December, 2019 | BCS Cleaning Specialists
What Should I Do If My Carpet Gets Wet? Big Spills
December 23, 2019
Disaster has struck! A pipe burst and your carpet got sopping wet! Or someone spilled a bucket of water all over the carpet! What to do?? In our two-part series, we’ll walk you through how to do with water spills, large and small, on carpet.
How To Deal With Big Water Spills
It’s pretty stressful, although not uncommon during our Utah winters, when one of your pipes bursts or starts leaking, especially if there is carpet involved. But follow our simple steps as quickly as possible to protect your carpet from mold and replacement.
• Remove water as quickly as possible.
This might seem obvious, but if at all possible, don’t leave it to the air alone to do the job of drying out your carpet. If the water is sitting above the surface of the carpet, get a cup and bucket and remove as much water as you can by hand. Then use absorbent towels to sop up as much as you can of the rest.
• Use fans to speed up carpet drying process.
You can usually rent commercially powerful fans from Home Depot or similar, but just a regular household fan will help to keep the increasingly damp air moving.
• Use a dehumidifier to dry out the room.
Even a small one will help. Rent a larger, more powerful dehumidifier if possible.
• Steam clean carpet and flooring.
BCS to the rescue! Our specialist carpet cleaning machines don’t just get carpet wet to clean them – they also contain extremely powerful vacuums specifically designed to suck water out of carpet fibers. These alone will be able to remove a lot of the excess water from your carpets. Plus there’s the added advantage of us being able to then actually clean your carpets, which further reduces the chances of mold spores surviving.
• Sanitize walls and baseboards to remove mold spores.
• Check furniture and remove to air dry in another location if necessary.
Leaving damp table legs in contact with damp carpet will just cause both to degrade faster, through either mold, rot or damp-damage. Separating them to dry separately will speed up the whole process and potentially save both.
When you’ve done all the above, give the professionals at BCS Cleaning Utah a call at 801 561 1730. We are experts in disaster remediation for carpets and will be at your home in a jiffy to rescue you from damp-related doom.
What Should I Do If My Carpet Gets Wet? Small Spills
December 19, 2019
Disaster has struck! A pipe burst and your carpet got sopping wet! Or someone spilled a bucket of water all over the carpet! What to do?? In our two-part series, we’ll walk you through how to do with water spills, large and small, on carpet.
How To Deal With Small Water Spills
It’s very frustrating when someone manages to slosh water all over your carpets. But follow our simple steps as quickly as possible to protect your carpet from mold and replacement.
• Remove water as quickly as possible.
This might seem obvious, but if at all possible, don’t leave it to the air alone to do the job of drying out your carpet. Use absorbent towels and steady blotting pressure (don’t rub) to sop up as much water as you can.
• Use fans to speed up carpet drying process.
A regular household fan will keep dry air moving across the surface of your carpet and help to dry it out faster.
• Use a dehumidifier to dry out the room.
Even a small, household dehumidifier will speed up the process and prevent nasty damp smells.
• Steam clean carpet and flooring.
BCS to the rescue! Our specialist carpet cleaning machines don’t just get carpet wet to clean them – they also contain extremely powerful vacuums specifically designed to suck water out of carpet fibers. These alone will be able to remove a lot of the excess water from your carpets. Plus there’s the added advantage of us being able to then actually clean your carpets, which further reduces the chances of mold spores surviving.
• Sanitize walls and baseboards to remove mold spores.
You only really need to think about this step if the spill happened right next to a wall or baseboard. If the wet carpet is not contacting either directly, it should remain unaffected.
• Check furniture and remove to air dry in another location if necessary.
Leaving damp table legs in contact with damp carpet will just cause both to degrade faster, through either mold, rot or damp-damage. Separating them to dry separately will speed up the whole process and potentially save both.
When you’ve done all the above, give the professionals at BCS Cleaning Utah a call at 801 561 1730. We are experts in disaster remediation for carpets and will be at your home in a jiffy to rescue you from damp-related doom.
How should I care for my solar panels in winter?
December 12, 2019
During the winter, the sun doesn’t make it as high in the sky during the day; as a result, your solar panels will give less output in winter because there is less energy available for them to absorb. Snow accumulation can also impede your solar panels’ ability to absorb the sun’s energy. While it might be tempting to hunker down and hibernate during the winter months, continuing to care for your solar panels is a necessity if you want to continue to benefit from them during the frosty days.
