Residential carpet cleaning:
Ask the right questions and do the math!
You really have to pay attention when you receive those carpet cleaning coupons in the mail. Read them very cautiously, paying close attention to what is offered and what the limitations are.
Recently, I was reading an ad that said any five areas for $99.95. Wow, get me the phone dear, let's get the carpets cleaned! Only $20 bucks per room! At least that’s what it sounded like.
Within this ad, it also said stairways, bathrooms, large walk-in closets, and hallways counted as an entire area. L-shaped rooms or any area over 280 square feet counted as two areas. That means, if you have a master bedroom that is 280 square feet, a walk-in closet that is 60 square feet and a bathroom in that master bedroom, you just used up four areas of the five area special, and we haven’t even touched the rest of the home!
As you can see, you can go through five area promotion pretty quick! So what happens after that? Usually it changes from a per area price to a price of between 30 and 40 cents per square foot! A 10x10 room could cost as much as $40.00 for just the basic cleaning! Always make sure you understand what happens after their promotion limits are met.
What is included and what costs extra? I actually called one place and was told that pre-spray was an extra 15 cents per square foot. I was also told that carpet shampoo was another 10 cents per square foot. So, if I wanted my carpet prepared for cleaning and rinsed with shampoo in the water it was going to cost more than their coupon price. What this really means is...they were going to give me their wiz bang special and just run hot water through my carpet (they called it their clear water rinse). Charging extra for soap should be a red flag! These coupons are not always crystal clear on this topic. Read the small print!
Some companies say that moving any furniture is a courtesy not an obligation and that they are not responsible for any items broken.
Well I suppose that’s ok if you don’t have any furniture you would like moved and cleaned under. Otherwise you could always hope for a service provider that's in a courteous mood. We think most legitimate companies will feel an obligation to comply with any reasonable request to assure you are a satisfied customer.
Also, if a company breaks something in the process of performing their service they should be willing to replace it if possible. Usually the homeowner will be pretty indulgent. It should always be the homeowner’s decision to not worry about it or request a replacement if possible. If you have items that are not replacable because of sentimental value, you should make sure those items are secure before having any work done.
When it comes to quality results, be it office cleaning, carpet cleaning or brain surgery, it is more important that the person performing the service be motivated to your complete satisfaction, not how quickly can they get the job done or how many jobs they can fit in that day.
There is nothing wrong with a company charging a fair price for a good job. Cleaning is always less than replacement!
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