Three things to ask sales people who bid on cleaning your space.

There is a direct connection between the number of hours budgeted for a cleaning job and the results.

1. What are the budgeted hours?

2. How did you calculate those hours?

3. What do you have in place to assure me that your cleaners will stick to the hours suggested?

It’s ICleanHouse.com’s strongly held belief that our competition may not have a sense of the time connection.

They usually bid to land the job. Then figure out the time later.

Price must start with how long it takes. Otherwise the people doing the cleaning feel frustrated that they are not able to do their best work.

This can really work against you because once a cleaner feels the job is out of control and there isn’t enough time, they slack off or slow down thinking nobody cares anyway. Not only that but frustrated cleaners are not able to be happy. They get careless and often break things (then don’t tell you).

We often hear that after 6 months or so the cleaning deteriorates. The time connection could be the reason.

How we would answer those three questions:

1. We budget X number of hours based on what you tell us about your space. If you would like us to come and measure etc, we will do that at a cost.

2. Our residential cleaning experience has taught us that if a home has been cleaned on a regular basis it takes 1 hour per 500 square feet. We also use another method to calculate based on # of bedrooms, baths, kitchens etc. We are then able to give our future customer a price range that has proven to be very accurate. There is no secret to our pricing we’ve posted how to calculate it on our website. (See the checklist)

3. When our team arrives and does a walk through with you, they are able to let you know if the time needs adjusted. Unless there are cleaning challenges that we don’t know about the time will be within the range proposed.

In addition, instead of being paid by the job or a percentage of the fee, our cleaners are paid by the hour. They work as a team and check eachother’s work for quality control. Our team members are motivated to work very hard to please you. They will clean all the time that they are allowed. Our cleaners are very happy to work for you.

For more information, please visit http://ping.fm/Awxog

To My Veterinarian Friends...Pets Being Poisoned By Cleaning Products

Do you have to tell pet owners that household cleaning chemicals poisoned their pets?

That is a very sad day and the pet’s owner is emotional and may even feel guilty and frustrated. They’ve tried to create a safe healthy environment for their loved one. And, now they feel that their efforts have harmed a family member.

This may be a good time to let them know about Vapor Steam Cleaning, the only non-chemical cleaning system.

The results are safe for pets, babies, toddlers, children and adults. It leaves NO CHEMICAL residue. It is the Ultimate Green House Cleaning Service.

We may even be able to rid their homes of a lot of chemical residue before they bring their pet home.

They will thank you for telling them!

For more information, please visit http://ping.fm/FhoD5

What are Enzyme Cleaners? The New "Chemical Free" trend.

Doesn’t it make you mad? The following is copied from a MSDS for a product that claims to be “Chemical Free”

“SECTION II INGREDIENT INFORMATION
Chemical Identity/Common Name CAS# OSHA PEL ACGIH TWA TLV Wt %
Surfactant Blend Proprietary N.E. N.E. 1-10
Water 7732-18-5 N.E. N.E. Balance
Enzyme Protease/Lipase/Amylase Proprietary N.D. N.D. 1-10
Fragrance Proprietary N.E. N.E. 0.01-0.20
SECTION III HEALTH HAZARD IDENTIFICATION (Also See Section XI) ROUTE(S) OF ENTRY - Skin and Ingestion
EFFECTS OF ACUTE EXPOSURE: EYE: Causes irritation. SKIN: May cause irritation. INHALATION: May cause respiratory irritation. INGESTION: On ingestion of large quantities slight GI discomfort, diarrhea and headache may occur.
MEDICAL CONDITIONS GENERALLY RECOGNIZED AS BEING AGGRAVATED BY EXPOSURE: Prolonged contact with skin may cause irritation. “

What is a Surfactant?
What is an Enzyme?
What is Fragrance?

Yes, these are rhetorical questions. They are Chemicals! “Proprietary” means they don’t have to tell you what they are.

Surfactants are known to be toxic to animals, ecosystems and humans, and can increase the diffusion of other environmental contaminants. Despite this, they are routinely deposited in numerous ways on land and into water systems, whether as part of an intended process or as industrial and household waste. Some surfactants have proposed or voluntary restrictions on their use.

Enzyme -- "an organic molecule, produced by a living organism, that increases the rate of a chemical reaction." Enzymes are present throughout nature--almost all life processes, such as the food digestion, needs enzymes to occur at significant rates.

Enzymes are very powerful and strong, which makes them good cleaning agents, but also difficult to biodegrade. So they do go out into the environment. And remember, too, their function is to speed up chemical reactions. It just doesn't seem like a good idea to unleash enzymes into the environment separate from their biological regulators.

Fragrance “a chemical compound that has a smell or odor.”

