Author: John

To Educate and Inform Clients of Premium Carpet Care Vol.6B

John Braun
President

474-1133

What Would YOU Do If an Uneducated Cleaning Company Destroyed Your Home?

Obviously you’re concerned about your fine rugs, upholstery, and carpet being ruined when you hire a cleaning company.
But some unfortunate homeowners have even worse problems.
It happened in New Jersey just last week. Three floor maintenance workers were stripping varnish.
“The job ended with a huge explosion which severely burned the workers and destroyed several homes.”
The maintenance workers were using acetone to strip the floor. Acetone is a solvent that is occasionally used for cleaning or stripping. However, properly trained cleaning technicians know to use it very sparingly if at all. Acetone is highly flammable and harsh to breathe.
Apparently the technicians were using a large amount of the solvent throughout the kitchen and living room. What caused the solvent to ignite is unknown by the officials. But if gallons of a highly flammable solvent are spread on a floor, even static electricity could cause it to ignite.
Fortunately no one was killed. The man who lived in the home in which the incident occurred narrowly escaped severe injury. He had left his home just minutes before to run an errand. Talk about good timing. Anyone within a couple hundred feet from the explosion could have been severely burned or killed.
Had the maintenance workers been properly trained in the use of these chemicals, this tragedy would never have occurred. One of the first rules any cleaning professional learns about solvents is they are highly flammable and should NEVER be used in large quantities.
Many other instances of uneducated cleaners have caused families to be poisoned by harmful chemicals. One cleaning technician left a bottle of strong acid cleaner in reach of a two-year old. The child found the bottle and drank some of the chemical. The toddler died.
There are countless other stories of cleaning companies using too much or too harsh of a chemical that caused destruction. Other stories involve minor problems like strong chemicals burning a hole in carpet or tile. Carpet turning yellow. Upholstery getting torn apart.
Are you covered with insurance?
These companies rarely ever have insurance. If they don’t spend the money and time to educate themselves, they typically don’t spend it on insurance. One of the easiest payments to let slip by is general liability insurance. And the people who hire them don’t even know. They’re out of luck if something goes wrong.
Be careful about who you hire for any home service. Be especially careful about who comes into your home. Don’t assume they’re sending safe employees. Ask about who they’re sending. Get their names.
All our employees are hired through Landrum Services. Landrum does complete background checks and drug testing on every employee we hire. As well, our company is trained and certified by the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (the IICRC). This means we’ve learned proper cleaning and safety techniques. Rest assured when you call Premium Carpet Care. You’ll be cared for properly.

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