The cleaning and shampooing of carpets and fabric upholstery is extremely important in today’s detailing industry because 50% of your customers are women, and who pays attention to the automobile interior more than women?
To be a professional carpet & upholstery cleaner, requires knowledge and expertise. To begin you need to be able to identify the kinds of carpet and upholstery types you are working with and recognize the problems and the extent to which you can correct the problems.
Basically, there are two types of materials: natural and synthetics. The natural materials would be wool, cotton and leathers.
Synthetics can be seriously damaged if the wrong cleaning chemicals and techniques are used. If you use the wrong chemicals or techniques you will get an unsatisfactory cleaning job at the very least.
Make an Inspection First
The first step in a proper cleaning procedure is a thorough inspection. This involves the following:
- identifying the fabric material
- check what the material is mounted to, and its general condition
- know the stains and odors contained in the fabric
Also, check the owner's manual for any specific instructions on care and cleaning of the carpets and upholstery. If you can find the owner's manual and there are no specific instructions, you can identify the fabrics as natural or synthetic by performing a "burn-test." You can be assured the carpet material is nylon, in almost all cases
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For the upholstery take a few strands of the upholstery material from an inconspicuous place (under seats) and place them near a flame.
Wool will not melt, it burns and smells like burning hair and will leave a hard, brittle, black ash. Rayon doesn't melt either, but it smells like burning paper when burnt and the ash is soft and gray. Cotton also does not melt, and it smells like burning paper with a light, fluffy white ash.
Synthetics are a little more difficult to identify. Nylon, polyester, acrylic and olefin all melt and form a hard bead when cool, but it is literally impossible to tell them apart with the "burn-test."
It is, however, possible to denote a difference by smell. Nylon smells like hot wax, polyester has a sharp, acrid odor; acrylic smells sweet and pungent, and olefin smells like tar.
The next area of inspection would be the fabric mounting and fabric condition. Carpets have the same backing, but always be certain. As a professional detailer, before you proceed be certain.
The same is true of upholstery fabrics. Examine to see if an adhesive is used to keep the fabric molded to contact on the seat or door panels.
Certain cleaning chemicals and even heat can destroy backings. If cleaning chemicals are allowed to saturate into fabric as is often the case in detailing, it could cause irreparable damage. Also, be sure that carpets and upholstery are not so old and brittle that they can't stand the agitation associated with friction cleaning.
Test the Cleaning Process
Not sure what cleaning process to use, try the process you think will work on an inconspicuous area. Always using the least aggressive method fist and using more aggressive methods if the first try does not work.
A good test method is to completely wet an area (about the size of a quarter). Let it sit for 10-15 minutes, blot with a white towel and examine to see if there was any color loss. If no dye loss is experienced you can pre-spray the entire carpet or upholstery.
Cleaning Methods
Before applying any cleaning chemicals it is best to blowout the cracks, crevices and seams in seats and the fibers of the carpet. Then, thoroughly vacuum to remove as much dirt as possible. Remember that 85% of the soil in carpets and upholstery is dry so vacuuming is critical.
Next, apply the spot remover to any heavy stains. You should have a stain removal kit for all stains: Protein, tar and grease, red dye, coffee/tea, rust and pet stains.
Once stains are removed, pre-spray with a carpet and upholstery shampoo to emulsify the oily soil.
After the pre-spray you have a number of cleaning options. Which process you use is dictated by the condition of the carpet/upholstery. The methods include:
- Friction shampooing - After the cleaning solution is put on the fabric you can use a hand-scrub brush or rotary shampooer to remove the soil from the fibers. Next you MUST use an extractor to rinse clean the shampoo and soil residue. To use only a shop vacuum is nota professional method! If you do this, you are leaving shampoo in the fabric and that will cause it to re-soil. You must use a soil extractor system to remove the residue.
