If you have fallen prey to something, it’s usually not good news. When it happens, you might not want to talk about it. It can sting a bit and put a dent in your ego. But there’s an issue in the restoration industry that we do need to talk about, situations that affect you and your company.

In my last column, we addressed a restoration pricing issue that involved providing feedback to software estimating providers. That strategy is proactive and, over time, can result in some real changes to profitability.

Which then segued me into looking at another issue: when adjusters take it upon themselves to get a little overzealous. When they decide to ignore one important rule of business, which is, the price is the price.

I was privileged to interview Ed Cross, an attorney who works closely with the Restoration Industry Association (RIA) and specializes in helping the industry navigate all types of challenges. In my interview (visit cleanfax.com/overzealous), he lays it all out, how insurance adjusters are often overzealous and try to tell restoration contractors what they should be charging, and what should be on the invoice—and not on the invoice. He describes the key differences between doing program work and running a company as an independent. If you watch the interview and follow Ed’s advice, you will find yourself in a much better place when you try to get paid for your work.

One of the best parts of this interview is when Ed describes the “fake news” component of this issue. “They don’t have a right to dictate what you’re doing. Insurance adjusters cannot dictate restoration charges on these types of projects,” Ed explained. “And they cannot and must not instruct nor require restoration companies to remove items from their invoices, their charges, or to mandate that they change their invoices to match standardized prices. They can’t do that. That’s overstepping. And we need to push back against that.”

Seems pretty simple, yet very important.

I find it interesting when someone feels a company’s price is an open invitation to negotiate. I’ve never tried this out in a retail outlet. But if dictating prices works for adjusters, I figure it’s time for me to test this theory out. Next time I visit the Apple store, I’m going to try to get a new MacBook for $500. Doesn’t matter that they want $1,500. I’ll let you know how that goes. Stay tuned.

Watch the full interview below:

Jeff Cross is the media director for Cleanfax. He can be reached at jeffcross@issa.com or 740-973-4236.

The post Don’t Fall Prey to Overzealous Adjusters appeared first on Cleanfax.

Fires, floods, mold infestations, and other disasters are traumatic — and dangerous — events for homeowners and building owners. In the wake of disasters like these, cleaning and restoration professionals are tasked with restoring the affected building to its original form. In the process, however, they can play another important role in helping to relieve the stress that homeowners and building owners are facing. That’s why it’s essential that cleaning and restoration workmanship is white glove — that is, meticulous and incredibly professional. Property owners are going through some of the most difficult moments of their life and deserve the very best customer service.

So, what exactly does white glove workmanship look like in the cleaning and restoration industry? And how can you be sure your business is providing this level of quality service? Here are a few strategies to ensure you’re giving your clients the very best.

Hire and train expert staff

A cornerstone of white glove workmanship is a well-trained and experienced staff. Any cleaning and restoration company worth its salt should make sure its technicians and all other staff have the necessary certifications. One example is the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), which is granted by an international nonprofit with a 50-year pedigree. Technicians and other staff should also be trained on how to best interact with customers, from communications at the start of the process to conducting a final property walk-through.

Remain transparent about expectations and progress

White glove workmanship also means being transparent about the processes and progress of the project. Set expectations at the very start for how long the cleaning and restoration will take and why. Also, provide daily or weekly reports about exactly what’s happening on the ground so that homeowners and business owners feel like they’re part of the process and aren’t left out of the loop.

Be a full-service firm

In addition to maintaining transparency, a white glove cleaning and restoration company should also be full-service. This means going beyond the cleanup on site by providing administrative support, insurance guidance, and other assistance to your clients.

Use the latest equipment

Cleaning and restoration professionals have a wide number of tried-and-true tools in their arsenal. But new tools, approaches, and technologies are emerging every day, so it’s essential for professionals to stay on top of these and add them to their toolkit as soon as they’re available. For example, laser restoration is growing in popularity as an effective and safe way to restore structures and surfaces that have been damaged by fire, smoke, and other disasters. Also, your business should ensure that any and all equipment that leaves the warehouse and is deployed on site is first cleaned and properly certified.

