Diamond Grinding: Natural Stone Floor Full Restoration

October 17, 2011 By

A short video on how diamond grinding is used to handle “lippage” on natural stone floors, and why it is a vital initial step as part of the restoration and finishing actions.

Lippage is the unevenness of a natural stone floor and adjacent tiles. Removing the lippage as part of scratch and finish maintenance will save time in future restorations, as once it’s done properly, the full restoration can continue to restore the gloss and clarity in the floor.

For more information on natural stone floor restoration and polishing, call IMS DFW at (214) 351-9390
Filed Under: Green Stone Restoration and Carpet Cleaning Tagged With: ,

Types of Commercial Carpet Cleaning Products

July 20, 2011 By

Commercial carpet cleaning products ims inc. dallas

There are products available for a "DIY" commercial carpet clean, but don't hesitate to call on the experts when needed

Keeping carpets clean and looking their best takes regular maintenance and cleaning. Commercial carpet cleaning companies in Dallas utilize a variety of cleaning products and solutions in order to keep carpets looking their best. Not all carpets require the same treatments, since not all are subject to the same traffic and conditions. Knowing what is available will help you to decide which carpet cleaners are best for getting, and keeping, your home or office carpets clean. If a “DIY” cleaning isn’t what you’re after, contact IMS, Inc. for superlative carpet cleaning in the Dallas area.

Rust Remover Rust is notoriously hard to remove from carpets. These stains cannot typically be removed by standard processes and products. Rust removers work by transforming the molecules of rust into a transparent, aqueous solution that can then be easily mopped up and removed.

Carpet Protector After carpets have been cleaned, a carpet protector can be applied. Carpet protector solutions provide a layer of protection, repelling dirt and preventing stains from occurring. Carpet protector products contain different active ingredients. If possible, use the one recommended by the manufacturer of your specific carpet.

Defoamer Defoamers are regularly added to cleaning solutions in order to eliminate the foam that these soaps can form. Foam can be difficult to clean and can leave behind soapy residues. Foam can also clog up carpet cleaning machinery, making them less efficient at doing their job.

Citrus Boost There are various citrus based booster products that be added to a cleaning solution to help increase their ability to break up grease, oil and dirt. There are many types of citrus boosters on the market, some based on orange oil and others on lime or lemon oil.

Solvent Various solvents are used by commercial carpet cleaning services to remove stains resulting from tar, gum, paint, make-up and grease. Solvents are able to break up oil and grease so that it can be removed during the cleaning process.

Stain Remover Specialized stain removers will need to be used to remove tough, soaked in stains. When liquids are spilled and are not cleaned immediately, they soak deep into the fibers of the carpet, becoming very difficult to remove. Stains caused by red wine and liquids that are made with red dye can be particularly challenging to remove, necessitating a special red removal product.

Pet Products Carpets that are in homes or offices where pets live will soak in pet odors, making them smell musty over time. If your carpets have been urinated on by pets, the odor can be especially hard to remove. A special solution containing enzymes will be needed to adequately remove pet odors from carpets.

Discuss your carpet cleaning needs with the IMS Dallas commercial carpet cleaning division to ensure the right products are used. If you have concerns about what is used on your carpet, be sure and mention it when speaking with us. Great looking carpets depend on choosing the right carpet cleaning products and the right commercial carpet cleaning service.

IMS Inc. in Dallas has been cleaning carpets for nearly 20 years, pioneering techniques and acquiring loyal clients for their precise and thorough work. Call IMS at (214) 351-9390.
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A Look at Marble: Its Composition, Cost and Value as a Natural Stone Floor

June 20, 2011 By

Marble Gloss Restoration IMS Inc

Marble can be a beautiful, glossy floor surface

Marble is probably the most commonly used natural stone, with granite maybe being a close second, travertine and limestone third. Composition-wise marble is exactly like limestone in that they are made out of the same material, basically lime, but marble has gone through some different processes. It has been heated much more and compressed much more. That’s why it is a bit denser than your average limestone and it comes in a wide variety of colors. It has some trace minerals that when it goes through the heating process results in some different colorations. You can get marble in a wide variety of colors that limestone just doesn’t come in, much like granite—just a huge spectrum of colors, from reds to almost black and green. And marble will achieve a deep, deep gloss. If restored properly, marble can have incredible clarity and perception of depth. It is a very glossy material.

Price wise, as far as maintenance cost goes, it’s in between a limestone and a granite. It still has to be maintained pretty frequently like a limestone, as opposed to granite which is very infrequent maintenance. It’s a bit denser than limestone so the cost is more, so the maintenance price is probably right in between limestone and granite.

Most marbles are moderately absorbent to moisture but not very absorbent when compared to limestone. It’s always good to do a water test on marble. We’ve seen in many situations where some marbles are so sensitive that even tap water can etch them. That’s kind of something you would want to know before you select that material. Put a few drops of water on there, let it sit for ten minutes, wipe it off. If the shine is removed where those drops were it’s not a good material for you to select. Although that’s rare with marbles, it is out there and it does exist. That is, some very moisture, acid or pH sensitive stones exist, but for the most part this is the most commonly used and by many thought to be the most beautiful natural stone used in commercial real estate.

