Hi Mark,

How would I get out/work on large stains in beige residential carpet? They are too large and time
consuming to use a small hand brush.

Thx,
Mark

PS. I just purchased a use 3/4 hp Challenger and I am practicing at home. I've done two small offices at two of my commercial accounts (encap). I used VacAway ENC as the cleaner. Do you have any recommedations on Encap cleaner?

PSS. I also received a Encap brush, I am going to try it tomorrow at a third account I am services. I used a green strip pad on the first two. Just one of their offices. The owner is convinced that a Truckmount is the only way to get her carpets clean.

Mark, hopefully, you bought the Challenger to clean large rooms of stained carpet. Seldom do I spot clean carpet nowadays. Prespray the carpet with a good cleaner, Davies Orbit Clean sold by Challenger is quite good for this. I differ from some folks in that I don't "encap only" a carpet. I will pad clean a carpet first and then come back to where I started because it should be about dry, and then encap to encapsulate any remaining dirt. If all you're doing is encapping, then I would agree with the lady that a truck mount is better. Just my way and I'm expecting some arguement.

Hi Steve,

Thx for the reply. I "encapped only" the 3rd office today. It did not come out like I would like. It is cleaner, but the carpet is so trashed it will need additional work.

I like you idea of padding first, then encap. I have orbit clean, Outsolve, and Procyon. I'll try it.

Do you encap with a green strip, FiberPlus pad, or ? Also, what chemical do you encap with?

Thx,
Mark

PS. I am testing the machines limitations and honing my skills. I plan on marketing the VLM cleaning method no later than July '05.

Mark, you may have discovered a limitation of encap chems. Personally, if a carpet is full of yuck, I want it out of there. The less junk the encap chem has to deal with, the better the job looks. I use Releasit and have great results with it but a lot of people like VacAway products too. I've not really tried them. Also, what I do, is pad clean with the Challenger and encap with a buffer, simply because of the ease of attaching a solution tank to a buffer. Encapping works best with a shower feed system from a solution tank. I can encap very quickly as a final procedure with a buffer. I guess I use encap almost like a protectant and to erase any remaining spots if needed. I use fiber plus pads on the buffer and the green stripe also. Either one. Hopefully, Mark D. will come along and set you on the right path.

Orbit Clean leaves a lot of residue so make sure you rinse it with fairly wet pads.

I'm not sure there is a single "right path", since
there are so many possible combinations of carpet
material, soils, cleaning products, and types of equipment. I would agree that, given heavy soiling,
using an extraction/absorbing encap product, such as
Releasit Punch, is an advisable first step, to reduce
the soil load. I might then use an encap brush or
non-absorbent pad with Releasit DS to follow up in this limited area. I do think most people encapping
with the Challenger encap brush will find that it is
the best way, and the fastest way, to deal with the remaining carpet areas that have only light-to-moderate soil. Just not having to stop and change pads saves time. For those not using a machine with
a handle-mounted sprayer, using a high-capacity, high
output electric sprayer, such as the Rocket Spray, will speed up the job considerably. The Rocket Sprayer holds 5 gallons, and puts out a gallon of cleaner in one-third the time of a 2-gallon pump-up
sprayer.

Mark Dullea, do you sell the Rocket Sprayers or know of a web site where I can see a picture of one. I keep trying to come up with just the right sprayer setup or solution feed for the Challenger, preferably a sprayer so I don't have to hold up the solution weight. Clearly my opinions on encap are just my own. Encapping is a good way to go, but I'm still not convinced it vacuums out all that thoroughly so I've been padding first or at least using Punch to remove and encap.

Steve
Just go to www.rocketspray.com.

Releasit seems to clean fine, but it does not remove well from the carpet fibers. There are others that remove or release much better.

Test it by using ready to use solution of releasit on a glass surface, let dry, not wipe it off, if it does not "all" come off by just wiping, then a vacuum will not be removing it either.

In all fairness realeasit is still better than Bonedry and several others. But if we are going to have encap be called cleaning, then we need to make sure out cleaners do what the manufactures say they do.

Hey Jason, I saw that you said Orbit Kleen leaves "a lot of residue on the carpet" which must be rinsed away. Our customers have not had this experience. Your post suggests you have tested our product, yet we have never heard of you. I checked the VLM board registry and your name is not there. Where are you located and what is your business website?

Lee Watson
Challenger
Pad Systems