well shielded and your tree should be anchored to prevent it from tipping over. All edible decorations should be placed out of reach. If you will be having many guests over, take into consideration your pet’s tolerance for crowds and noise. It may be best to have your pet wait out any parties in the safety of a bedroom or basement.

By taking these simple precautions, you can ensure that both you and your furry friend will enjoy this holiday season.

When you start your search for a high quality carpet cleaning service, the first question you’ll want to ask your potential hire is this: “What Kind of Reputation Do You Have?”

When selecting a professional carpet cleaning company you have three choices:

1. Choose a carpet cleaner that has a low, too-good-to-be-true price.
You’ll likely get the worst experience you ever imagined.

2. Choose a “commodity” carpet cleaning company.
This is typically a high-volume company that does a lot of mass media advertising. They may not be the lowest, but their prices are “competitive.” The problem is they don’t train their staff very well and they skip vital steps in the cleaning process; that ends up costing YOU in the long run.

3. Choose a reputable, experienced, certified carpet cleaning firm.
Choose a cleaning firm that measures up to the seven questions in this book. You will end up with a phenomenal cleaning job AND a pleasant service experience.

The typical scenario with the first two types is to “bait” you with a low price, then “switch” you to their “dual scrub” or “deep clean” system. They proceed to soak your carpet and leave a soapy residue behind. Good luck getting them back again!