Perhaps you've noticed our new banner running on the ICS board.



Well here's the story behind it...

We frequently hear contractors complain that they've tried so and so's "encap" product but they didn't like the results. We will ask them to relate their experience to us. And invariably there are a few product names that keep popping up --- where the contractor purchased a brand name "encap" product, but it failed to perform as well as they had expected.

Notice that I put the word "encap" in quotation marks above. I did that because that's the reality of it. There are a number of manufacturers that refer to their detergent as an "encap" product (it seems like everyone wants to jump on the encap band wagon). Unfortunately a large percentage of these "encap" products simply don't deliver on their claim. They are not truly encap cleaners.

The real problem is that these so called "encap" products often steer potential contractors away from discovering what a good encap system can do for them. They conclude that since they purchased their "encap" product from a reputable manufacturer/supplier (and it didn't work) encap must not be what it's cracked up to be. And sadly some of these contractors may go away and never get to experience what a good encap product can accomplish.

All of this drives us crazy! Honest to goodness; we get tired of hearing how folks think encap is a joke, simply because so and so's "encap" product was junk. So we've decided to do something about it. We've decided to allow folks to send us the label from any junk encap product they've tried - and we will send 'em a gallon of Releasit for free. We patterned the idea after the Cash For Clunkers car trade-in program. We're calling our campaign Juice For Clunkers. Check it out... CLICK FOR DETAILS

So go ahead and dig out that cruddy old jug of pooh pooh wanabe encap juice and trade it in for a jug of Releasit. It's like trading in your old clunker for a brand new muscle car. Vroom!






Rick Gelinas

Do I have the option of taking that 1970 chevy instead of a bottle of juice?

Rick,

As Encapsulation cleaning becomes more and more popular and accepted in the industry, I believe there are issues that are arrising and will continue to arrise.

Because of its competive price point advantage there are many cleaners who will tout this method in facilities where either the method does not belong as a stand alone method, or education and chemistry needs to be practiced to avoid certain problems. One such problem I am refering to stems from a board discussion over on MB.

There seems to be a growning number of cleaners using encapsulation in work out facilities, health facilites, daycares and so on. And while the carpets appear great, a consideration comes into play is how is the method sanitizing the carpet? A case of MRSA was contracted from carpets cleaned with encapsulation two weeks earlier.

Although no lawsuits where filed and the facility is just as much to blame as the cleaner, I believe its our job as professional cleaners to hold ourselve accountable for communicating the benefits and drawbacks of our systems whether HWE, absorbant powder or Encapsualtion.

I guess my question and/or statement would be what can a cleaner do with an encapsulation system to achiever a higher state of sanitization and disinfecting properties without compromising the crystaling polymers. Besides using an oxidizing encapsulator like Encap Hydrox, what post sprays, presprays can cleaners use in facilities like the above stated that would accomplish the end of goal of high production cleand still maintain a high level of sanitization?

I think this would be an important couple of questions to tackle as more and more cleaners begin using this method.

David,

Good questions. Truth be told, no method of carpet cleaning can truly "sanitize" a carpet. Some methods pull more contaminants from the carpet than others. And HWE has the potential to recover the highest amount of soil in a single shot. Encap is intended to serve as a maintenance system that will keep the carpet looking better/longer between HWE cleanings. However no method of carpet cleaning can honestly be touted as "sanitizing" a carpet.

To answer your question about after sprays. Avoid them. Applying additional chemistry to the encap process will invariably mess up the crystallization process.

Some time ago we heard from a cleaner who told us the schools he was cleaning with Releasit were testing better than other schools in his state. Their school district tested the school's carpets for mold content and the cleaner told us that his schools were testing with lower mold content than other schools in his state. Well that got us to thinking; perhaps the polymer was holding the mold in suspension. So we had a lab scientist do some testing with Releasit. Here is a PDF of the test results...

http://www.excellent-supply.com/Polymers_role_in_reduction_of_mold_in_carpets.pdf

Please do NOT take this test as a statement that Releasit is an anti-mold product. We are not stating that at all. All we're noting from this test is that there was an interesting quantifiable reduction in mold in a carpet that was cleaned with Releasit. A lot more testing would need to be done in order to confirm what we saw in this singular test. Yet, these test results were interesting to see.

My reason for referring to the test here is that this research seems to indicate that the polymer may be capable of holding certain types of contaminants in a polymerized state, thereby possibly reducing the contaminants impact on the indoor environment. But as I said above, NO method of cleaning should be considered to be a sanitizing method of carpet care (not encap, not even HWE). And I do agree with your conclusion, HWE would be a better choice when cleaning in health sensitive areas such as daycare centers, etc.

The encapsulation method is intended for keeping typical commercial carpets looking their best between periodic HWE cleanings. It affords the building occupants the opportunity to enjoy cleaner looking carpets on a day-in day-out basis. And it enables the carpet cleaner to provide the service in a profitable manner. Thus in its intended application, encap becomes a win win for both parties.





Rick Gelinas

Rich,

I know no method will truly sanitize the carpet and our firm whole heartedly embraces encapsualtion as it is intended a a mintenance style cleaning to retain the carpet appearance day in and day out and utilize the appropriate method allbeit HWE or other methods when they are needed.

I guess I was just trying to say is there are cleaners out there using encapsulation as a stand alone method that don't realize themselves and do not communicate to their clients the drawbacks of their system. And from what I've seen, read, and learned, there is not a whole lot of discussion/training info on what those cleaners can do to provide some improvement to the health of the facility.

Whether it be teaching the clients to perform a daily application of a sanitizer like Microban or equivilant product, or providing either a product or a process that those cleaners can do prior to their encap method or during that will aid in improving the sanitary levels of a facility. I know its been mentioned a few times about adding additional tea tree oil for a similar purpose to your products. Although I didn't think a post application was very smart what about pre applications and the compaitability with the encap methods.

"from what I've seen, read, and learned, there is not a whole lot of discussion/training info on what those cleaners can do to provide some improvement to the health of the facility."

The best suggestion would be to routinely provide a thorough HWE cleaning whenever you're dealing with health sensitive carpets.






Rick Gelinas

Ok.. I get the point..

Its smarter for you and your company to not provide a band aid for a broken bone. I agree with everything you had to say. If its a health sink, it should be HWE.

Agreed 100%.






Rick Gelinas

Maybe places like that really shouldn't have carpet. It's a lot easier to keep a hard surface sanitized than carpet.

You cannot keep a hard surface sanitized for long unless it is a clean room.

Microban is a pesticide applying it with out good cause and a way to remove it after it has done its job is a lawsuit waiting to happen.

A few get sick and find out cleaner been spraying a pesticide in the facility OH BOY.

Space Spray plus is not a pesticide/insecticide and can be left to dry on carpet with out need for extraction.. Now QGC and X580 are different.