Professional Carpet Cleaning Services In Phoenix

Ceramic Tile Procedure Page

IIt's All About The Grout.....

Ceramic tile is by far the most common tile found in residential homes. This tile is extremely durable and easy to clean. Unfortunately the grout can be very stubborn to clean.

Please understand , most customers purchase ceramic tile cleaning not for the tile cleaning but for the grout cleaning. The following procedure is highly effective for ensuring we get the best result possible on ceramic tile.

The Five Keys

There are Five Primary keys to great ceramic tile grout cleaning results.

Maximum Water Pressure - With tile we want the highest possible pressure. 1200 psi at least. Remember there is about 20% less pressure from your unit to when water hits the floor.

Heat- We want high heat on your machine. Preferably over 170 degrees (Try not to go over 250 degrees.) (Try not to go over 250 degrees.)

Use Bridgepoint Systems -BioBreak with citrisolve Or Viper Venom- Mix to directions on the jug. This is very important . There is a vast difference in tile cleaning performance when you go from product to product. Please only use these two options.

Great Agitation- We want to do at leat 5 to 7 minutes of grout line brushing on every room we clean. Before we rinse.

Great Dwell Time- When spraying our preconditioner , spray in one room increments. Give 8-12 minutes of dwell time on each room you spray before rinsing.

A Big Misconception About Tile & Grout Cleaning
A lot of technicians in our industry make the mistake of thinking that their tile tool is the primary element that gets tile and grout looking great. This is not true. While heat and water pressure are important (Especially if you have a higher end truckmount), the biggest element is the right product , agitation and dwell time.

Its kind of like washing dishes. The dirtiest dry crustiest plate can be easily rinsed clean by simply letting it submerge in water and soap. And then simply rinsing it off. That is the formula for great grout cleaning. Let the grout lines puddle in a great product for a few minutes . Then agitate them to separate the buildup layers . When this is done well you can easily rinse the tile and grout clean with your tile tool. Not allowing good dwell time is like trying to wash the dry crusty plate with just a stream of hot water. Its going to take a while.

***If your truckmount has the capability for 1200 psi and a heat capability of 170 or higher. Agitation is actually rarely necessary. If your capabilities are less then that , agitation is very important.

Don't take chances with low cost tile cleaning products. There is a huge difference in cleaning results from the top tier products to the mid range products. Viper Venom and Bridgepoint Systems -BioBreak with citrisolve will get the job done faster with less effort. You have to experiance the difference to really understand how much easier tile and grout cleaning is with a great product. Many technicians get a distorted perception of what is actually possible with their cleaning results because they are using a mid range product.

To perform Ceramic Tile Cleaning You will need the following products and tools.

A floor buffer. This is the best tool for scrubbing stubborn grout	A long handled grout brush. If a buffer is not possible, this tool can be used to scrub grout.	A tile cleaning attachment tool for your truckmount.	An abrasive hand grout brush. We recommend one with very course bristles This is for hard to reach grout lines.	A grout sealer applicator. These can be purchased at Home Depot.

A Heat Gun. Or professional looking hair dryer. This tool is essential for performing demos. We use this to dry the demo grout lines and view true end results. Remember grout always looks lighter when dry.	A great alternative to a heat gun is to simply bring a carpet blower to dry the grout lines.	Our Recommended Ceramic Tile Cleaner. Our company highly recommends 2 products for ceramic tile cleaning. Viper Venom ceramic tile cleaner. And Bridgepoint Bio Break with citrisolve. Both of these products are excellent for tough grout!	A 5 yr grout sealer. Home Depot also sells Tile Lab grout Sealer at a reasonable price.	A better option for grout sealing is this special tool sold by most supply houses.

Demoing The Service
(and winning the job)
It is a fact that the public does not have the same experience with tile cleaning , that they have with carpet cleaning. Because of this, a lot of customers will take advantage of our demo guarantee and base their decision on the results of the demo. It is critical that you utilize both showmanship and cleaning expertise to perform an effective demo. Here are the basic requirements of a great demo....

Show confidence. One of the worst things you can do on a demo is show any form of negative expectations. Remember your customer was told you are one of the best at what you do. The customer wants to feel that whatever you achieve was the best possible. The confidence you express and display is huge in achieving this.

A demo is not the time to discuss everything you can not get out....

Make sure your uniform is clean and complete. Your appearance is enormous when it comes to Demos. When questioned, customers always express this to be a huge factor in their opinion of a cleaning company.

Pick the area to demo and before you bring equipment in, make sure all equipment looks sharp and clean.

Don't make the rookie mistake of thinking that the appearance of your equipment and tools is not important. Customers view this as a barometer for the pride you take in what you do. And your professional level. Clean equipment and tools are critical!

Its amazing how comfortable customers are commenting on dirty equipment to our sales people......They will almost never mention it to you!!! But they are taking note....

Create a strong mixture of your prespray into your hydrasprayer with your ceramic tile cleaner.
Use Bridgepoint Systems -BioBreak with citrisolve Or Viper Venome- Mix to directions on the jug. This is very important . There is a vast difference in tile cleaning performance when you go from product to product. Please only use these two options.

