ADVISORY:  Springtime Tips for Removing Gum and Adhesives from Carpets

CHICAGO — Spring’s here, and that means many residential and commercial facilities will want their carpets cleaned. It also means that gum, adhesives, and similar soiling that found their way onto carpets now need to come out.Visit: http://www.advantagecleaningteam.com/ and http://www.advantagefacilitiesservices.com/ for more cleaning tips!However, removing this type of soiling can be a challenge. Further, even when it appears that gum or adhesives have been removed, they sometimes reappear a few days later. This is because some of the sticky residue remains in the carpet.Doug Berjer, Marketing Manager for CFR (manufacturers of portable recycling carpet extractors), offers the following suggestions for removing gum and adhesive residue from carpets:Scrape. Scrape off as much of the gum/adhesive as possible. Freezing the gum and “chipping” it off is also an option.Heat. After scraping the matter from the carpet, a sticky residue usually remains. Often this can be removed with hot-water carpet extraction or steam vapor applied over an absorbent towel (the residue transfers to the towel).Chemicals. Either a non-volatile dry solvent, a volatile dry solvent, or a gel solvent can be used to remove any remaining residue. Allow for dwell time, and then agitate the area using a scraper. This works the solvent into the residue. Rinse with hot water and detergent.Other: Other options include placing a paper towel directly on the adhesive. Then place a clean cloth over the paper towel and iron over it until all the adhesive is lifted onto the paper towel. Sometimes applying a cloth soaked in water and vinegar and placing it on the problem area overnight may also remove the adhesive.“While these steps can do the job, cleaning professionals should know there may be one more step,” says Berjer. “In many cases, the whole process has to be repeated to ensure that all the residue has been removed from carpet fibers.”About CFR, a Tacony CompanyCFR designs and manufactures a complete range of eco-friendly carpet cleaning systems and high performance specialty tools with an innovative, patented technology that is radically different from other carpet cleaning systems. Continuous Flow Recycling (CFR) technology provides superior moisture-controlled cleaning, faster drying times, and increased cleaning productivity that is unmatched compared to standard carpet extractors on the market today.  Through a state-of-the-art recycling filtration system, coupled with moisture-controlled atomization wand technology to minimize carpet moisture, CFR is the Greenest carpet cleaning system available.