A solution to home cleaning chemical pollution is Vapor Steam Cleaning. Please visit http://www.icleanhouse.com for more information

We wouldn?t do this, would we?

“A survey of 1,000 workers by support services firm resource in Great Britain has revealed a culture of dangerously poor hygiene in workplaces across the UK, which can lead to the spread of bacteria and add to the costly and damaging problem of absenteeism through ill-health.” *

American companies wouldn’t cut back on cleaning. Our workplaces are clean and green. Nobody in America gets sick from living in a sick office. Or, from living in a home that smells like a chemical factory. Our children don’t suffer from chemical based allergies or asthma. Nobody in America misses work because they are sick or their loved ones are sick.

If you agree with the above statements about America, you are probably in denial. If similar surveys were conducted here we would have similar results.

Reality is “Green” has come to mean “safer chemicals.” It is a myth that chemicals safe to use on the body will adequately kill germs on surfaces. A surface that is cleaned with chemicals yes, even green ones, attract dirt.

So, the best way to clean and kill germs is to clean the vapor steamer way. The Vapor Steam cleans with heat right down to the microscopic pores. And, it leaves no chemical residue. We can help you provide a healthy living space at home or the office.

If you are in our service area and would like your home or office cleaned the Vapor Steamer Way please visit http://ping.fm/3Dg9H to watch a 2 minute video that shows us cleaning with vapor steam while a cute little Bearded Dragon lizard supervises! (Now you really have to watch it, don't you...just to see the lizard!)

*Source: http://ping.fm/nNmym

Rx for Bum Rash

It has been brought to my attention that children are suffering from a hard to diagnose skin rash on the backsides of their legs and buttocks. One of the causes of this rash has been linked to how their plastic toilet seats are cleaned.

It’s been found that the rash is an allergic reaction chemical residue left on the surface of these seats. Because it is so very important to sanitize the bathroom and germs are becoming increasingly resistant to chemicals a better way to kill germs must be found.

It is ICleanHouse.com’s goal to eliminate the need of harsh chemicals in cleaning homes. We use vapor steam cleaning to accomplish this. There is no chemical residue left after sanitizing because none is used in the process.

If you or your loved one has this mysterious rash described above, it may be time to have your home cleaned the Vapor Steamer Way.

For more information about preventing skin irritation from harsh chemicals, please visit http://ping.fm/cBbco

Has Your Cleaning Company Killed Your Pet?

Our beloved pets are much more sensitive to chemicals than we are. A couple of examples of harmful chemicals that our pets come in contact with are furniture polish and antibacterial cleaners.

In my opinion if it is in a bottle and you use it to clean with it is a chemical. Nobody sells just water to clean with. “Proprietary” means they don’t have to tell you the ingredients. Another thing, cleaning products leave chemical residue even when they are “rinsed” away. Vapor Steam cleaning offers a level of clean that we at ICleanHouse.com can be proud of, without the use of harsh chemicals. It is a clean that you and your loved ones can live with.

Glenn Beach in his article Poisons Under Your Sink: Hidden Danger of Cleaning Products writes: “Are you one of the millions of consumers who tend to think anything sold must be safe? Think again.

Since WWII more than 80,000 synthetic chemicals have been invented. Most have been created from petroleum and coal tar for the purposes of chemical warfare. The sad thing is that hardly any of these substances have been tested for safety, but have been added to our food, water and cleaning products”

FURNITURE POLISH: contains petroleum distillates, which are highly flammable and can cause skin and lung cancer. They contain nitrobenzene, which is easily absorbed through the skin and extremely toxic.

ANTIBACTERIAL CLEANERS: may contain triclosan, which is absorbed through the skin and can be tied to liver damage.

“By definition, we clean our homes to reduce damage or harm to human and pet health, and to protect our valued possessions. Let's not make the solution worse than the problem!”

Avoid Chemicals Have your home cleaned the Vapor Steamer Way. Visit http://ping.fm/eAGwK for more information about natural, eco-friendly steam cleaning.

Grout: To Repair or Just Clean?

I recently cleaned a shower where the grout is worn away. It no longer makes a smooth transition to the next tile. Because it provides such a large gap, water isn’t able to run off and the horizontal grout lines became full of mildew.

After cleaning, I was bothered and thought long and hard about it. I care about my customers and have sent them a note suggesting that they have a professional change their grout and loose caulking.

After the new grout is dry I’d be happy to seal it for them. The shower would stay clean much longer that way.

So, in the case where the grout is deep between the tiles, it is best to replace and seal it. Overall you will be happier with the results.

For more insights and information about cleaning the "Green" way around your home or office, please visit http://ping.fm/YFyXD