I just got in from a cleaning a 3 story office building carpet cleaning. We had 3 techs and 2 Cimex machines. One person vacuumed while the other two ran Cimex machines. We arrived at 5:00 and finished at 9:30. We used 2 gallons of detergent. And we ran through two sets of hog-hair pads. So we used $57 worth of product. The job paid $1165.

By the way I wanted to measure how long the new hog-hair pads would last on a crappy loop carpet. Both machines started with fresh pads. And both machines ran non-stop for just over three hours. The pads where completely used up. So that should give an idea of the life of the new pads. I'm figuring that they should average about 6,000 sq ft per set or 3 hours. To look at it another way, we used $12 worth of pads to generate $1165.

The new hog-hair pads wear down evenly. They won't roll up like the other pads occasionally do. What I like about these pads is that they're very hairy. I know that sounds funny but they really are hairy! There is a much greater hog-hair content in these pads. So the bristling effect is extremely good. I wish that they would wear longer. But where they lack in longevity they make up for in performance. They really do a nice job on a tight loop carpet.

By comparison, the Puff pads will last longer than the hog-hair pads. The Puff pads should average at least 10,000 sq ft per set. They are designed specifically for carpet cleaning. However they're not as aggressive. I would recommend the Puff pads for softer carpets like a cut pile or a nylon loop.

I will continue to search for effective long lasting pads. For now, the ones we have seem to be pretty good.


Rick Gelinas

As usual Rick,you are on the ball!!!
I wish some of encaps. detractors could ride with you for a week. I'm sure they would eat their words.

Rick,
Thanks for the research and information. This will be very helpful to know when choosing a system for a particular carpet.

Keep up the great work!

steve

Why do the pads work better on the Cimex than the brushes?

Shampoo brushes will work fine to clean a carpet. There are two varieties of shampoo brushes for the Cimex, a soft brush (good for oriental rugs or residential), and a firm brush (good for commercial). While the brushes work adequately for carpet cleaning, the pads simply work better.

The reason that I like pads over the brushes is for 2 reasons. 1) Pads clean faster. 2) Pads disperse the solution more evenly so we use less solution to cover the fiber.

I usually illustrate the difference between brushes and pads this way… If you had a frying pan to clean and you had a choice to clean it with either a scrub brush, or a Scotch brand kitchen pad – the pad would clean the pan easier. It’s because the pads produce more surface contact than the bristles can. The Cimex machine addresses all sides of the fiber with its counter-rotation. So the pads are capable of cleaning the fibers very thoroughly.

Most of the folks who have compared cleaning with pads to cleaning with brushes agree that the pads work better. It’s just a matter of preference. On jobs where I have compared brushes with pads – the pads cleaned a lot better. There is a very noticeable difference IMO.



Rick Gelinas

Rick Gelinas

how many sq feet did you clean??

It was around 15,000 sq ft of office space with lot's of desks, cubicles, and little rooms. We moved quickly!

 

Rick Gelinas