HOS Orbot Beginner

[AussieOrbotman]

Hi. I am a new carpet cleaner from Australia and I have just recently purchased a HOS Orbot machine. In the last month I have had a lot of customers, private houses & have picked up the carpets at a school I clean for. I am just in the process of learning to clean different carpets.Wool carpets that are heavily soiled especially in the main traffic areas have been very difficult to clean.I am using the following - Releasitt DS ,fibreplus pads doing one run spraying then going over dry, and then finish off with absorb cloth pad on bottom of fibre plus pad.
Can anyone suggest some tips and tricks in how to approach these sort of carpets without using a small HWE unit i also purchased?

[encapman]

The key to effective OP/Bonnet cleaning is to give it sufficient dwell time, using a good detergent, and using a good bonnet/pad. On a soiled carpet, adequate dwell time helps a lot. Spray the carpet with the Releasit. Let it sit for a few minutes.Then it's ready for cleaning. 

Here's an approach that I like to use: With an orbital machine that has an onboard sprayer such as the HOS or the Vario, I like to run over a section of carpet first spraying the carpet with detergent as I scrub the carpet quickly. Allow that pre-sprayed & pre-scrubbed portion of the carpet to have some dwell time in order to penetrate the soil. Then go back over the carpet again using good quality microfiber or Superzorb bonnets. The actual cleaning takes place the second time over the carpet. 

This two step approach works well, especially on soiled residential carpet. The initial pre-spray and pre-scrub helps to get the carpet in a good condition for cleaning. That way you can get the carpet clean without overworking the carpet with too much agitation.

[mark63]

OP beginner here to, Do u go forward "and backward" over the carpet on the first pass, or would that absorb to much of the prespray? And do u also spray more solution down on your second cleaning pass. And I guess my last question is obvious but if your getting the results u want on just the first back and forth pass without prespraying which is usually the case with with ES products, then no need to prespray?

[AussieOrbotman]

Hi, thanks encapman for your reply. It makes sense to give the chemical enough dwell time something which I really hadn't been doing.
Another 'question' for you.
I just did a house with 3 bedrooms that had cream plush pile wool carpet. As you walked into the rooms they had very greyish to black marks across the carpet. Their were also some stains throughout.
This was what i did:
*I pre vacuumed going over room twice
*Then used different spot and stain removal trying to blot out what I could.
*I went over room with Orbot machine with fibre plus pad, spraying continually one pass - using Releassit DS clean, then back over without spray.
*After completing room like this, put super Zorb pad on and went back and forth over room.
* Raked room with carpet rake.
When I come back to vacant house the next day I noticed the room/s had a greyish colour to them in cream carpet.I post vacuumed all the rooms but still there was that slight grey colour.
I realise now that what i had done,when I had used the super sorb pad I had picked up the dirt where the heavily tracked areas and spread it throughout the carpet.

Next time I come across this sort of heavily soiled carpet should i concentrate on putting minimal spray on heavily soiled tracks and agitate with semi dry pad from other areas then go over with separate super sorb pad? As you may have picked up on I am very much novice at this.

[encapman]

Some carpets are simply a challenge! As I mentioned above though, double scrubbing works pretty well most of the time. Scrub the room first, spraying solution the entire time that you're working the machine over the carpet. Then double back over the carpet a second time - this is when the cleaning begins. On the second time over the carpet you can spray a little extra detergent (not too much though). Go ahead and make an additional pass or two or three, depending on the condition of the carpet. Be careful not to get too aggressive so that you don't distort the fiber. You can do a push/pull method, or simply walk it forward in a straight line. Soft Microglide bonnets and also the SuperZorb bonnets are what I'd recommend for residential work. But it's important to recognize that not all carpets can be resurrected. Some of them may simply be too far gone. Do your best, and under promise. In many cases you'll be able to produce some amazing results.

[Joel Hoppe]

Another tip for cleaning wool carpet-------wool does not release soil until it is very wet. Wool area rugs will clean better when pit washing so when cleaning wall to wall wool you need to check to see if the backing is jute or latex then you will know how much moisture can be used.

The heavy traffic areas will need more solution and many more pads. The rest of the room can be done with much less solution and pads.
There are products now available to apply to a worn walk path that will add shine back to fiber. I wont get into products from other companys here just do more research on the web.

Even when cleaning nylon or polyester you will need to spend more time on heavy soiled traffic areas. Once you apply a lot of solution you may need 4-5 dry cotton micro fiber pads to remove soil. Once the pad is soaked change out pad to a dry pad. Just like using a truckmount with a wand or rotary tool you need more time and effort on a carpet that has been neglected. It is important to ask if customer cleans carpet every year or every five years then you can explain how any cleaning will only do so much.

[AussieOrbotman]

Thanks again everyone for advice, it is great to get feedback so i can approach jobs with more confidence now.
Another question for you encappers out there.
I went and quoted a ladies house last week. In the lounge room was a small blueish mark on her light brown carpet. She asked if I could remove it, she said it was the liquid out of one of those fluro lights that you snap and they glow. What should i use?
I am not sure what sort of carpet it is, she think it is nylon.

Another question: Blood from a dog how do I remove that? a protein spotter, red vanish? the owner not sure what kind of carpet.In granny flat, (same owner as below).
Builders concrete dust has discoloured some carpet in a house I am about to do.The owner is unsure of what sort of carpet it is. I said I could come and have a look before i do it, but he said don't worry just charge him whatever it costs for both jobs.

I would appreciate any feedback before I tackle these jobs, cheers