I sent my crew out for a partial store cleaning without me going along. I had one of the guys take a few video shots to see how they did.
Today the store manager wrote and said:
"...they did not do such a great job. After they were done,our carpets looked like they had salt tracks all over them-they had faint white lines that looke dirty,not clean. There was a clear footprint in our main isle...."
I can only believe they over wet again? I demonstraited doing one wet pass and then dry passes or dry scrubbing or just one wet pass, speed is very important but quality cannot suffer.
My three videos are short but I hoped Rick and crew could take a look and comment. I keep watching Ricks videos and working on the methods but what else would cause the " dirty white lines"??
Next cleaning is Sunday night....must make adjustments....
Here are the three links to the short videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx4P0s_bt5o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIavBOpTr3w

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3FUKoN3Ji8

I truly didn't have time to watch much 'cos; I have a 14,00f2 job to go and encap; but here's some thoughts.

Judging by the amount of foam, I'd say your guy is putting down way to much juice, this may cause a build-up of dirty foam streaks.

Teach them to "feather the lever", on - off - on - off, as he goes.

Do this only going forward, no juice on the return.

Go slower on the return, scrub only to work the juice and scrub the fibers.

Also, do longer runs instead of a yard or two, you will get a much better, uniform run and use far less juice.

I know it's not part of your question but when you have two men on the job, do you consider moving the small tables, clean, then replace the table. ??

It gives a much better appearance, working on my own, I put a plastic/foam disc like a frisbee under the legs and slide them out the way, they slide real easy on the damp carpet.

Job's postponed 'til next week.

But I'm with Shorty (except about moving tables) your putting down to much solution and their not doing a second dry pass , at least not always, on the second video near the end he makes a longer run , turns around moves over so he overlaps and does a new area.
Don't open the valve all the way , only open it 3/4 (maybe a little more than 3/4) and make sure you
do the dry passes , ESPECIALLY in the traffic areas. Under the table or close to the wall it doesn't matter but out in the open aisle it's a must in a big box store. As Ricks instructions say a light white layer so you can just see it, not foam all aver the place. Also when they make their turns
let off the juice before the turn and keep it off as you turn then apply it again when you start the run again. Watch Ricks video at the bottom of the page and you'll see the LIGHT foam for a few secs in it.
If your seeing a white powder residue it isn't the releasit it's carpet fresh 99.9% of the time.
Even if they say it's not their the janitorial staff will put it down every time.
Good luck.

Maybe a little bit too wet & a little bit too much encap.
I have seen this happen before when companies use soap
and leave it soaked & sticky. I know a company in my area
that leaves white footprints all the time and they don't use encap.

Those guys in the video don't look like they don't have a good idea of the process. Too much chemical is being used and no dry passes.

No real need to lay down that much solution beneath furniture, if can't that soiled there.

I would suggest you train them on site, until they get a good grasp on what they are trying to accomplish.

As easy as it is to use a Cimex, it still takes someone who knows and cares about what they are doing.

I'm sure with a little more training and experience they will get the hang of it, but I think the source of your problems is the operators.

What Richard said is also dead on.

I would agree with all the comments above.

Your technician is using way too much detergent. You should never see billows of foam. In the second video particularly I saw mounds of foam being produced. It is not necessary to produce a lot of foam, and doing so could lead to undesirable results such as wicking.

You only ever want to see a very light whitening of foam on the surface of the carpet - and only during the DURING THE DRY-PASSS. But your man is not making any dry passes, except for a very short run in the 3rd clip.


Here is the correct way to run the Cimex:

1. You dispense detergent on your wet-pass. Walk at a moderately quick pace on the wet-pass holding the solution valve open. If you happen to be moving the machine a little slower on the wet-pass you need to feather the trigger. You should NOT be seeing foam on the initial wet-pass.

2. On the dry-pass you walk slower. On the dry-pass you will see a very light even whitening on the surface of the carpet. (You won't see billows or mounds of foam) As you make the slower dry-pass, you can perhaps tap the solution trigger every few steps in order to keep the pads damp. On your dry-pass you should be able to see a nice even layer of very light foam which gives you a visible indicator that you're using the correct amount. You can even hear the pads making a light swishing sound which gives you an additional audible indicator that you're using the correct amount.


On a final point. If there is white residue in the carpet. It is very very very likely that it is coming from powder such as Carpet Fresh, or even more likely ice melt compound. Good vacuuming can help to remove the dry residue of powder or ice melt compound. But nothing will remove powdered deodorizer or ice melt compound entirely in a single shot. However - a LOW MOISTURE cleaning system can go a long way toward not exacerbating the problem of these possible dry residues in the carpet. And from the videos it doesn't appear that the cleaning is "low moisture".

So try to back off on your solution usage (a lot). And also try to get your crew to understand the techniques that I've outlined above. You could have them watch this video too. I hope this helps you to get a better idea of the system.




Rick Gelinas

---

Re; the table moving, I like to move the tables that aren't too heavy, many times they are moved around, especially to cover a spill or dirty spot.

Call me pedantic or fastidious but don't call me late for dinner.

One thing I also picked up on the first video, is how high the operator has the tank mounted.

He may be comfortable with it set at that height, but I prefer it to be set lower which places more weight to the rear and gives the operator better control unless the tank is getting low on juice.

I also see in Ricks vid; that he also runs it lower.

Maybe it's just a fait accompli for those big men of shorter stature, that need to see over the top of the handle bars.

A Big Wheel Kit (unashamed plug) also gives much better control.

Time for brekki,

Ooroo.

