Oct 17

Hiring a House Cleaning Service

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Do you find it difficult to find time during the day to keep your house clean? The reality is that our fast-paced society has made it increasingly difficult to find time to complete seemingly simple tasks such as cleaning the house. Thankfully, it is possible to hire someone to do the job for you at a rate that you can afford. Before hiring a house cleaning service, however, it is a good idea to keep a few things in mind in order to be certain the service you hire is reputable.
Ask for Recommendations
One of the easiest ways to find a good house cleaning service from a company you can trust is to ask your friends and family for recommendations. If you know anyone that is currently utilizing the services of a house cleaning company, ask that person the name of the company he or she uses. Then, ask your friend or family member a few questions about the service. Some good questions to ask include:
- How long have you been using this service?
- What do you like the best about the service?
- What do you like the least about the service?
- Do you feel as if the housekeeper is trustworthy?
- Does the housekeeper stick to his or her schedule?
- How effectively does the housekeeper do his or her job?
- Do you feel the housekeeper’s services are worth the price you pay?
By asking these simple questions, you can get a better idea of just how reliable the housekeeping service really is and whether or not the company would be a good fit for your lifestyle and budget.

Ask for References
If you don’t know anyone that is using the services of a housekeeper, your only choice is to start blindly calling various housekeeping companies or individuals advertising their services. When you call these companies, be certain to ask them to provide you with references that you can contact. Then, be certain to actually contact these individuals and to ask them the same questions you would ask a friend or family member. Listen to their answers closely so you can better determine which service is right for you.

Perform a Background Check
If you hire a housekeeper through a service, the company will have most likely performed a background check already. Do not assume that this step has been taken, however, as it is quite possible that the company has not ran a background check or has not completed one recently. As the company to provide proof that a background check has been ran on any housekeepers who will be coming to your home before you sign up for the service.
If you are hiring an individual who has advertised his or her housekeeping services, be certain to conduct a housekeeping service on your own. There are many websites available on the Internet that will complete background checks for you for a fee, but some of these companies are unreliable. Therefore, in order to be certain your background check is accurate, you may want to have your background check completed through your police department. After all, the last thing you want to do is to unwittingly hire someone with a criminal background to come into your home and rummage through your belongings!
Hiring a housecleaning service can help save you time while also reducing your level of stress. No one wants to come home to a messy house, but finding time to make your house look great can be difficult. Just be certain to be smart about hiring a housekeeper so you can be certain your home will look great while also staying safe.

Info from:Home Remedies

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Sep 24

Seventh generation demystifies cleaning products

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Responding to consumers’ need to help demystify ingredients in the cleaning products they buy, Seventh Generation has launched a mobile application that allows people to look up the definitions of common household cleaning chemicals even as they shop.

The application is available for download to Web-enabled cell phones (as well as a widget application) at Showwhatsinside.com. It is part of a larger campaign themed “Show the World What’s Inside” that includes print breaking in such publications as Cookie, Domino and Self. This is the first campaign for Seventh Generation from 180LA, Los Angeles. Spend for the effort, which targets young moms, was not disclosed.

“One of the reasons we chose digital to be the center point of the campaign is because digital is great at doing a lot of things that some of the more traditional mediums aren’t,” said William Gelner, executive creative director at 180LA. “Young moms watch TV and read magazines, but the one place where they’re really involved and deeply engaged is the Web. Especially through mommy blogs.”

Courtney Loveman, who goes by the title “brand mother” at Seventh Generation, Burlington, Vt., which produces eco-friendly household and personal-care products, said the campaign is the first major advertising for the brand in four years. “We were late to the digital space in the first place and we’ve always felt that our message was best spread in people’s stories about our brand,” she said.

“Unless you’re a bio major or M.I.T. grad, you’re not really sure what all these chemicals in the products you’re purchasing are and [manufacturers] might lead you to think they’re really good for you,” Gelner said, calling such misperceptions “greenwashing.” The new Seventh Generation Web site encourages consumers to look beyond a manufacturer’s labeling and advertising tactics and draws attention back to what’s inside the container.

