Using a doormat can reduce the amount of soil and allergens that can be tracked into your home and onto your carpet.  Make sure you have one at each doorway in your house for family and guests to wipe their feet on when they enter.  It is especially important at the garage door to keep oils and other harsh products found in a garage off of your carpet and other flooring.

Not only can you have outdoor mats, but ones just inside the door are helpful too.  And those can be vacuumed, and even laundered.

Additionally, it is helpful to have a shoe rack of some kind inside to prevent people from tracking additional dirt across your flooring. 

If your carpets are already showing some signs of soil in high traffic areas, give us a call at (615) 941-1388 and we’ll get them looking great again.

It’s often been said that the two constants in life are death and taxes. Many people would  agree there is actually a third constant that always holds true: carpets can quickly turn into a cradle of filth. Whether it’s the kids painting the carpet with “oopsy!” red juice stains, the cat surprising you with a large hairball to find in the morning, or the folks who traipse in without wiping their shoes, no carpet is safe from an invasion of dirt, grime, and stains. To preserve the life of your carpet, you should always have them professionally deep-cleaned once every 12-18 months. How do you maintain your carpets in the interim? Here are some helpful tips.

Tip #1: Leave ‘em at the doorstep.
Make it part of your daily routine to start taking your shoes off as you enter the house. Get a small shoe rack to keep in your garage or some kind of bin for storing shoes. Shoes track in everything from the great outdoors (not to mention you can’t count on all doormats to get the grime off dirty shoes). You can always slide on some comfortable bunny slippers while inside your house if that’s your thing-or better yet, go barefoot! Your feet and your carpet will thank you.

Tip #2: Vacuum … and then vacuum again.
For heavy-traffic areas, make sure you vacuum at least two times a week. Though the excitement typically leaves people’s faces when you tell them to vacuum that often, your vacuum truly is the best thing for preserving the life of your carpet. Be sure to perform routine tune-ups on your vacuum for maximum efficiency, including the following:

• Change the bag before it gets full.
• Remove fibers trapped in the vacuum brushes.
• Check the hose to make sure nothing is blocking the airflow before turning on the vacuum.  A good quality vacuum that is properly maintained works harder to lift excess dirt, dust, and pet dander from heavily soiled areas.

Tip #3: Arm yourself with the proper cleaning supplies.
Once that panicky “Oh no!” response passes after you’ve just found a big spill or stain on your carpet, it’s time to bring in the cleaning reinforcements. Before you put down any kind of liquid or dry carpet cleaner, make sure you use a dampened, lint-free cloth to blot the stain. If you scrub right away, it will push the spill into the carpet fibers. Always follow the recommendations (usually listed on the carpet cleaner bottle) to put the cleaner on the spot and let it set for a few minutes. Use a plastic scraper to lift off as much cleaner as possible, blot away the rest, and finish the job using a soft-bristle brush to shape the carpet fibers back into their previous condition. If you have aggravating pet urine stains and odors, use an enzyme cleaner to neutralize acids and ammonia found in pet waste. To neutralize other carpet odors, try using dish detergent or vinegar in the problem areas.

Tip #4: Keep the sunshine outside.
Closing the blinds or curtains isn’t just helpful to keep your neighbors from seeing you in those bunny slippers. It can help preserve the life of your carpet as well! Did you know that UV rays from the sun could cause carpets to age (especially with darker carpet colors)? If you plan to be gone most of the day, keep your blinds and curtains closed to help protect your carpet.

Tip #5: Brush your pets regularly.
Is it any coincidence that the word “pet” appears in carpet? Pet hair and dander can quickly join the party with the rest of the dirt and grime in your carpet. Though you can’t stop pets from shedding hair, you can be proactive by brushing your pets regularly (preferably outside or in an area with bare floors for easy cleanup) to help combat the amount of hair that gets embedded in your carpet fibers.

Original article found at: http://www.kudzu.com/article/How-do-I-care-for-my-carpet-between-cleanings-id6301

An article on Kudzu.com suggests asking the following questions when hiring someone to clean your carpets. We’ll go ahead and tell you our answers!

Make sure when you are researching companies you are considering that you inquire about the following items:

• Do they offer free estimates?  Of course! While we never mind coming out to do an estimate, our flat rate pricing makes it quite easy to figure out how much your total will be. Just check our services on our website for exact amounts or call us at (615) 941-1388 and we’ll walk you through it.
• Do they offer up-front pricing?  Our technician will write up your estimate and have you sign it before work begins.
• Are there any hidden costs?  Our flat rate pricing takes into account all the routine work that needs to be done. Should the technician have other recommendations for you, those will be discussed before work begins.
• Do they offer a guarantee for their work?  Absolutely! If you are not pleased with the work that has been done, we’re just a phone call away.
• What is the entire range of products and services they offer?  Check out our list of services here!
• Do they have a reputation for friendly customer service?  Check out our reviews here!

