Mildew

[FloorCareMD]

I take my youngest son to an allergists Dr.'s office every week. Carpets look dirty but they have a janitorial company (you know the kind, own a few rags and a sponge mop, and pay all helpers as subs) do all their cleaning.
When we went there yesterday, there was the strongest mildew (or mold?) odor I ever smelled throughout the building. The receptionist said that they just had their carpets cleaned.
I snooped some and only info I know is they used a 175 wallbanger and regular extraction soap.

Now, here is the question..... What would /could one do to remove the odor and the source?
Is it possible for a low moisture cleaner to do so or even the use of a portable extractor?

thanks

[Shorty]

First, go to the source of the problem.

Find out what is causing the odor.

Use a Moisture Sensor to see if the carpet/underlay is still wet.

(It may even be isolated urine in different areas).

Lift the carpet and check the backing, underlay, base floor and smooth-edge, oops, tack strip.

Your nose is always a good source of identification in these situations, but I don't recommend sniffing the spores into your lungs.

If mold spores are present, these must be neutralized with a specific anti-microbial that will eliminate those spores.

Using bleach WILL NOT solve any problem underneath, in fact it will put the spores into panic mode where they will immediately start re-producing, except you have bleached the color out and can no longer see the spores.

Surface cleaning of the carpet face fibers will do diddly squat to eliminate mold, and will , possibly, exacerbate the problem by feeding the mold spores more moisture.

One final, I know nothing at all about your mold regulations over there.

Guess I'm probably no help to you at all.


Merry CHRISTmas anyhow.

Short 1

[FloorCareMD]

I think I'll just let that opportunity pass by, and take my kid to another Dr.

thanks...

[jtmellon]

First off, I have a 175 wall banger, and I have been cleaning carpets for years this way. I had 3 Cimex and sold them all. I like my wall banger. It's not the machine it's the person working the machine.

The smell I would bet is from over wetting the carpet. As with anything, knowing how to use the tool in the tool box is 60% of the job and using quality chemicals and pads/bonnets makes up the other 40%.

This is nothing more then a medical office hiring the janitorial service with the lowest price and nothing more or maybe the office mgrs. brother needed a job.

Either way, I walk away from bids like this that are price driven only.

In all my years of carpet and janitorial cleaning (since 1986) I have never caused a carpet to stink.

Also, I don't know which area you are in cold or warm but a lot of times these buildings like to shut off the heat when done for the day. I have one cleaning acct that does this and we have to wear our coats when we are in the building to clean for how cold it is.

In a few days the smell will leave because the carpet will dry. In the meantime, the office staff just has to hold their noses.

In life it boils down to: you get what you pay for.

[FloorCareMD]

Sorry, I meant in no way that the use of a wallbanger was a reason for the mildew smell. I too have several of them and have been using them since 84, but have not used them on carpets for a long time, in fact the last time was when we cleaned a few dept. store floors (Hill's -now out of business) and used them to "shampoo" the ladies wear dept. with bonnets and a very sudsy shampoo the stores provided as per their contract requirements. That was before I heard about encapping.
Their use of a wallbanger was just some info that I was able to find out when I asked the receptionist. That and the regular extraction soap and the carpet was dry to the touch when I was there.
Fairly large medical building, several Dr.'s practice there (different specialties).
Very cold here. Western Pa. 70 miles from Pittsburgh.
Again, sorry if I offended you. I know I get offended when people on a different board call me a hack for using a portable or a "Scrub n Run" for encapping.
I agree, It's not the machine it's the person working the machine, and the results.

[jtmellon]

No offence was taken...LOL. Was it a slab floor? Now I am really wondering why it smelled.

[FloorCareMD]

yes, slab. I was not able to find out how the solution was applied. Wallbanger did not have a tank.
appx 5000 sqft.
Peeeeyoooooo, and it's an allergy clinic and my son is being treated for that..