by Shane Henson — August 30, 2013—In a significant new development for its Seal of Approval (SOA) testing and certification program for carpet cleaning products and equipment, the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) has introduced a new category for interim carpet maintenance systems.
Interim maintenance focuses on making carpet look good, explained Reg Rogers, partner/owner of Carpet Cleaner America and a member of the group that developed the testing protocol. Interim maintenance removes soil, which improves the appearance of carpet, and, in turn, prolongs a carpet’s useful life.
Types of interim maintenance systems include bonnet, rotary brushing and dry compound systems. Interim methods can be used in both residential and commercial settings, but are primarily used commercially at this time.
According to CRI President Werner Braun, the addition of an interim maintenance category will help “fill the gap” between vacuuming and deep-cleaning systems.
In order to pass the interim maintenance test, systems must remove a set amount of soil without adversely affecting the surface appearance of the carpet. The system’s cleaning solution must remove soil without causing resoiling or carpet color change. Another plus of the interim testing is that the systems are tested on both cut pile and loop pile carpet samples.
The new SOA interim maintenance category was developed by the Interim Maintenance Task Group, a subgroup of CRI’s Product Performance and Standards Panel. As with all of the SOA programs, the interim cleaning protocol is based upon science and scientific measurements, Braun said.