Cleaning and restoration is a vital service provided to homeowners and business owners in their greatest time of need. It’s also a competitive industry where several firms and professionals are often jockeying for clients. For these reasons, white glove workmanship is essential. Using the strategies above, you can stand head-and-shoulders above the competition and offer outstanding service to the people who need it most.

Ron Fanish is co-owner of Rainbow International Restoration of Westchester, a full-service, one-stop-shop for restoration, cleaning, and reconstruction based in Westchester County, NY. For more information, visit .

The post White Glove Workmanship Is Essential in Cleaning and Restoration appeared first on Cleanfax.

For more than 20 years, Aero Tech has been providing technical support and knowledge to ensure we deliver unmatched cleaning performance with the XT from Aero Tech. We engineer greatness into every XT that leaves our manufacturing facility.

Creative engineering blends well with quality construction and continued innovation to create the most powerful cleaning system available today. XT technology just keeps getting better, giving you the power and control needed to save time, conserve fuel and increase your profits.

The XT’s simple design and ease of maintenance make the unit versatile. Whether for cleaning, restoration, large jobs or small, this system is ready and reliable day in and day out.

With heat-as-you-drive technology, true dual wand capability, deeper vacuum, customized storage, and billboard-sized advertising wherever you go, the Aero Tech XT makes dollars and sense.

In addition to the XT’s power, its versatility is a real game changer; wherever your next job takes you, whether residential or commercial, carpet or tile, and/or both, the XT offers extreme heat and true dual wand capabilities.

Additionally, the dual pressure regulators allow for cleaning at two different pressures simultaneously.  Have a third guy on a crew?  A third connection can be utilized for pre-spray application.

Aero Tech’s direct approach to the market removes the middleman and provides a level of customer service and response needed for today’s busy professionals.

New features:

• 5 db noise reduction
• All-new, 4-stage heating system produces more heat for high-flow, dual-wand cleaning.

XT’s standard equipment:

• Hydraulic activated transmission PTO
• Helical Tri-Lobe/Sutorbuilt blower, 660 ICFM @ 16” HG and maximum cleaning speed (engine RPMs) of 1650 RPM
• Water pump, 6gpm, 1,600 PSI max
• Last step chemical injection system
• 7-gallon chemical tank
• 210-gallon fresh water tank: Stainless steel, round design for added strength and durability (heats as you drive)
• 155-gallon waste tank: Stainless steel, round design for added strength and durability
• Electric Vacuum Hose Reel: Stainless steel (400-foot capacity of 2” hose), furnished with 200 feet of hose
• Solution hose reel: stainless steel, (300ft capacity of ¼” hose), quantity of two furnished, each with 100 feet of hose
• Lint traps, stainless steel, two each
• FRP van body, aluminum flooring
• Box lighting, LED, three each
• Dual wand hook-up, 2.5-inch inlet connection
• Control panel, stainless steel, industrial switches, industrial gauges
• Digital temperature control

The post January/February 2023 Cleaning Industry Leader Profile: Aero Tech Manufacturing Inc. appeared first on Cleanfax.

How can you know which cleaning chemicals will be most effective? You can either become an expert chemist yourself (no small project) or purchase chemicals from a trusted source like Legend Brands that has multiple chemists working full-time, every day to innovate the best formulations for ultimate cleaning effectiveness.

Micro-formulating chemistry

Many chemists base their formulations on data from raw materials manufacturers. Legend Brands chemists look at how each component interacts at the molecular level using “physical chemistry” instead of looking only at ingredients.

Using these micro-formulating principles and an understanding of what chemicals are doing at the molecular level, Legend Brands chemists work to control their behavior and interactions. Sometimes, chemical interactions deliver negative results and sometimes, positive synergistic results.

For example, when creating Prochem® Ultrapac Extreme, Chemspec® Ink Exit or Un-Duz-It Unleashed® cleaning solutions, Legend Brands chemists made sure they knew what was really happening at the molecular level so they could create great performing cleaning formulations.

Also, instead of building a concentrated product and then testing its dilution ratios, Legend Brands develops product at the ready-to-use and molecular level, and then builds the product into its concentrate form.

This is a much more complicated formulation approach—especially when observing chemical molecules’ behavior and interactions—but the result is products that outperform the best in the market today.

