About Byrge Carpet Cleaning

I was sitting in church with John Wagner, owner of Wagner Carpet Cleaning. John asked me, “What are you doing now Tom?” I told John that I had retired from Real Estate and was bored, needing to be busier than I have been since retiring. John’s comment to my response was “come up to my shop tomorrow and I will sell you a carpet cleaning truck and you can start a carpet cleaning company. John said that I could go on cleaning appointments with his cleaning crew and learn how to clean carpet. I said ok. Working with John and his crew as well as doing research on my own, I learned that the most important part of cleaning carpet was to remove the dirt, grit, hair, and anything else that was buried in the carpet.

This was back in 2009 when I entered the carpet cleaning industry and opened my own business, Byrge Carpet Cleaning, LLC. Working in this industry for all of these years cleaning carpets, I thought that the equipment that I was using extracted all the dirt, grit, hair, and whatever was in the carpet out! However, I would receive calls from my customers who would inform me of spots resurfacing on their carpets after I cleaned them. I would return to their home and would see these spots that resurfaced, to again clean them until they appeared to disappear in the extraction wand. Some spots would not disappear at all. I was spending a lot of time returning to my customer’s homes and businesses to ensure their satisfaction. I was perplexed and decided to conduct research on competitor’s procedures, typical equipment used, and how most companies compensate their employees. I also researched how these local companies can charge such an inexpensive cost to the consumer and remain in business. I was puzzled and wanted answers.

Customer-Centered Approach to Business

From my own investigation, I discovered that most carpet cleaning companies hire an employee, the employee is given a truck after basic training of how to operate the equipment, and then they are dispatched to customer homes to clean their carpet. They are trained on “up selling” services that aren’t quoted up front, such as spot removing, heavy traffic areas, maximum square footage per room, counting hallways and stairs as separate rooms, etc… Now, the $99 special is costing the consumer over $200 for a process that isn’t removing the dirt from the carpet. Spots and grime returning to the surface just days after providing the service. My pricing estimates are always honored, and I am committed to total customer satisfaction.

I wasn’t interested in conducting my business that way. I take pride in ensuring that my customers are happy, and I needed to find a process that was superior to the application that “most” in the industry provided. I decided that I needed education and training for the best way to clean different textiles if I was to be considered a professional in the industry. I promptly enrolled in courses to become a certified technician. I was committed to ensure that my customers were receiving the best services, recommending the best application, and completing the job with complete satisfaction. Just as any person who desires to be considered an expert in their trade, this requires personal commitment in education.

Getting to the Science Behind Carpet Cleaning

There is a science in providing a customer with products that are environmentally safe, equipment designed to maintain carpet fibers to last well beyond their stated warranty, and to ensure that “all” dirt and grime is removed during the preparation before the actual process of cleaning. This reminded me of what my friend John Wagoner had told me at the beginning of my journey when I entered the industry a decade ago which is “make sure that all dirt is removed from the carpet before beginning the process of cleaning the carpet!” I had been doing what all the other carpet cleaners were doing. Packing the dirt back down deep into the carpet and not getting it out. I purchased a power brush that I currently use to ensure that I extract every grain of dirt during the prep stage of the cleaning process.

When I arrive to my client’s property, I ensure that they have vacuumed the area to be cleaned. They are amazed at the amount of dirt that is extracted using the unique power brush. This extraction machine is certified by the “CRI” (Carpet and Rug Cleaning Institute for Deep Cleaning). It has a heavy duty high HP motor which spins the brushes at an incredible 380 revelations per minute. The special brush reaches all sides of the carpet fiber that a normal vacuum or carpet cleaning machine don’t reach. This is the most important part of the cleaning process. After all dirt has been removed, a unique cleaner is sprayed evenly across the carpet area which is spread with a special buffer. The combination of all three phases of the process returns any carpet back to how it was when it was brand new. I am excited to offer this application which is completely unique in the industry. I am the only company in the area that is using this technique and equipment and I am excited to exceed my customer’s expectations!