Always create a strong mixture. A demo is always more impressive if our first mixture gets a great result. A customer will not be as impressed if they see you have to do a second application or a re-mixture.

Remember: With a demo we only get one chance to win the customer. Any element that displays failure affects the customers mindset and their ultimate decision.

Overkill is the best approach on a demos first attempt.

**If the grout appears extra stubborn, use a more concentrated mixture of pre-conditioner as a safe guard. Remember: on the demo it is better to over mix and win the job with the first attempt. Mixture adjustments can always be made once the job is won and the customer is committed.

Adjust your truckmount settings:

		Turn up your heat -Adjust your heat to the highest level possible on your machine. Not to exceed 250 degrees.

		Maximize Your Water Pressure - Set your water pressure to 1200 psi at least. Remember the pressure hitting the grout is about 20% less then your truckmount setting.

Spray the room to be demo cleaned with the strong prespray mixture. Focusing on puddeling the grout lines.

Remember: With ceramic tile it is the grout that we will be most judged on. Always spray the grout aggressively to ensure the best result possible on the first application.

Dwell Time Is A Huge Key To Our Brilliant Results-
Always remember, each room should dwell with your pre-spray for at least 8 to 12 minutes before the tile tool is used to rinse the floor.

Agitation Is Huge...
After spraying the preconditioner the next step to to get good grout line agitation. We want at least 5 to 7 minutes of grout brushing in each room cleaned. **If your truckmount has the capability for 1200 psi and a heat capability of 170 or higher. Agitation may not be necessary. If your capabilities are less then that , agitation is very important.

Use The 70 /30 Rule
Remember the client is going to judge you on the approximate 30% of their tile that is
the worst off. When brushing the grout lines, always spend 70% of your time brushing the 30% that is the worst areas. When you have super stubborn grout lines, we recommend scrubbing the grout with a super coarse hand brush to achieve the maximum result possible on that line. Explain to your customer we will use this hand brush only when necessary on stubborn areas. (we don't want the customer to assume this should be done on all grout).

Always Measure Your Dwell Time
Allow the preconditioner to dwell for at least 8-12 minutes. (From spray point)

Remember : With tile cleaning dwell time is especially important. Give your product time to work for you. Especially with grout cleaning, it is the agitation and dwell time that most affects the end result. Don't make the rookie mistake of relying on your tile tool to clean the grout. Think of this as simply the rinsing tool. It rinses what has been separated by the agitation and dwell time.

This is a rinsing tool . Your application of your product determines its effectiveness.

The dirtier the grout.......the more agitation and dwell time are critical.

Next rinse the tile with your cleaning devise. Remember with grout it is very difficult to tell what's been achieved until we dry the grout lines. So be extra thorough on your rinse step to ensure we get the best result possible once the grout is dried.

Remember with a demo we need to get a winning result on the first attempt..

The final step of the demo is to dry the grout lines with either a heat gun or air mover. This will allow the client to view a true end result.

Remember: grout lines always look darker when wet. This can discourage a customer because they assume the grout should look lighter immediately after the rinse step. Take a moment to explain to the customer that the true end result can only be viewed when the grout is dry.

As you dry the grout lines the results should become very apparent.

Grout Lines always look blotchy until fully dry.

Wait for the grout to dry and simply show the customer the dramatic results....

Be aware that some grout has "cavities". Small chips that will appear darker or discolored. If you notice this point this out to the client. Otherwise we run the risk of the client thinking this is "buildup"
A demo can be lost because cavities are not sufficiently explained to a client.

Indoor Clean only...

We should never seal ceramic tile. we should only seal the grout lines. Ceramic tiles are coated in a way that makes clean up very easy. Most sealers will not adhere to ceramic. This will simply flake up and peel off after a few hours.

Easy Clean Ceramic Tile Procedure.

Nee

Overview

Extra Necessary Products and Equipment.

Ceramic tile is by far the most common tile found in residential homes. This tile is extremely durable and easy to clean. Unfortunately the grout can be be very stubborn to clean. Please understand , most customers purchase ceramic tile cleaning not for the tile cleaning but for the grout cleaning.

So, it is the grout that we must focus on the most.

The following procedure is highly effective for ensuring we get the best result possible on ceramic tile.

To perform ceramic tile cleaning you will need the following products and equipment.

Floor Buffer with a soft scrub brush. This is the ideal tool for scrubbing stubborn grout. Even a small 13inch buffer is adequate for grout scrubbing.

A long handle grout brush can be used as a substitute, if a buffer is not available. Please be aware that if you use this tool you will have to spend more time manually scrubbing the grout lines.

With all tile cleaning, we highly recommend you always give the customer a small demo when you first arrive. This ensures that the customer has reasonable expectations of the service to be performed. With Saltillo tile, customers sometimes are expecting a "look change" with the cleaning. Some customers want the tile to look darker or lighter after the cleaning. Our clean and reseal service will not achieve this. Our sales people will do the best they can to ensure the customer knows what they are purchasing before you arrive. Non the less, a demo is the best way to ensure we don't have an unsatisfied client at the end of the service.