Choosing the right carpet for your home

Every day I'm out there cleaning both commercial & residentia carpet. Out here we have plenty of sand which is the most destructive element for any carpet. 

One of the major reasons that carpets get replaced is due wear and scratch.

In the U.S. we use more synthetics for carpet than natural carpeting. We have 3 main synthetics that we use: Nylon, Polyester & Polypropylene (olefin). That is the list from best to worst.

Nylon Carpet is the most durable and it's not uncommon to find nylon carpets from the early 80's that is still in great condition. This carpet is great for wear and it cleans up very well. It has one drawback and that is that it is easy to stain with dyes and tannins. A good carpet cleaner can remove most of these stains and if not color repair or a carpet patch may be in order. It is a good idea to have your nylon carpet Scotchguarded at the recommendation of your carpet cleaner to prevent possible staining. So, since this carpet is a stainer you should consider the cheaper carpet - polyester if you have young children.


Polyester is a cheaper product in quality and it should be very much so in cost compared to a nylon. If you have young children this is probably the carpet that you want to get installed for a couple of reasons. The first reason is that this fiber is almost resistant to many stains that nylon is not. The second reason is that you don't need to keep this carpet Scotchguarded like a nylon carpet. Now, many will disagree with me on this because scotchguard is a big seller for us with carpet cleaning and the makers of the various carpet protectants want this stuff sold. The teflon products are not good for us, the carpet is usually a playground for young children and I maintain that kids should not be allowed to crawl & play on the carpet that has been scotchguarded. The polyester carpet since it is in the plastic family is non absorbant, Scotchguard will not absorb into the fiber and therefor will run down the fibers and the non adherant Scotchguard dries to small flakes & go airborne for you to breathe. So, polyester needs to Scotchguard or teflon protectant.

Polyester is a great grease, oil and petroleum magnet, this is the stuff that will stain a polyester. You don't want a polyester carpet in the dining room or in the bathroom where the makeup station is. Polyester wears rapidly, that sand and grit that gets in between the fibers will scratch up those traffic lanes before you know it leaving you with permanent trails throughout your home. For this reason this carpet must be vacuumed most frequently to remove the damaging particulates. But, since this fiber is a grease magnet it will get oily just from bare foot traffic and the oily fibers will start to hold the particulates. This is why you need a carpet cleaner to remove that oily soil.

Another place polyester does not do well is the stairway. The noses and the pivot areas on the landing will wear & become very noticeable.


Polypropylene (olefin) is commonly synthetic Berber in the home and is used in most commercial glue down carpets. This carpet fiber has all of the characteristics of a polyester but on a larger scale. It is also prone to friction burn from sliding heavy furniture on it. The greatest thing about berber and it's the only one that I can think of is that it seems to help with those with allergies. Unlike cut pile there are no small fibers that go airborne that can cause some people issues.

When it comes down to it carpet is still a great floor covering. One of the best things that I like about carpet is the fact that it has a charge that attracts and holds dust particles that otherwise continue to get get kicked up & float around compared to hard floors. Carpet is the best and biggest air filter in the home.



If you are considering replacing your carpet you may want to ask your Carpet Cleaners opinion on what may be right for you.

San Diego Safe & Healthy Carpet Cleaning

There is much misinformation regarding Carpet Cleaning Methods and proper cleaning. The misinformation is spread by numerous experts of only one single method or carpet cleaning tool that they alone posses. Of course their marketing spin must be on that one dedicated method or system that they have chosen.

I am a well experienced carpet cleaner in all methods, systems & tools, I have all methods and most systems. My opinion is that of most professional experts and not any bias that I may have of anyone particular method. The most easiest method & less cost & overhead expense method I choose not to use as most do because I know of it's very limited ability at removing soil & leaving chemical residues behind.

Truckmount Steam Cleaning is the most expensive system there is, units cost from15 - 45k, some even more. This method of cleaning has many parts & pieces along with various assorted tools that are not cheap. Why do true Professional carpet cleaner prefer to use this expensive & extremely labor intensive method when they can choose a Dry Cleaning Method with a cheap Floor Buffer? Because they know something! Almost every carpet manufacturer recommends that their product be cleaned professionally by Truck Mount Steam Cleaning (Hot Water Extraction). The gentle flush & rinse of soils and detergents from your carpet is what it is all about. The high heat aids in killing the living things in the carpet & breaking down the greasy soils and all of which gets extracted out to the waste holding tank in the van.

Dry Cleaning Methods that use Floor Buffers rely on a nylon bonnet that buffs the carpet once the solution has been applied. The Nylon bonnet is supposed to absorb some soils as it smears & rearranges the soils. Nylon has very little absorbency, almost zero! The fact that the spinning bonnet is rubbing the dirt into the carpet along with the hard particulates such as sand, will scratch & damage carpet fibers. Tip blooming of the fibers is very typical. Dry Foam or Shampoo machines are very similar to your little Bissel machine. The vacuum power is not matched to the water output and too much shampoo muddy detergent solution is left behind. All Dry Cleaning Methods leave not only a large amount of the soil behind but also adds to the chemical & soap load in your carpet. The typical problems such as spots reappearing because they never really left, the carpet re-soiling on a rapid pace because if the sticky chemical & soap residue, fuzzy carpets now because the tips were all bloomed, the seam yarns broken because of the aggressive agitation show all your seams now, these are all typical.

The Professional Carpet Cleaner has Residue Free Soil Removal at the forefront of every carpet cleaning job and there truly is only one way to do that and it is not for the faint hearted lazy carpet cleaner. Having the right truck mounted equipment and tools is a must! The work is hard and if you must resort to inferior methods alone then don't call it "Carpet Cleaning". This point can be argued forever but it really comes down to common sense - where & how does the dirt get removed? Are chemical & Soap residues left behind on my carpet?

Carpet Cleaning In San Diego has all methods of carpet cleaners and way too many Bait & Switch operations. You need to be wise choosing a carpet cleaner that is well equipped with all methods because many times combo methods are required.

It is my unbiased opinion that is shared my most carpet cleaners that Truckmount Steam Cleaning is the method of choice just as your carpet manufacturer recommends. This does not give a free ride to the so many unethical truckmounted carpet cleaning companies that offer cheap prices to come in with the basic quick "squirt & suck" tactic. These types normally have their fresh water tanks filled with emulsifiers and so they delete the Pre-Conditioning step and agitation (if required). Cleaning with the rinse water loaded with chemicals just cleans faster & leaves you with a chemical load and the residues quickly attract soils.

Most Professionals today will explain their process to you including the Pre-conditioning, necessary agitation (if required), the steam clean rinse to remove soils & residues, the speed drying & grooming. Your questions & concerns should be addressed to your company of choice such as methods, residues, safety of cleaners used, dry times, and of course the Guarantee.