IMS Inc. is renowned in the industry for pioneering methods of cleaning, restoring and handling natural stone surfaces. Call them at (214) 351-9390 to get a quote.

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Commercial and Residential Carpet Cleaning Overview

June 7, 2011 By

IMS Inc. Commercial and Residential Carpet Cleaning

For nearly 20 years, IMS has been cleaning carpets in and around Dallas, Houston and throughout Texas.

IMS is a Dallas-based commercial carpet cleaning company that takes pride in bringing out the very best in your carpet.

As carpet cleaning professionals that use only IICRC (Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification) approved cleaning methods, we know that every carpet cleaning situation is unique.

In commercial settings, the carpet is directly glued to the slab. This makes vacuum lift difficult and high moisture extraction desirable only as an annual restorative cleaning process. During interim periods, we recommend low moisture extraction because vacuum lift is minimal. The kind of low moisture extraction method we use and how often we use it depends on the carpet type.

Low moisture cleaning works especially well for commercial carpets because current technologies allow most carpets to dry in less than one hour. This means that cleaned carpets can be used within half an hour to two hours. And if you have a 24/7 business, your carpet can look, feel and smell fresh with minimal disruption to your operations.

Low moisture cleaning methods are based in technologies that gather dirt and oils and transform them into larger dry particles that can then be removed. Our process includes:

  • Combining green cleaning agents with water and spraying that solution onto the carpet surface. The moisture present activates the cleaning agents so that they interact with the soil in the carpet.
  • Using a rotary floor or rotating brush machine to work the cleaning agents into the carpet and loosen the dirt. The agitation of the brushes causes the detergent to encapsulate the soil as it dries.
  • Vacuuming up the dried cleaning agents and soil to leave your carpet looking like new.

Low moisture carpet cleaning offers many advantages. Not only does it make good environmental sense, it’s also cost effective. We also specialize in very low moisture carpet cleaning that uses less water and leaves an even smaller carbon footprint.

Of course, between IMS cleanings, stains and other accidents will happen. To help you maintain that just-cleaned look, we offer the following tips.

  • When you soil your carpet or spill liquid on it, gentle scrape or blot the affected area immediately.
  • Do not rub the soiled area, since that could spread the stain.
  • If you use any spot cleaning fluid, be sure to test the effects of that product on your carpet in an inconspicuous place to guard against possible damage or discoloration.
  • Work the spot cleaner from the outside of the stain toward the inside to avoid spreading the stain. Do not rub the stain, but do blot up excess moisture.
  • Use a clean white bath towel to dry the carpet and brush the carpet nap back up to its upright position.

If you can’t remove the stain, just give us a call: we’re there to serve you. For over 20 years, it’s been about carpets that aren’t just clean, but standout IMS spotless.

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Green Solutions in Carpet Cleaning and Building Maintenance

June 2, 2011 By

Jason Johonnesson IMS Inc.

Jason Johonnesson, co-owner IMS Inc., along with his father Larry, have dedicated themselves to providing leading-edge environmentally friendly cleaning and restoration solutions

With so many commercial carpet cleaners to choose from in Dallas, it’s good to know that one—IMS—not only cares about the environment, but also the health of anyone who comes into contact with the work it does.

Long before being earth friendly was mainstream and the U.S Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program was in place, IMS Inc.’s Larry Johonnesson put a premium on using only the safest cleaning agents available.

“He was always reading labels,” recalls Johonnesson’s son Jason, current IMS president and founder of the firm’s Natural Stone Restoration Division. “He would not allow anyone to use percoethylene or trichloroethylene because he knew they were cancer-causing chemicals.”

Johonnesson was so adamant about using non-toxic cleaners that he often took his concerns about client and employee health to extremes.

Says son Jason, “Even if [cleaning solutions] had coal tars, which are in perfumes, colognes and other fragrances, he would do whatever he could to find products that didn’t have those in them. And coal tars aren’t even a known carcinogen.”

The way his father figured it, extra additives—even those that made for a pleasant smell—were potentially hazardous. Clean meant clean, pure and simple.

“He didn’t want there to be any lingering odors whatsoever. This is because he felt that there [would also be] lingering things in the air that people [would] breathe in,” Jason explains.

The elder Johonnesson’s foresight paid off long term. The solvents he used in the high moisture cleaning he did as a carpet cleaning professional in the 1980s are the same ones his company uses today, only now they bear official green certification. And every product IMS has adopted since it began doing low moisture work in 2004 is also green-certified.

In keeping with his father’s progressive vision, Jason Johonnesson has worked hard at making sure the Natural Stone Restoration Division of IMS is also as earth-friendly as possible.

“Most of the work with natural stone is mechanical since we use diamond abrasives, he says. “But the final [phase] involves a crystallization polish, and there are some hazardous chemicals involved.”

Environmentally safe, cost-effective alternatives to this polish do exist. But IMS clients often choose go with the non-green solvent because the earth-friendlier version doesn’t produce as glossy a finish. Moreover, LEED does not yet offer incentives for making a green choice where natural stone floor restoration is concerned.

“But the point is that in stone, at least we have those options,” says Johonnesson. “And no one else offers that.”

For nearly 20 years, IMS, Inc. has been at the technological forefront in natural stone restoration, carpet cleaning, concrete polishing and flood damage restoration. Call (214) 351-9390 to speak with a specialist.

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