But have no fear – BCS Cleaning Utah are here! Our solar panel experts have created a few simple steps for you to follow in caring for your solar panels during the chillier months. While some of these might seem blindingly obvious, sometimes the obvious things are the ones that tend to be forgotten or delayed. So here are our top tips for keeping your solar panels shipshape during winter!
1. Conserve Energy
We can just feel the collective sigh here! While conserving energy is definitely a hot topic at the moment, it’s not exciting to do (who wants to traipse around the house turning off light switches?). But with a titch of forbearance, there are a few things you can do to keep your solar panels producing energy at their tippets-top best:
- Turn off lights when you don’t need them (we’ll just get that one out of the way at the beginning!).
- Make sure your house is insulated. Poor insulation results in ineffective heat-retention, which in turn will place more load on your solar panels.
- This principle also applies to other areas where heat can escape. For example, make sure to close the damper when your fireplace is not in use, use thermal curtains to contain heat and check your air ducts early in the season for any leaks.
- Use energy efficient lightbulbs. A 15-watt energy-efficient CFL can give you the same light output as a 60-watt standard bulb. Plus it’ll save you a whopping 75% in energy consumption. Woohoo!
2. Care for your batteries
Since your solar panels’ deep cycle batteries are the source of all your power (storage and output), it makes sense to maintain them, especially during winter’s harsher months. Here are a few things you can do:
- If batteries are not installed indoors, make sure that the battery compartment is properly insulated, as lead-acid batteries can freeze at subzero temperatures.
- For off-grid solar systems, make sure you have enough anti-freeze distilled-water on-hand for the batteries, as well as keeping a close eye on the water levels.
- Check your battery voltage regularly. If it falls below 12 Volts DC, you will need to charge your batteries.
3. Adjust the angle of your panels
This was one of those ‘duh!’ moments for us – it seems so logical when you think about it. One reason why your panels don’t receive enough sunlight during the winter is often simply that the sun is at a lower angle throughout most of the day. To easily adjust for this, use an adjustable rack to modify your panels at a 15-degree angle.
4. Scrape off excess snow
It stands to reason, if your solar panels are covered in snow, they’re not going to offer much in the way of light-absorption capabilities. Snow often takes care of its own removal once the weather warms up a day or two after the storm, but if cold temperatures linger, so may the snow and ice encrusting your solar panels.
If your panels are high up on your rooftop, please don’t risk trying to clean them yourself. In this situation, the easiest and safest solution is to call in the professionals at BCS to clean your panels for you. We have the specialist equipment and training to make sure your panels get cleaned right and restored to their peak operating capacity.
Give our specialists a call today at 801 561 1730. We’ll set your solar panels to rights in a jiffy!
How To Prepare Your Windows For Winter
December 4, 2019
Winter is glorious, especially in beautiful Park City, Heber, Draper and Utah in general. But our winters can be harsh, with the dry air, salt, and general precipitation. Even though windows are designed to protect us tender earthlings inside from the forces of nature outside, they need good care and maintenance to keep them in tip-top shape so they can do their job well.
Rain, snow, wind, dust and even the dreaded inversions we are blessed with in the Salt Lake Valley can wreak havoc on your windows, leaving them matted with streaks, watermarks, dirt and grime that muddy your viewing platform on the world. Over time, this accumulated detritus can even begin to burrow into the glass itself, leaving scratches and pockmarks that are impossible to remove. An added danger is that airborne nasties will deposit themselves on the actual window seal, working their way inwards to where the sun don’t shine in between double-paned windows. Talk about disaster!
Now is the time to book your thorough window cleaning, to clear your panes of any summer or fall debris and detritus that could scratch or etch into them during the winter. Call the professionals at BCS Cleaning Utah today at 801 561 1730 to book your total window treatment. We’ll have you sparkling and winter-ready in a jiffy!
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Window Cleaning
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Carpet Cleaning
Have the best first impression possible for your home or business! Learn More
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Tile Cleaning
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Rug Cleaning
Don’t do it yourself! Let us clean and protect your area rugs to help prevent future stains. Learn More
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Upholstery Cleaning
Give your loveseat some love! Upholstery cleaning can make your furniture and fabrics look new! Learn More