More critical considerations

What else goes into formulating a cleaning solution? Chemists must consider not only individual components and their interactivity – but they also must keep all these factors in mind:

• Will it be stable?
• Will it resist storage, transportation, and weather conditions?
• How long will the shelf life be?
• How well does it comply with federal and state regulations, especially new ones that selected states are implementing?
• Does it look and smell good?
• Is it cost-competitive?
• Are ingredients easily available, even when supply chains are disrupted?
• Is it safe for the consumer and the environment?
• And most importantly, will it do what it is intended to do well?

Buying the best cleaning solutions available pays dividends in your cleaning results – as customers’ positive referrals exponentially expand your profits!

The post January/February 2023 Cleaning Industry Leader Profile: Legend Brands appeared first on Cleanfax.

Years ago, an older colleague of mine joked, “If I had known I was going to live this long, I’d have taken better care of myself.” We both had a good laugh, but we also knew there was an element of truth to his comment. Years of hard living as a younger man were now taking their toll on his body.

As is often the case when I hear comments like this, my thoughts immediately turn to business owners and the similarity between running a business and running your life. They both involve making decisions that seem innocent at the time but can have serious, unintended consequences when they play themselves out years later. By then, it’s often too late to do anything about them, and we find ourselves lamenting, “If I had known how long I was going to own my business, I’d have taken better care of it.”

We often make this mistake when we’re young business owners just trying to survive week to week during the launch phase or when we’re running as fast as we can, trying to scale our company during the growth years.

It’s easy to get soft on making hard decisions. When we’re exhausted from working long hours, thinking to ourselves, ‘I’ll let it slide just this once’ doesn’t seem so bad. It’s also easy to be blinded by a maniacal focus on sales growth or profitability at the expense of truly important things that may not reveal themselves until years down line.

One of the first things sacrificed in the interest of growth or top-line sales is the price we charge for our products or services. We convince ourselves that if we lower our price “just this once,” we’ll make it up in volume with future sales to the customer. Too often, though, the customer isn’t playing the same game and all we’ve done is show them that our price has no integrity and we’re willing to work for less.

Before long, our “just this once” price becomes the standard price, and we find ourselves in a constant struggle for profitability and positive cash flow. This exacts a toll not only when we’re running the company but also when we go to sell it. Buyers aren’t willing to pay top dollar for a marginally profitable business.

Another area where business owners sacrifice good health is with the people we surround ourselves with. This has never been more evident than in today’s agonizingly tight employment market. In an effort to fill empty seats with somebody so our customers can be serviced, we settle for putting the wrong people in those seats, and our business suffers for it.

This is the equivalent of expecting to compete at a high level athletically while maintaining a diet that’s high in fat, sugar, and alcohol. Your diet is fighting the very thing you say you want to accomplish! It’s no different with our business. While both these scenarios might provide a temporary energy rush, in the long term they exact a toll.

Another colleague of mine is noted for saying (and I paraphrase), “Run your business today as if you want to sell it tomorrow.” He’s right, even if you have no intention of selling it anytime soon. By doing this, you’ll build a business that brings you greater satisfaction as you run it and greater wealth when you sell it.

Chuck Violand is the founder and principal of Violand Management Associates (VMA), a highly respected consulting company in the restoration and cleaning industries. Through VMA, he works with business owners and companies to develop their people and profits. For more information, visit .

The post On Second Thought: Taking Care of Business appeared first on Cleanfax.

My name is Don Aslett, founder of Varsity Contractors. I’m a serial entrepreneur in the cleaning industry. Through it all, I’ve been (and still am) the janitor, an executive, author (40 books), speaker, soap salesman, spokesman, and land developer, to mention a few. I still made time to be a Scoutmaster, Little League coach, and stay active in my church.

The very beginning of Varsity Contractors.

2 | Why did you choose the cleaning industry?

It chose me! First, cleaning earned my way through college, and I realized everything in life works better when clean… so I saw a great opportunity in creating in an industry everybody seemed to want out of. One of my favorite examples would be to blindfold me, take me into a building to the janitor’s closet, and I can tell you exactly how clean the building is.