However, Robert Passikoff, founder of Brand Keys, New York, said that while the initiative is noble in theory, the real question is how often and whether or not consumers will actually use the mobile device. “The problem is, if you’re a mom with a five-year-old or a newborn, you want to get in the store and out. You’re not looking to go in and scan the ingredients.

“The acid test for all this is, if you were to ask 1,000 people whether they thought this would be a good idea or not, virtually everyone would tell you, ‘yes,’” he said. But time limitations and real-world pressures dictate otherwise. If moms are really doing their homework, they’re not doing it when they’re shopping.”

by Elaine Wong

Source: http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/digital/e3i991563eaf426e2a2784333cd2e7034f6

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Sep 24

Best robotic vacuum cleaner

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Domestic robots no longer exist simply in the minds of science fiction authors. Domestic robots, or robots used for household chores, are becoming increasingly common and popular, with several leading vacuum manufacturers developing their own unique models. New models of robot vacuum cleaners are constantly hitting the market, and the promise of more models in the future is a sure sign that the nascent commercial robot industry is finally taking flight. In terms of domestic robots, there are basically three distinct classes and categories:

1. Domobots: The highest level of domestic robot. These are used for a range of household chores, are autonomous, and are usually connected to a Wi-Fi home network.
2. Entertainment Robots: These can be used at home, but are usually reserved for entertainment and social interaction purposes.
3. Care and Chore Robots: These are used for basic household chores, including vacuuming.

Robotic vacuums fall into this latter category, and many consumers choose these in an attempt to lessen the burden of household vacuuming and perhaps even liberate them from this unpleasant daily chore. The most popular robotic vacuum models are usually compact, pizza-shaped appliances with suckers that move around a room until they cover an entire area. They can vary significantly in price, ranging in $100 for some of the most basic models to well over $1000 to some of the of most advanced units, and deciding on what features are the most important to you will be crucial in determining a robotic vacuum’s price.

Nonetheless, today’s robotic vacuums have definitely come a long way from those that were initially introduced just a few years ago. The older models were often awkward, used primitive controls, and had to be tracked down when stranded in the house by an annoying and incessant “Low Battery” beep. Some of the latest robotic vacuums available today can not only clean your home, but they can also remember your home’s layout to increase efficiency, dispose of its own dirt in a designated receptacle, and even have the ability to find their way back to a recharging station to repower.

One of the main points to be aware of when purchasing a robotic vacuum is the fact that these types of vacuums are meant to supplement a standard, human-operated vacuum, and not to replace it. They are simply meant to perform either daily or weekly touch ups to keep your home, office, or workspace tidier in between regular vacuum sessions. In addition, robotic vacuums work best on hard flooring, although some units have transitioning capability and are able to convert from floors to low-level carpeting with ease. While some robotic vacuums may work well on thicker carpet, the transition from floor to dense carpet may be difficult.

With these factors in mind, if a robotic vacuum seems like the right choice for you, first decide on your vacuuming needs. A simple, lower-priced robotic vacuum can clean and dust your hard flooring, while a pricier unit will be able to transition from floor to carpet and also boast features such as scheduler options, memory, and dirt detecting sensors. Ultimately, a robotic vacuum’s price will be primarily influenced by its special features, such remote-controlled operation, a self-charging base, or even virtual walls.

If your primary interest in a robotic vacuum is because of the convenience factor, you will want to decide whether you want the robotic vacuum to randomly clean an area or be able to “sense” whether it has missed a specific area of your home and continue until the entire area is cleaned. Some robotic vacuums even feature dust sensors to detect if the floor is extremely saturated, and they will linger on that spot accordingly. The size of a vacuum’s dust bin is also to be considered. Not all robotic vacuum dust bins are of the same size, and larger dust bins are obviously more convenient. Be sure to check how easily a robotic vacuum’s dust bin removes itself from the unit, as frequent emptying will result in optimum performance.

Thankfully, because robotic vacuums do not utilize any complicated bags or filters, maintenance is usually quite simple: be sure to check for debris that may be clogging the brushes and replace as necessary, and empty the dust bin on a regular basis.

Nevertheless, despite the limitations of a robotic vacuum and regardless of what model robot vacuum you choose, one thing is certain: robotic vacuums will be as common as television sets or microwave ovens, and robotic vacuum manufacturers and consumers alike are agreeing that the robotic revolution is finally here.