Thanks for all the help, I appreciate it.
My local rep that sold me the equipment has worked with me and I am not so sure he knows the best way to run the Cimex.
He had me start by holding the trigger open and waiting in one place for 7-8 seconds until it was hissing well and then move. As I watch Rick and others you seem to just pull the trigger and start walking, one wet pass and one dry pass.
I have been training them myself on site, but it seems I really have had some bad advice locally.
Rick, you talk about making just one pass and feathering, is that acceptable on the less soiled areas like the CD sections or is it two pass only always?
So tomorrow night I start at step one again:
Vacuum
Fill the machine
Turn the machine on, pull the trigger and make as long a pass as possable. Turn and scrub same area with a dry pass.
Repeat.......
I need at least 2000 sq per hour per man to get the "Big Box" done in time.
I will be a low moisture cleaner>>>

Problem #1 - you bought your Cimex locally. Wait though, that's not really a problem since Excellent Supply is still here providing support for you. And I'm happy to do so. Note to self - stick with Excellent Supply in the future.

"Rick, you talk about making just one pass and feathering, is that acceptable on the less soiled areas like the CD sections"

Yes you can do the single pass method on less soiled areas. Just feather the trigger lightly and walk slower than you normally would on a wet-pass. You will see the light whitening of light foam on the surface and you'll be doing all of the cleaning on that single pass.


P.S. We send a helpful "Getting Started" PDF that we developed to all our Cimex customers explaining how to use their new machine properly, as well as spending as much time as necessary with them on the telephone helping them to get comfortable working with their new baby. (I'm such a mean guy because I'm just rubbing it in now)

P.P.S. I hope you're not also using the juice your local supplier provides. Releasit is the BEST encap detergent in the industry. There really is a difference.

P.P.P.S. I wish you success as you go back into the store "in low moisture mode". And if you need any further assistance let me know.






Rick Gelinas

---

I assumed you were using Releasit in my answers if not than I don't know about the foot print issues or powder as it's most likely not a product I'm familiar with.
Where do you live? If near or in Georgia I got a bunch of Cimex large jobs you could participate in if you wanted.

Yes I am using Releasit and I operate out of Albany NY.
I purchased my Cimex locally, my apologies Rick I did just purchase $300 in materials from you Rick........
I practiced on my office building yesterday, tonight we have a 26,000 sq foot store and will try to apply the methods you guys have demonstrated. NO MORE SHAMPOOING FOR ME.

Once again, sorry I did not purchase from you Rick, your website helped me decide to buy my 2 Cimex machines in the first place. I am over 50 years old and still learning, still making mistakes. Still, the only people who never make mistakes are those that never take chances and never push the boundries.
I do appreciate you all and your advice is worth more to me than you can imagine.

Paul,

I hope you didn't my ribbing you about not buying your Cimex from us.

I think you'll be in good shape if you follow the directions that you've received here. It really is a SIMPLE process. Just lay it down lightly. More dry-passes is the key to effective cleaning. Using more solution is NOT better; to the contrary it will normally produce disappointing results. If you would like to shoot us more mini-videos, we can continue to help critique your cleaning process. Once you've got your Cimex dance moves down - you'll find she's a delightful partner.







Rick Gelinas

---

Paul I live about 70 miles West of you. I've been to
the store where you bought your cimex. I just dropped in one day
to see what kind of store he ran & talked to Dick for awhile.
I don't have a cimex & really can't use one in my area cause most buildings here are real crappy. I do commercial with my 175. I use encap D/S. If you need some help (not cleaning) or advice send e-mail to carpetclean2000@yahoo.com or 315-868-4844.

Charles

I have been retraing my crew. They are young guys and very willing to learn and change. They are now doing one wet pass and one or more dry passes. They dont really wet under the tables, you can work the little you need from the longer runs. They are working hard to plan the many turns so they dont get the wet turning areas.
They are now using less than 12 gallons of mixed solution per man, thats less than 24 gallons for the entire Big Box bookstore. that includes the main sales floor, childrens, music and magazine ares. Its really hard to tell actual sq footage of flooring, the entire area averages 15000 to 17000 sq feet before you put in all the book shelves, tables, chairs, deviding walls, etc.. I think Rick has some experiance that might tell him if I am still applying too much solution at less than 24 gallons, the average store has been right at 20 gallons of mixed solution.
Maybe my machines are super soakers but on the wet pass with the trigger fully depressed it really wants to make foam unless you move along at a strong pace. To walk at a normal pace you get a very light,incomplete coating. They then turn and make a dry pass that makes a light complete coating. They depress the trigger every few seconds and release it (pardon the pun) to keep the pads wet.
Some of the dry passes have no foam but they seem to have to give it more on the dry runs to get a nice thin layer of foam. If the runs are long enough it seems to work to have the thin mottled first layer and then a dry run to make a smooth final run. I dont get many wet runs that make no foam at all but if they keep it as light as they are on the wet run and then dry scrubbing we seem to be having success.
I have been working with my micro fiber pads from excellent supply, they really help to give those rat nasty areas a nice cleanup and finish without getting too wet. I can make a second really light wet pass and use the pads to dry and finish the worst areas. It is a neat addition to the arsonal.
I even brought out the pull behind extractor on a salt coated front power isle section, padded it to death, then a wet/dry pass with the Cimex. It cleaned it up nicely. It wont make wear pattern go away but its another weapon I am trying to see how I can use it and when.
Still lots more improvement to make. I will get some videos soon, I have been really distracted working with my guys and enjoying the progress.
Comments and advice is always welcome, if you a 'Mexer in upstate how do you deal with salt on entry way carpets, I have tried several things with mixed or limited success.
Cheers..............................

Paul,

Have you tried Pros Choice UPT? Or you could ask Jeff Cross
over at cleanfax.com bulletin board. Jeff is in your area in Latham
at the American British Blvd near the airport.

He is too an expert!

Don't LET him kid you