Of course, if you have any more questions, please feel free to call and ask us at (615) 941-1388.

We will be closed December 24-28, 2014 to celebrate Christmas with our family. We hope you have a wonderful holiday season filled with family, fun, food and fellowship! Merry Christmas!

October is Fire Prevention Month! How do we know? Well, for one, Becky won a fire prevention contest in kindergarten by drawing an awesome poster reminding people not to smoke. (She won a fireman trophy!)

Trophies aside, there many things you can do to prevent fires in your home. First and foremost, it's important to go ahead and change the batteries in your smoke detectors this month. It doesn't prevent a fire, but can save lives if one was to start.

Another important thing to do this month have your dryer vent cleaned. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2,900 fires start each year due to clothes dryer fires in homes. Of these, most are caused by problems with lint and the dryer's ventilation system.

We can help with that! Dryer vent cleaning is $99 and you can call us at (615) 941-1388 to schedule your appointment.

We had such a great time at the Tennessean's "Toast of Music City" awards reception in September! Thank you to our friends, family, and customers that voted so faithfully for us. 

While we didn't win, second place is nothing to sneeze at!

We were thrilled to be in the same room as so many other business who work  hard to keep Nashville a great place. Many of those businesses were small, independent businesses like ours, too!  Thank you so much!

You have several choices when it comes to cleaning your carpet. Namely, hiring a professional or doing it yourself. Shaw Floors says “Professional carpet cleaners are a great choice for your floor. Their cleaning equipment has more extraction power than the rental units available to individuals, and the carpet should dry more quickly. True professionals also understand the equipment, know the proper cleaning agents for the situation at hand, and recognize the differences in fibers and carpet construction.”

Other reasons to hire a professional:

• Most carpet warranties require that your carpet be professionally cleaned every 18-24 months.
• When you rent a cleaning machine you risk using excess detergent or water, potentially damaging your carpet.
• A professional can clean your carpet in a fraction of the time that it would take for you to do it yourself.
• A professional also knows how to adjust their cleaning methods depending on the carpet type.

Taylor Home Solutions uses a “hot water extraction” method of cleaning that is recommended by most carpet manufacturers. Hot water extraction, also known as “steam cleaning,” uses hot water and solutions to loosen and extract dirt and allergens from your carpet.  Before the hot water extraction begins, we use a pretreament to help emulsify the soil in the backing of your carpet and break down the stains in the fibers.  Additionally, we use a deep scrub method to bring the soil to the surface of the carpet for complete extraction.

Call us at (615) 941-1388 with your carpet cleaning questions and to set an appointment!

When we started this business, we decided early on that flat-rate and upfront pricing for our services were the only way to go. The carpet cleaning industry, in particular, has had a reputation of “bait-and-switch” for many years. According to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law, Bait and Switch is defined as “a fraudulent or deceptive sales practice in which a purchaser is attracted by advertisement of a low-priced item but then is encouraged to purchase a higher-priced one.” Many companies will lure customers in with a low per room cost to clean carpets, but once they arrived, they quickly find other things that need to be done. To get around this, some companies will include definitions of what that smaller price includes in the fine print.

Our flat rate per room pricing includes pre-treatment, deep scrub, hot water extraction (steam cleaning) and a deodorizer. Any other services beyond that are optional and do not affect the appearance of your carpet. All pricing for our carpet cleaning and duct cleaning is listed on our website.

While we never mind doing an estimate for our cleaning services, we’ve really eliminated the need for it. Because of our pricing structure, our customers can figure out exactly what they will be charged before we even arrive at their home. We do, however, write up the work when we arrive and customers sign to approve it before we begin any cleaning.

Should have any questions about our services, we encourage to call us at (615) 941-1388.

But how cool would it be to win?! 

For the second straight year, Taylor Home Solutions has been nominated in the Toast of Music City's "Best Carpet Cleaning Service" category. And we didn't even nominate ourselves! (Huge thanks to the person/people that did!)

We would love for you to go over to their website and vote for us. It's takes a minute to create a login (because you can vote every day), so while you are there take a minute to vote for your other favorites.

Here are some of the people we're voting for:

• Best Radio DJ: Wally @ WAY-FM
• Best Barbecue: Fat Boys
• Best Burger: 360 Burger
• Best Festival: Greek Festival

Thank you for being great customers!