Source: http://cookwareset.wordpress.com/2008/09/23/best-robotic-vacuum-cleaner/

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Sep 20

Reduce working mom’s stress by hiring home cleaner and maids

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For working moms, their “work” day never really ends. They may go to work from 9-5 and come home, but they come home to more work. They have a family to feed and take care of and a house to keep in order. They never really have a chance to leave their work stress at the door when they come home to their family.

Those that work outside the home tend to have more socializing opportunities, but they have less time for meeting the needs of their family. One way to reduce stress so working moms can get their life back is to hire hiring home cleaner and maids to help them out.

A professional Las Vegas house cleaning will ask a number of questions about your home and your family during the process of building your cleaning estimate, and you should in turn ask questions about the cleaning service. Find out whether the Las Vegas maid service company is bonded and insured; this protects your home and your property from theft or damage.

Any reputable maid service should be able to provide you with a certificate of insurance to assure you that they are indeed properly insured. Understand what the company’s cleaning policies are should you need to change a scheduled cleaning, whether or not they require a contract for a specific length of time, who will provide the cleaning products, what happens if something in your home is broken or damaged, and what type of quality guarantee the maid service offers.

It’s better to fork over a little money to maid services or a babysitter than to drive yourself crazy with the added stress. The costs will be low, since you’ll use these services once in awhile versus all the time.

Source: http://www.roxrevolution.com/reduce-working-moms-stress-by-hiring-home-cleaner-and-maids/

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Sep 19

Uneducated cleaners destroy home

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Obviously you’re concerned about your fine rugs, upholstery, and carpet being ruined when you hire a cleaning company.   But some unfortunate homeowners have even worse problems. It happened in New Jersey just last week.  Three floor maintenance workers were stripping varnish.

“The job ended with a huge explosion which severely burned the workers and destroyed several homes.” The maintenance workers were using acetone to strip the floor.  Acetone is a solvent that is occasionally used for cleaning or stripping.  However, properly trained cleaning technicians know to use it very sparingly if at all.  Acetone is highly flammable and harsh to breathe.   Apparently the technicians were using a large amount of the solvent throughout the kitchen and living room.

What caused the solvent to ignite is unknown by the officials.  But if gallons of a highly flammable solvent are spread on a floor, even static electricity could cause it to ignite. Fortunately no one was killed.  The man who lived in the home in which the incident occurred narrowly escaped severe injury.  He had left his home just minutes before to run an errand.  Talk about good timing.  Anyone within a couple hundred feet from the explosion could have been severely burned or killed. Had the maintenance workers been properly trained in the use of these chemicals, this tragedy would never have occurred.  One of the first rules any cleaning professional learns about solvents is they are highly flammable and should NEVER be used in large quantities.

Many other instances of uneducated cleaners have caused families to be poisoned by harmful chemicals.  One cleaning technician left a bottle of strong acid cleaner in reach of a two-year old.  The child found the bottle and drank some of the chemical.  The toddler died. There are countless other stories of cleaning companies using too much or too harsh of a chemical that caused destruction.  Other stories involve minor problems like strong chemicals burning a hole in carpet or tile.  Carpet turning yellow.  Upholstery getting torn apart.

Are you covered with insurance? These companies rarely ever have insurance.  If they don’t spend the money and time to educate themselves, they typically don’t spend it on insurance.  One of the easiest payments to let slip by is general liability insurance.  And the people who hire them don’t even know.  They’re out of luck if something goes wrong.  Be careful about who you hire for any home service.  Be especially careful about who comes into your home.  Don’t assume they’re sending safe employees.  Ask about who they’re sending.  Get their names. All our employees are hired through Landrum Services.

Landrum does complete background checks and drug testing on every employee we hire.  As well, our company is trained and certified by the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (the IICRC).  This means we’ve learned proper cleaning and safety techniques.  Rest assured when you call Premium Carpet Care.  You’ll be cared for properly.

Souce: http://carpetcleaningpensacola.com/blog/2008/09/19/uneducated-cleaners-destroy-home/

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