Post Title.

What Professional Carpet Cleaners Need To Know:

I was talking to a Dishwasher Repairman the other day and some of his remarks got me thinking. He stated that phosphate cleaning agents have become illegal for home use in some states. Since Professional Carpet Cleaning Agents contain mostly Phosphates I was interested in our applied science and the law. Why do we clean with Phosphates?     (These cleaning agents were developed because there were problems with soap and how soap acted in hard water)

Well it IS legal to clean with Phosphates but there are strict laws that must be abided by to do it. These Phosphate compounds form our "synthetic detergents" and they are specifically designed to clean carpets and furniture textiles and fibers.

Detergents and Soaps
The EPA states,
"The word 'detergent' refers to household cleaning products which are based on non-soap, synthetic surfactants and which are primarily used for laundering and dish washing."


Detergents and Soaps in Carpet Cleaning:
Surfactants.  also called surface active agents, are the chemicals necessary to reduce the surface tension of water. This property of tension with water causes it to bead-up on surfaces like fabric (you know, like a drop of water on a counter . . . it does not spread-out, but beads up instead) and will slow the wetting of that surface - which inhibits the whole cleaning process. . In order for the water to spread and wet/soak into a surface (like carpet, laundry) - you need surfactants, chemicals that effectively cut the surface tension and are said to "make water wetter."

    So, the first commonality between soaps and detergents, even though they are not exactly the same thing, is that they are both surfactants.

    Both soaps and detergents perform the same task. - As far as removing dirt,  the difference between soaps and detergents are in their composition.

        Soap is produced from natural products. They are FATTY ACID SALTS made by a reaction of fats (an animal fat or a vegetable oil) with LYE (sodium hydroxide). Soaps are salts of carboxylic acids

       Detergents (synthetic surfactants ) are produced entirely in a chemical factory. Detergents are sulfate or sulfonate salts, and can be designed to perform specialized cleaning tasks. 


The development of the first detergents was an effort to overcome the reaction of soaps with hard water.
Detergents react less to minerals in water and do not leave residue.

Disadvantages With Soap;
Due to their gelling properties, soaps have a tendency to clog sewerage reticulation systems, it deteriorates with storage,  lacks cleaning power when compared with the modern synthetic surfactants, and very importantly from a domestic laundry point of view, soap does not rinse out; it tends to leave a residue behind in the fabric that is being washed. A residue gradually builds up and causes bad odor and deterioration of the fabric.
HARD WATER (water containing the dissolved salts of calcium, magnesium and/or iron) causes a problem: the dissolved salts combine with soap molecules to produce a water-insoluble scum (“ring-around-the-tub”).
That build-up would detract from the fabric's maximum absorption capabilities. Soaps form a scum in hard water and this scum will not rinse away easily and is known to turn laundry a grayish hue. The insoluble film it leaves can leave a residue on your laundry much like you would see in a shower stall where hard water is present.

Our modern technological solution (since the 1940s) to the soap scum problem is to use SYNTHETIC DETERGENTS which don’t precipitate the mineral salts found in hard water. Some of these synthetic detergents are chemically related to soaps, as they are derived from the same fatty acids used to make soaps.

Detergents react less to minerals in water and do not leave residue.

Detergents and Soaps in Carpet Cleaning:

Professional Carpet Cleaners have access to cleaning compounds that are not available to the general public. Cleaning technologies refined since the 1940's have addressed the interactive issues between  material and chemicals.

First of all- as Professional Cleaners we are  privy to a wide range of Phosphate Cleaners.
We are bound by law that directs us to dispose of our used solution water somewhere other than public sewers and drains. Usually this means we must empty water on lawns or fields- and since Phosphates are fertilizer for plants this is considered a good thing.

Phosphates are naturally occurring in the environment as a result of rock weathering and organic decomposition. Phosphates in the water only become a problem when they reach “unnaturally” high levels and are taken up by phytoplankton and other aquatic plants. When this occurs these high levels can result in algal blooms. By sending detergents used for washing clothes, dishes, cars etc down the drain and into our waterways we cause ecological imbalances.  Effectively as the algae grows it uses up the oxygen in streams which then endangers fish and aquatic life.

Professional Carpet Cleaners, like everyone else,  have a responsibility to understand their impact on the environment. By being aware we are able to use the right chemicals (what's best for people and fabric) and apply used water and agents into the environment in a manner that actually enhances life and health.
That is a VERY GOOD THING!