- Wet Extraction – This process involves the use of a soil extractor that sprays a non-foaming alkaline shampoo (preferably heated) into the fabric and simultaneously vacuums the solution up. In order for wet extraction to work on heavily soiled fabrics you must first spot any stains, pre-spray and then extract. Extraction as a primary cleaning method is best utilized on slightly dirty carpets and non-stained upholstery.
- Foam Cleaning – This technique is designed to avoid wetting the fabric. Rather than a liquid chemical as the cleaning agent, a moist foam is used. The use of foams virtually eliminates the danger of wetting the backing. After the foam is applied you should allow it to dwell and then scrub, blot or vacuum it. This will not work on heavily soiled carpets or seats.
- Dry cleaning – This process involves the use of a dry cleaning solvent rather than a liquid chemical. There are a variety of different solvents for different fabrics because any one solvent tends to remove only one particular kind of soil. That is why you don't use an "all-purpose" cleaning chemical and expect good results. The benefit of this method is faster drying time. And, solvents can be used in a soil extractor system.
The downside of the dry cleaning method is that the chemicals are extremely hazardous and flammable. A respirator is a must when using the chemicals.
Drying & Finishing
When the cleaning and shampooing is completed, you should give the carpets and/or upholstery a final vacuuming. Then you can brush the carpets to align the pile giving a uniform appearance. Brushing should be done while the fabric is still drying.
There is a technique to brushing. Maintain light, uniform pressure in long, even strokes, rotating the brush back to the front and top to bottom.
On velour upholsteries use an appropriate brush. If you move your hand along the fabric you will encounter resistance in one direction. This is the direction you should lay the pile.
Many of the upholstery cleaning problems encountered by detailers can be avoided if the fabrics are properly dried after cleaning. Most problems occur from "slow" drying, anything you can do to "hasten" drying will result in a better job.
You can use commercial air blowers designed for use in the carpet cleaning industry. They usually cost about $200. In lieu of that you can use a vacuum hose attached to the outlet of your vacuum, an air blower attached to your compressor, even a hair dryer, or you can turn on the vehicle's heater and let it run for a few minutes.
Always wipe down any plastic painted metal, glass or wooden trim areas to avoid water spotting.
Cleaning Leather
More and more vehicles today have leather seating surfaces and cleaning leather requires a specific knowledge because it is completely different than fabric.
There are several types of leather: Analine leather which is more porous, moisture sensitive and difficult to clean if it becomes extremely dirty; Protected leather, which is more prevalent today and is used in most vehicles. It is dyed or “painted” and then coated with polyurethane product.
Other leathers are Nu-Buck which is analine leather whose surface has been brushed to look like “buckskin.” Suede which is the “hide-side” of the leather. Both are really difficult to clean if you don’t have the knowledge, have the right chemicals and right tools. My advise, don’t try to clean nu-buck or suede leather.
The pre-inspection procedure for leather is similar to that for fabrics. To test for cleanability, place a drop of water on the leather in an inconspicuous area. If the water penetrates into the leather, it is naked analine leather and more susceptible to damage. If it doesn't soak in, it is protected leather and can be easily cleaned.
To determine if the chemical you plan to use will not damage the leather, test a small area prior to full cleaning. When cleaning leather always use a low pH shampoo. Low would be no more than 8. If you use a foam, spray on with a very light spray. If you need agitation to remove ground-in dirt, you can lightly scrub with a Scrubbie Pad.
A word of caution: Protected leather is color “painted” to obtain the desired color. Therefore, any aggressive scrubbing action or incorrect chemical can remove the paint. When finished wipe/dry with a clean, soft towel.
It is recommended that you condition the leather after cleaning that will replace natural oils. If there are spots on the leather you can very carefully try to remove them with a water-based, all-purpose cleaner. Many oil-based stains are literally impossible to remove from leather.
After reading this article you might be thinking, "The guy is nuts! I don't have time to do all this testing and analysis.
Think about how you would feel if this was the attitude of your auto mechanic. Think about if this was the attitude of your dentist or surgeon.
Get the point? If you are truly a professional who has the right to work on a $50,000 car, don't you have the obligation to take the time to learn what you are doing?
