And steam cleaning isn’t even that effective. If you’ve ever run your washing machine without soap, you know that hot water alone won’t remove stains. So most steam cleaners use additives, chemicals and soaps that can help get stains out, but leave behind sticky residue that can actually trap more dirt. That’s why steam-cleaned carpets often form fresh stains in the same spots as the old ones.

Some other carpet cleaning franchises use “dry” spray-on additive methods that coat carpet with a chemical cleaner, and then rely on several rounds of vacuuming to extract the loose dirt. This method leaves chemical residue on the carpet and tends to push dirt deeper into the carpet, rather than removing dirt altogether. Carpet may look cleaner afterward, but often, the dirt is just moved around and remains in the carpet.

Chem-Dry Processes: A Better Way to Clean Carpet

The explosive power of Hot Carbonating Extraction — millions of microscopic bubbles blasting the dirt from carpet fibers and other surfaces — requires one-fifth of the water used in steam cleaning, reduces the risk of mold and mildew, and ensures your carpet will dry in an hour or two instead of a day or two. Carbonation works at the molecular level to lift dirt particles to the carpet surface, which means Chem-Dry technicians require less suction to whisk the dirt away, reducing the risk of damage to your carpet.

There’s a reason our propietary cleaning solution is called The Natural®. We’ve used it in homes for more than 20 years, earning the Carpet and Rug Institute’s Seal of Approval. It’s a simple carbon dioxide-and-water solution that’s safe enough to drink — and we do drink it, tossing some back in a toast at our annual franchise conference!

Stain chemistry

The simplicity and effectiveness of The Natural® come from an understanding of chemistry and how it applies to getting stains out of carpet and other surfaces in your home and workplace.

Certain elements just aren’t water-soluble or have limited solubility. Water alone is a decent solvent, but there are certain soils, fats, and dyes that require more. The trick is to break the chemical bond that certain elements form with carpet fibers and other surfaces. If you don’t break that bond, you don’t fully remove the stain.

That means you have to add something to the water. You could add chemical cleaners or detergents to the water, which help clean the surface more thoroughly, but come with penalties. They can leave behind sticky residue that can attract more dirt, defeating the purpose of having your carpet cleaned. They can also irritate the eyes and mucous membranes of children, pets, and you. Imagine frolicking with your young child and dog on a carpet crusted with chemical residue. Not terribly inviting, is it?

Carbonation

Now consider the effects of carbonation. No harmful chemicals here. There’s no need. Carbonation, which looks like a pleasant “fizzing” effect, is actually pretty violent at the molecular level. This is where soils and fats cling to carpet and other surfaces. The “explosions” literally shake the dirt loose from the surface and lift the soil particles upward, where they’re easily removed.

Because Hot Carbonating Extraction is so effective, it requires only a fifth of the water used in steam cleaning. That not only conserves water, but also allows the carpet to dry within an hour or two, instead of a day or two with normal steam cleaning. That greatly reduces the risk of mold and mildew.

Chem-Dry’s Hot Carbonating Extraction process doesn’t leave behind any sticky or soapy residue and dries much more quickly than competitors’ chemical solutions. Our process is followed with an application of our proprietary protectant solution, which gives carpets a protective barrier to resist dirt.

Carpet: does it attract or filter?

One other thing about carpet: for a long time, people thought bare floors were somehow healthier than carpet. The thought process was that carpet attracted dirt, dust, pet dander, and other allergens. In recent years, we’ve discovered this may not be true.

Carpet actually acts as a filter to trap most airborne particulates. In a home with bare floors, the dirt and dust swirl around and get kicked up for you to breathe. As long as you clean your carpet regularly, it will continue to act as a filter. As a matter of fact, Chem-dry removes 98% of allergens from carpet and upholstery, and 89% of airborne bacteria.

It all adds up to an outstanding business opportunity. Green cleaning induces customers to pay extra for healthy products and services, which means it makes money for franchisees. Chem-Dry has positioned itself to tap into this growing and profitable market.