[Chris R]

Anyone got any? 
I have read other threads that mention the RH (relative humidity) of the room. How do we achieve the ideal drying atmosphere?
I find that getting some heat into the room, opening a window a bit, and moving a turbo dryer around works best.
Any more tips?
Chris

[Len Gribble]

Chris

What turbo dryer, have to admit never thought about opening a window to aid drying times.

Len

[Dynafoam]

Len,

As water evaporates from the carpet the RH (Relative Humidity) of the room increases.

As the air get closer to its' saturation point (100% RH), the evaporation rate decreases.

So simply speeding up evaporation by using an air mover is only hastening arrival at this point.

Increasing the temperature of the room will reduce its' RH, expelling the damper air (opening a window) can have the same effect.

The balancing act is between the two, on a cold day, expelling too much of the warm air can be counter-productive by reducing room temperature, closing the windows to keep in the heat  also keeps in the moisture-laden air.

I find it useful to measure the RH of the outside air first, then transfer the meter to the work area where I can monitor any increase whilst cleaning is in progress.

Remember that any air expelled has to be replaced from somewhere - if this is warm, dry air from elsewhere in the building, fine - if it is damper air from outside, shut the window.

[Ken Wainwright]

Chris

Not wishing to sound obvious, but the biggest difference comes from the cleaning process Make sure you fill the "Cleaning Pie".  For me, the biggest difference came with agitation. The right brushes on my Host machine and lots and lots of brushing. The rinse is then much quicker, easier and less water used. I think it was BaneClene who used to claim that every extra drying pass reduces dry time by an hour.  A very experienced and respected occasional poster to Cleanitup told me that he makes 4 drying passes on carpets, even when using the most powerful truckmounts available.  Obviously, the post cleaning techniques discussed here offer great benefits, but if the carpet has not been rinse/dried correctly, or there are practical considerations to exclude the use of blowers, then the job is so much harder.

Safe and happy cleaning
Ken

[Dennis]

I always use at least 4 drying passes too. I read the tip from the infamous Brian Tilton!

[johnnyone]

John

You cover the drying process very well.

Is the RH a big factor at your location?

John

[Dynafoam]

John,

I feel that RH is an important factor anywhere.

By far the most important drying takes place within the first second of the water hitting the carpet, thereafter extraction passes are limited in effect by the laws of diminishing returns.

What follows is evaporative drying. Although no further soil is removed during this stage, the shorter the final dying period the happier the customer and the less the chance of complications such as shrinkage, mustiness etc.

[David Ware]

Hi
Found interesting artical about Drying Times on the following links,perhaps Doug or Ian could copy to this site.
www.magicwandco.com. ''articals/education'' The Drying game.

David Ware

[Len Gribble]

Dave

I prefer this http://www.cleanfax.com/article.asp?indexid=6632904

Len

[Dave_Lee]

Hi Chris,
What I do is open as many windows as possible, and patio doors on a dry or dryish day. I always use a blower. On a wet day, I tell the owner to put the heating on, then open the doors and window every hour for a couple of minutes to allow the damp evaporated air to escape. Any longer than a couple of minutes I feel would allow the damper outside air to get in.
Dave.

[Doug Holloway]

Dave,

Like other prorerties water/humidity will flow from a higher to a lower potential , which means that if the RH inside is higher than outside,  then it is best to have the window open.

If however the RH outside is higher then you would find the moisture flowing in ,this is why fog is probably the worst drying day.

However it is complicated by the fact that warmer air will carry more moisture so that it is best to have the room as warm as reasonably possible but with some ventillation to allow the warmer ,higher RH air to flow out.

So in my view this comes back to the common sense approach of heating on , windows open but only slightly on cold wet days.

Cheers,

Doug

[Dave_Lee]

Doug,
Yeah, you are right, when I am cleaning on a wet day I always have at least one window slightly open. When Ive packed uo I tell them what Ive already said about opening every hour. I get the impression that as soon as you are gone, they go round and shut the window anyway if the weather is not good, so by, in a way giving them permission to do so, but hopefully they will open every couple of hours anyway.
One of the most frequent questions we get ask is "How long will it take to dry."
You give them all the advice about ventilation and warmth etc. They promptly go out after youve gone, seal everything up in their insulated homes, turn the heating off to save money and when they get back several hours later they say "Oh, its still wet."
Dave.

ps. Sorry some, 'Mint Imperial' owner has really wound me up lately.

[The Great One]

Hi

The best way IMHO is to use a dry system in the first place.

Problem solved.

NEXT!

Regards

Martin

[Martin S]

Hi Martin,

What, IYHO, is the best dry system to use? 

Regards. 

Martin S

[Dave_Lee]

Martin 606,
When you say dry, Martin, do you mean dry compound or low moisture?
I think anyone would switch to a dry system straight away if the results in every respect were as thorough as a TM system. Are you saying you use a Dry system on every occasion regardless of the carpet condition and severity of soiling?
Dave.

[The Great One]

Hi

No system is going to be perfect in every respect.

Regards

Martin

[Len Gribble]

He is not going to tell you what system he uses, as some people may laugh at him.

Len

[Dynafoam]

Len,

They do say that global warming may lead to the ENVIROnment becoming DRYer 

[Ian Gourlay]

I thought he uses Dry Compound with a Sebo Duo.

Or is it Waterless by the way how is it going? Martin

[The Great One]

Hi

I prefer to laugh at myself

Regards

Martin