Aslett’s passion for cleaning, equipment, and tools was noticed by all, including the mailman.

3 | How did your family help you with accomplishing your goals?

In the cleaning industry, there are many tasks that can be done at any age. So, it was common to bring family on jobs and put them to work. Most important was having a spouse that could wrangle our six kids when we were growing the business.

4 | If you could have dinner with one person from history, who would it be, and why?

Benjamin Franklin, or maybe Thomas Edison. They were ‘doers!’ The world needs more ‘doers’ and less talkers. And, they changed the world.

5 | What music, movies, or books inspired you to succeed?

Classical music, no debate. I love old movies. The one that comes to mind is “The Fountainhead.” I seem to watch this oldie a couple times a year. I just bought a copy of “A Christmas Story,” not that old, but the story is. I was the exact same age as Ralphie in the exact time. I can still remember the Red Ryder BB gun. Books are too many to list, but “Atlas Shrugged” comes to mind.

Aslett has written more than 40 books, selling millions of copies.

6 | Can you give us one sentence that best describes your philosophy of life?

My Dad used to say you “Can’t farm from the coffee shop.” I’ve adapted that to “Keep your hand in the toilet,” meaning we need to keep connected, keep yourself on the job. And that’s why I’m still doing tours at my Museum of Clean in Pocatello, Idaho at the age of 87.

The post Six Questions With Don Aslett appeared first on Cleanfax.

Add to that the fact that out of necessity the traditional “carpet cleaning” company has evolved to offer many diversified services, including trauma cleanup and biohazard work, and you have a reason to be strategic in how you go to market and run your company.

However, as a business owner or leader in cleaning, finding that differentiator and developing business structures for success isn’t always easy. Looking at other companies can give you ideas. To help you with this, Cleanfax interviewed three successful entrepreneurs and discovered that what works for them can work for you as well.

Begin with a personal touch

When it comes to driving professional success as a business leader in the cleaning industry, compassion and personal drive go a long way. Matt Lovasz, a former police officer and founder of T.A.C.T., a Missouri-based specialized cleaning and emergency biohazard decontamination service company, knows all too well the impact that compassion and personal drive can have on the success and growth of a business. “We keep in mind that we are not merely providing a service that is needed. We are who our clients go to on the worst days of their lives. So, we work on understanding trauma and loss and making sure that we are the best company to call, not just because of our technology and training, but because we are the most knowledgeable, caring, and empathetic.”

Matt Lovasz and team.

Lovasz also emphasized the value of a healthy work/life balance even though many in this industry opt to overwork in hopes of bigger returns, “Taking time to work on the important things in life — family, friends, personal growth — is necessary to be the person you need to be to grow in an industry such as this.”

This same level of care and consideration was explained by Stephanie Henderson, the general manager of Carpet Tech, a family-owned floorcare, air duct cleaning, and restoration company started and headquartered in Lubbock, Texas. Owners Chet and Melinda Pharies have grown Carpet Tech exponentially since its humble beginning in 1994, with the core mission to serve people with honesty and integrity — and Henderson plays a major role in the continual growth and compassion of this brand likewise.

“I started at Carpet Tech after I graduated from college, expecting a job, not a career, but over the last 15 years, we’ve grown the business, and I’ve become part of the family,” Henderson related. “Today, Carpet Tech is my passion. When I started, we had a couple of desks in a small building with six or seven trucks. Chet, our owner, was a crew chief still running a rig and cleaning for customers daily. I started as the receptionist, and as the company grew, my roles evolved.
I have literally done every job at Carpet Tech except run a rig.”

In the same sense, John Clendenning, CEO at Carpet Cleaner Marketing Masters, was asked to share some of his key insights as not just a leader in the industry but a marketing expert with the results to back it up. Clendenning has years of experience running successful cleaning companies before he jumped into business coaching.

As he explained, professional success is all about continual learning and growth from a personal perspective, “I believe you always must be a student. Constantly studying and constantly curious to find more information and new ways to do things. Part of that is also being willing to teach others the knowledge you have acquired and be able to pass on that information.”

