Have you seen ads that promote ridiculously low rates for carpet cleaning?
Would you be suprised to learn that these apparently low priced companies
actually charge many times more than a certified professional carpet cleaner?
Here's how it works: They "bait" you with an extemely low price. Read the fine print!! You'll see statements like: "we recommend our dual
process method for heavily soiled carpets" (heavy soil is determined by the technician and how gullible or timid the customer is),
or "pre-conditioning, stain removal, stainmaster carpets and berber, extra charge."
Call Bubba at 303-RIP-OFFF For All of Your Bait & Switch Needs!
Their low price is for "basic steam," which is merely plain hot water sprayed down on your carpet. It does not include pre-treatment cleaning
agents, spot cleaning, RX-20 scrub extraction, etc. When the so-called technician arrives (he may slightly resemble Charles Manson), he says
something like, "Oh, you have spots!" and "These traffic areas are definitely going to need extra treatment or our deep scrub!"
HELLO?! Don't most carpets have spots and some traffic area cleaning that needs attention? Who are they kidding with this "basic steam"
stuff? But, you already have all of your furniture moved (they asked you to do it because in the 30 minutes that they will be there to clean your
entire house, they would not have time to move it. They have to get to their next job- fast!) so you decide to let him go ahead and do it since he's
already there.
Do You Enjoy Slimy Sales People?
YOU: "O.K., exactly how much is this deep scrub process going to cost me?"
Unscrupulous Cleaner: "Well, first of all, the maximimum room size is 200 sq feet and your bedroom and living room are bigger than
that so I need to charge you for two extra rooms at $20 each for the basic steam as well as for your stairs, which will be $3.50 each on top
of our coupon price of $59.99 for 5 rooms. So, now we're up to $148.99, then for the deep scrub, we charge an added $35 per room, and
those red spots will be an additional $25.00 each and you have four kool-aid stains and a wine stain.and with your pets, you're gonna' need
deodorizing and that's $25 per room. By the way, is that a plant water spill over there..."
Lets Do the Math For Them: That coupon you got in the mail said they would clean 5 rooms for $59.99.
Here's what THEY will really charge you:
Coupon Price: $59.99
2 extra rooms: $40.00
14 stairs: $49.00
Deep scrub: $175.00
Scotchgard: $200.00
Travel charge: $20.00
Red stains: $125.00
Deodorizing: $125.00
Total: $793.99
Your $59.99 carpet cleaning bargain just became a $793.99 rip-off!!
You'll pay a 500% mark-up AND your carpet might still be dirty and be a
soaking wet smelly mess because he didn't know or care about what he was doing!
Now, most often, they will try to add on these services individually as they clean, not at once and you may be thinking that you would never
fall for this trickery, but these rogues use ruthless scare tactics, especially on the intimidated and elderly. If you don't pay their rip-off price(and
sometimes even if you do), you'll get shoddy service, leaving you with a soaking wet, mold attracting mess!
Don't Write This Off As Only For the Ignorant!
Let me dissect the ad you've held in your hands many, many times.
This is how they further take advantage of the normal, unsuspecting customer.:
"Deep-scrub" or "Dual process" method is extra. This is the oldest trick in the book. It sounds so fancy and necessary, doesn't it? Well, it IS
necessary, but not the way THEY do it. Basically, they are charging extra for using cleaning chemicals instead of just the plain old water they use
in their "basic steam." The unscrupulous cleaner will apply a low-budget, high alkaline, high residue detergent that is loaded with optical brighteners
that make the carpet look incredibly clean, but has actually just changed the way the light reflects off your carpet!! You'll see the same results from
those miracle cleaning chemicals that can be purchased from the flea market, convention center home show or maybe from some infomercial, TV shouter.
They show you how just the foam from their chemicals will remove motor oil. IMPOSSIBLE. It's an optical illusion. Those cheap, harsh chemicals will
rot out your carpet, however!
Dual process cleaning is always included in the price of honest, reputable carpet cleaning. This includes pre-treatment and basic
spot removal followed by truck-mounted steam extraction. This is called "CARPET CLEANING!" It's the very least you should expect
when you call a professional carpet cleaner.
The next trick: "Stainmaster and/or Berber are extra." BALONEY! Nearly ALL residential carpet is made with some type of stain resistant
properties these days (manufacturers know protectant works- they don't want you returning asking for your money back!). Using that as an excuse
to add on charges is ridiculous. Charging an extra amount for Berber is also HOGWASH because while the cleaning process is different, it
takes the same amount of time and cleaning product. Stainmaster and Berber should NOT be used as a gimmick to overcharge.
Another trick: Selling Scotchgard, Teflon or other protectant at an inflated price and then watering it down to save themselves money. YOU
won't be getting the intended protection that you should have on your carpet and they are charging you four times what they should for the diluted
"protectant."
And on and on and on...
Space prevents me from telling you all the tricks that these unscrupulous cleaners have up their sleeves.
Just be sure to be aware of these companies and do not be victimized by them- there's really no need for that!
Be sure to familiarize yourself with our HONEST pricing. It's really no big deal to us if you know EXACTLY what we
charge for our professional cleaning services. Click on the drop down tab, "Our Price List" under this "Our Pricing Info" page. And for a great
way to get extra service for less money, go to our "Carpet Cleaning Package Pricing" drop down tab.
Don't Be Victimized By These Kind of Companies!
Give us a call where: "You get the most thorough cleaning ever. Or it's FREE!"
 
Call Lisa at Cleancare Inc. Ph.: 303-530-0646
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