Guide

Taking care of coverings

1. Become convinced that it is worth to wash coverings

We wash coverings in our homes even twice a year. Why do we forget about doing it in offices? Traffic there is 20-times heavier! And we walk there in shoes and not soft slippers.

Using commercial coverings for a year without washing can lead to drastic results. Some of stains will not be able to be removed, and it will be probably impossible to restore their original colours. In extreme situations coverings will have to be changed. That is why it pays to do scheduled washing of coverings at least once a year.

2. Ways of removing stains

There are many reliable and effective methods which can be used to remove most popular stains on coverings. It is worth to know them, to be able to react quickly in case of dirt and to "save" coverings from permanent disfigurement.

TYPES OF STAINS	WAYS OF REMOVAL
tea, coffee and other drinks, chocolate, stains from herbs, tobacco and fruit	moisture, apply cloth with a solution of water-down vinegar, rinse with water thoroughly
alcoholic beverages	apply cloth saturated with a solution of 2/3 methylated spirit and 1/3 of vinegar
blood, eggs, animal stains	scrape off excess of dirt, moisten, apply cloth saturated with water and soap, then rinse with alkaline solution with 10% concentration and then rinse with 50% vinegar
fountain pen, paints, fresh paint, tar, greasy stains from chemicals	apply cloth saturated with solvent, methylated spirit or turpentine (depending on a stain type), do not smoke cigarettes while cleaning, ventilate the room thoroughly after cleaning
candle, wax	scrape off excess of dirt, iron with the use of crepe paper, then apply cloth saturated with a solution of chlorine solvent
chewing gum	harden the ball, separate into pieces, apply chlorine solvent
rust	apply rust removers and then rinse thoroughly
ink, substances containing chrome and quicksilver	moisten, apply cloth saturated with water and then with water and soap and base, rinse with 50% solution of vinegar, if stains remain, use rust removers and then rinse again thoroughly

3. Doormats - what you should remember about

Doormats are generally used to halt dirt at the entrance to buildings. The less dirt on floors means the more aesthetic floors, lower cleaning costs and lower wear of coverings and parquet floors.

Do you buy doormats on your own? Before you visit markets or construction stores, think if you need home or office doormats. These shops usually sell much cheaper home versions. Therefore it can turn out, that after several weeks since doormats were installed in your office, it will be necessary to buy something more appropriate.

Length of doormats is also important. Many people do not wipe their shoes off. That is why you should order mats for minimum 3 steps, so that passers-by would wipe their shoes off even unconsciously.

Many people think about buying doormats when floors start getting very dirty. Remember, when it starts snowing or raining, installation of doormats lengthens from several days to several weeks. That is why you should order them in advance, for example in the summer.

4. Calculate how much the so called "service-free" doormats cost.

Many companies offer the so called "service-free" systems of doormats to institutions. These doormats are leased and they are replaced for clean ones once in a while. Unfortunately customers are not warned that in autumns and winters doormats will get dirty before the replacement. Then they do not serve their role. Still, the lease cost does not decrease, and it amounts to several thousand zloty a year!

Buying premium doormats with long-term guarantee for a price which is several times lower than annual lease would be a reasonable alternative. Such doormats should be vacuumed or washed, but it can be done at the time of scheduled cleaning almost without additional costs. It pays to buy permanent doormats!