Winter Conditions Yield Floor Advisories Exterior matting is a preventative meas-ure to help limit the amount of outdoor soils and contaminants that enter a building and negatively impact flooring and air quality. Outside of facilities, a scraper mat of at least five feet is designed to remove large debris from shoe bottoms. This exterior mat initiates a high-perform-ance matting systemʼs process. Next, facility managers should provide at least five feet of wiper/scraper matting just inside the entrance. This middle portion of the high-perform-ance matting system is intended to further remove soils and moisture on shoe bot-toms. A wiper mat is the last line of defense in the system. The goal of this mat is to completely remove any remaining soils and moisture before occupants step onto a hard surface floor. It is recommended that this mat also be five feet long, bringing the length of the entire high-performance matting system to 15 feet, known to industry experts as the “Rule of 15.” At this length, the average person will step on the system four to six times with each foot. In order to be considered a high-perform-ance mat, the product must be able to last one year or more. In fact, some high-quality, high-perform-ance mats have warranties that extend for several years. Cheap mats, such as those offered by rental companies, may have as low as a 90-day warranty and usually do not meet the stringent criteria mandated by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification program. In order to be effective, the entire system must consist of high-quality matting. If even one section uses a lower-quality option, the chain is broken and the facility will be exposed to such things as costly slip and fall lawsuits, expensive floor care tasks and an unhealthy environment. The bottom line is that a minimum 15-foot wiper/scraper dirt-reduction matting system applied to any entrance can save facility managers money; create a safe, healthy environment; protect interior floors; and look great all year long. Unfortunately, the work doesnʼt end with the placement of high-performance mat-ting. The mats in the system will trap and cap-ture approximately 80 percent of the con-taminants, soil and moisture that would oth-erwise enter the facility. Cleaning crews must continue to employ daily cleaning tasks, such as vacuuming. In addition, especially during winter months, careful attention must be paid to — and ongoing moisture control should be practiced at — entranceways and high-traf-fic areas, such as lobbies. Saturated entry matting tends to be inef-fective. A facility should be prepared with backup high-quality matting and use it as needed. Cleaning crews should be instructed to monitor, extract and change mats as condi-tions warrant. The winter months can wreak havoc on a facility that is not prepared for worst-case scenarios. Facility managers who shop based on price rather than performance may be ele-vating risk and cost of ownership to main-tain the building. Keep dangers outside by winterizing your floor care program and implementing high-performance matting systems. CM Winter Carpet Care By: Stephen Hanig Even with soil-reduction strategies in place, carpets need extra attention during the win-ter months. This may not be as noticeable as in past years because many of today’s commercial carpets are made of synthetic fibers that help hide dirt and soils. However, with traffic, this soil can grind into carpet fibers, robbing the carpet of its original luster, color and texture. To avoid this, vacuuming should be increased during winter months and, as recom-mended by the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI), should be performed using upright vacu-ums with rotating brushes. These machines loosen soils, helping to remove them from carpet fibers. Some other winter carpet care suggestions include: Vacuum carpets making multiple passes in different directions. This helps remove deeply embedded soils. Attend to spots and stains quickly. The longer a spill or stain stays on a carpet, the harder it can be to remove. Blot stained areas to remove excess soil and moisture; use a professional carpet spotting kit to remove stains. Clean the carpets. There is a tendency to delay carpet extraction — the most effec-tive way to clean carpets — during the winter months based on the assumptions that carpets may soon be resoiled and that the process is not cost effective. However, just the opposite is true. Keeping carpets clean and healthy helps prevent resoiling and can significantly increase their lifespan. Turn up the heat. Larger facilities usually use portable carpet extractors because of their added flexibility. However, some machines do not heat the water/cleaning solu-tion. Heat improves the effectiveness of cleaning chemicals, often necessitating less chemical and making these machines more environmentally responsible. Select portables that heat the water/cleaning solution to 212 degrees Fahrenheit for best results. Stephen Hanig is vice president of sales and marketing for U.S. Products, manufacturers of professional carpet, floor and restoration equipment and HydraMaster Corporation, a leading manufacturer of truckmount carpet cleaning equipment. 36 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • January 2010
CMM – Archives Jan 2010: 36
