[Mike Tighe]

Hoping some of you on might be able to point me in the right direction.
I am a landlord for a couple of small rental properties and we like to have the carpets cleaned between tenancies. Every time we find a local carpet cleaner who seems to know their stuff and do a good job, the next time we call a year or two later they've stopped doing it ! Recently we searched on line and on local advertising, but it was impossible to tell one outfit from another. The one we plumped for was polite, on-time, worked hard and was reasonably priced (altho' not the cheapest). I'm not sure if we were expecting too much but things didn't really look much better after he had finished. He had just the one machine which looked like a big hoover (but no scrubbing attachment) and he only had one chemical to use - an enzyme cleaner. Some areas got worse the more he scrubbed - seemed to pull up dirt/stain from below.
In the bathroom, which has a tight woven wool cord carpet, we had had a leak from under the sink which had left staining. We pre warned him of this area but he used the same method as elsewhere (the enzyme) and it made no difference. In the past I remember the guys testing to see what carpets were made of, and using different products for different areas and machines with big circular scrubbing brushes. We are on the Norfolk/Cambs border.
What should I be asking future cleaners - I don't expect miracles but I'd rather pay more for the best service/system.Thanks

[neil 47]

Try mark I think he covers your area

http://www.mgdcarpetcleaners.co.uk/

[James Jacob]

The last guy you had dosent sound very much like a pro to me.... how many rooms did he clean & what were you charged for that poor performance?

[Ian Gourlay]

The problem with end of tenancy cleans is landlords want the lowest price but still want a perfect job

Some Carpet cleaners charge in excess of 50p a square foot so if you have problems they can spend time sorting it

Others may only charge you £15 or £20 a room
The other problem is carpet cleaners   often have to wait months to be paid , where as a normal domestic customer pays straight away.

It is not unusual to use the same Cleaning Solution in all rooms as some are designed for that .

Most Carpet cleaners have a range of Pre sprays etc.

Yes testing of Carpet can be useful but is often part of the performance

Most Carpet Cleaners use HWE this can be delivered through portable or truck mount machines . Mechanical  agitation is normally used at the Pre Spray stage where others have a power wand which they also use.  You claim to be on Norfolk Cambridge Boarders if you are near Kings Lynn or Wisbech  most of the Carpet Cleaners have been trading more than ten years   this would be one of the questions you could ask.
also what Training has the Carpet Cleaner Undertaken and when , most would be more tan happy to show certificates so you can check claims
If you have a Carpet that is not worth Cleaning are they prepared to tell you to replace it

[CleanerCarpets]

sounds like you are going cheap and hence why the one's doing a good job are out of business when you want them again - because they were doing a good job, spending the time doing it but not being able to make it pay

you say this last guy wasnt the cheapest, but i bet he wasnt far off!!

[CleanerCarpets]

and how come you registered on here in 2009 and have only just posted your first topic?

[dan paton]

Try the TACCA site. Pop your postcode in and the closest members to you will show on screen.simples http://www.tacca.co.uk/

[Ian Gourlay]

Or NCCA web site  www.ncca.co.uk

[Ian Gourlay]

If you want to find out how much carpet cleaning should cost call

www.artofclean.co.uk

[*Hector*]

I am going to be controversial here......

You have no idea who is a good carpet cleaner until you try him/her.

Tacca have never inspected the quality of the work by any of it's members.
The Ncca give out memberships for money, again there is no quality control.

Both very good organisations in their own right, but what standard do it's members clean at?

Can't comment on art of clean.

So the only way is trial and error. I would suggest you go for more expensive than you have been, that way if they are any good, there is a fair chance that they will be there next time that you need them.

[Ian Gourlay]

Im only suggesting Art of Clean so that Mr Tighe gets and idea of the cost of Top end carpet cleaning

[*Hector*]

 

[jim mca]

Hector
The NCCA have different levels of membership to try and combat this problem so would only recommend a full member or above

[*Hector*]

I had heard that Jim... However do they vet or check the standard?
There are many cowboys who have been in operation for years for a bit of money on the side, and they couldn't clean a plate never mind a carpet....

[jim mca]

No they cant check every job but do give the customer a resource to complain to and the member can lose there membership
I have been told this has happened in the past and have no reason to believe it would not happen in the future 

[*Hector*]

Fair enough mate.. I let my membership lapse about 20 years ago.. 

 

[Craigp]

***we had had a leak from under the sink which had left staining***


No ones going to fix that water damage what ever they use.

[Ian Gourlay]

I would probably told him to replace the bathroom  carpet.


Also Most Carpet Cleaners operate some form of Guarantee so he should have given the Carpet Cleaner a call back , that is why doing End of Tenancy at knock down prices is mine field, and need to be well qualified in advance as to expectations. Always best to interview the Landlord to see if you are prepared to have them as a client . I do it for domestics also.

[COLIN BRIGHT]

http://www.artofclean.co.uk/

good company, good bloke and charges exactly what should be charged,

im sick of landlords wanting a job done on the cheap, that's why I try to avoid them, and they wonder why the job is poope and the company they used doesn't last,

you get what you pay for and some people just know the price of everything and the value of absolutely nothing

[Mike Tighe]

Many thanks to all of you for your comments – some very useful suggestions and contacts here for me to follow up next time.
I can understand some of you may have bad experiences with Landlords, but I would like to think we are not all like that and I can't believe that we the only problem clients you guys come across ! 
I am always happy to pay a fair price for a fair job and never look for a cheap fix - on this job I paid around 50p a square foot,  so as I said in my original post a reasonable price but a fair way off cheapest and it has never even occurred to me not to pay on the day – I am surprised some of you appear to offer credit to your customers.
As noted, I first registered on this site in 2009 after a tenant set fire to one of my properties leaving it 2/3 gutted (and you think you have bad customers ha ha ....) and I was searching for info’ on cleaning smoke damage – in the event the insurance coughed up and all was sorted. Hence I’ve not needed to post here.
I chose not to complain about the results this time because although I was disappointed, they were better after the clean and I felt the guy gave it his best shot and I wasn’t confident I was expecting too much from carpets that have been through the cleaning cycle a couple of times. I was surprised that he seemed to have a limited ‘armoury’ of materials to try, hence my posting on here to help me work out if I had got the best that could be expected or if I’d just picked the wrong outfit.
By the way it was made clear he would do his best on the bathroom carpet but couldn’t guarantee results so I wasn’t expecting miracles but even he was surprised at the lack of results with the system he was using. From the reaction of some of you here it seems water damage is a bit of a lost cause  ! 
The trouble is of course some of you DO perform miracles so naturally we are always hoping you will every time !
Thanks again for all your comments