Hiring a professional carpet cleaner can lead to a lot of initial questions. One of the most important to ask is what types of chemicals will be used in the process and how those chemicals may affect your carpet long term. Not all cleaning agents are bad for your environment, but it’s still a great idea to know exactly what you’ll be living or working around. Here are three things to know about the most commonly used commercial carpet cleaning chemicals.

CHEMICALS USED TODAY ARE CERTIFIED AS SAFE FOR PEOPLE, ANIMALS, AND THE ENVIRONMENT

It’s true that in the past, very harsh chemicals were used to clean carpets, particularly in industrial or commercial properties. These days, though, there are many agencies that regulate what types of chemicals can be used in professional cleaning businesses. The EPA, the Carpet and Rug Institute, and Green Seal, among others, all dictate how much a chemical can impact the air quality of an indoor space before it is considered unsafe to use. And don’t worry that this means your carpets won’t get clean – we’ve found over the decades that too much chemical can damage the carpet itself. The “Goldilocks zone” of just enough chemical to be safe and effective is what we aim for.

MANY OF THE CLEANING CHEMICALS AVAILABLE AT SUPERMARKETS CAN DAMAGE CARPET FIBERS

One of the most recent trends in carpet cleaning is crystallizing ingredients – otherwise known as foaming cleaners. These cleaners spray onto your carpet in a liquid or mist, and then quickly harden into a dry foam. Then the cleaner is vacuumed up, which should, in theory, remove dirt and debris. However, the problem is that many of the cleaners are not being tested properly, and have been shown to aggressively damage certain carpet fibers. In some cases, removing the foam has discolored carpets and left behind a hard-to-remove sticky residue that collects even more dirt and debris.

DOING JUST A LITTLE BIT OF HOMEWORK PAYS OFF WHEN IT COMES TO CARPET CLEANERS.

It’s not hard to find a great carpet cleaning chemical with just a little bit of consideration. Look for a cleaner that has no VOCs (volatile organic compounds), that has a pH level of between seven to eight when diluted, that has no optical brighteners, and that has a green certification. You should also be sure to test a cleaner chemical on a small, hidden patch of the carpet before using on the entire area, to be sure that the chemical won’t leave behind residue or stain the carpet.

Whether you are cleaning carpets in your home or in a commercial building, you don’t have to avoid chemicals to get a safe and effective clean. Be sure to consider the certification, whether the chemical has been tested, and to do your homework before using a product, and your carpet will look good as new in no time.