He also shared his thoughts on work/life balances and how this balance should shift with the growth of a business. “In the long run, a good work-life balance is very important in maintaining your physical and mental health and allowing you to recharge your batteries.” In the beginning when a business is just starting up, a disproportionate amount of time and effort needs to be invested in gaining strategic momentum if you want to be successful, he added.

“Strategically,” Clendenning continued, “a portion of that time should be invested in creating the documented systems and procedures you are building within your company. So you can start to hand things off to others as you grow — freeing up more of your time to work on your business and less time working in the business — which goes a long way in developing an ideal work/life balance.”

With these key insights, it is clear to see that a healthy work/life balance proportionate to the size of your company is crucial as is continuous self-improvement, empathy, and humbleness to drive professional success and retain clients for years to come.

Employee retention and satisfaction

Employee retention and satisfaction plays a major role in the success and expansion of companies worldwide. According to Gateway CFS, “Employee satisfaction translates into tangible effects that inevitably lead to a company’s increased profitability and success. For example, employee turnover is drastically lower for companies with employees who report a high level of job satisfaction.”

As such, the ability to find and retain the right team is crucial to a successful business plan for a cleaning operation. When asked about how they found the very best employees, Lovasz shared, “They have found us. People who are passionate about helping people in the type of situations we handle usually contact us and tell us why they want to work with our company.”

Henderson also explained the power of empathy for success: “I love our ability to serve people — both customers and employees. It’s important to me that Carpet Tech and our employees show genuine care and concern for others. Being in homes, we see their joys and milestones. We give them what we call the CT Experience — listening well, going above and beyond on the job, and even sending sympathy flowers or a note of congratulations” depending on the circumstance.

“So many of our team are young,” Henderson added. “Carpet Tech is often their first job out of school. We have an incredible opportunity to grow them financially, emotionally, and professionally. Some of our employees who started at 18 and 19 years old have been with the company for 10, 15, or even 20 years.”

This showcases the power of working on projects and sharing them openly with the community while also building up and believing in your team. When your work is compassionate and it shows, the right people will gravitate towards your brand.

Similarly, Clendenning added, “Finding employees in today’s day and age does seem to be a lot more challenging than five or 10 plus years ago. With the low unemployment rate and the need for staff with great people skills, it has come down to keeping an eye out for great employees who have provided you with exceptional service on multiple occasions and approaching them to discuss your job opportunity.”

John Clendenning

Always be hiring is another mindset that can help. Advertising openings, letting staff and customers know that you’re looking for good people to interview, reaching out regularly to your church, recreation sports leagues, and other community organizations can help generate some awareness, Clendenning believes.

“Obviously offering a competitive wage, job perks, and benefits package will help attract quality people,” Clendenning said. “And having a dedicated hiring website, with job information and an application funnel can help build a list of interested candidates that you can reach back out to in the future as you grow and need more staff.”

Besides this, having a process where employees can bring their suggestions, ideas, and improvements allows our company to draw on the talents of people and keeps them engaged in their roles, he said.

Clendenning also knows the value of praise. “Publicly and privately celebrating employees’ wins, no matter how small — whether it’s a customer’s kudos for a job well done, going above and beyond to help a client or fellow team member, a training completed, a personal accomplishment — finding a way to honor and celebrate each team member is invaluable to their job satisfaction and willingness to give their best to every customer.”

Management and marketing for business growth

One of the biggest issues cleaning companies deal with is the uncertainty of how to manage and market their brands for actual growth and long-term success. After all, it’s no secret that posting on social media regularly is simply just one piece of a complicated yet crucial puzzle for profitability and engagement. It takes much more than getting noticed in your marketplace.

When asked about management strategies that work for his personal brand, Lovasz shared, “I try to think about what is the right thing to do and what would be best for my franchises. I don’t just copy what others do because that is the way it has always been done. All in all, do what is best for your market. You may need to add more revenue streams or expand the territory you serve first. But everyone should start trusting employees to do some of the work the owner is doing so they can grow the business.”

Similarly, Lovasz explains how top-of-mind awareness is key to their marketing strategy, “Besides using the best people to handle the online aspect of marketing, we want to become important and helpful members in our communities. We work to be the people that first come to mind when a tragic situation happens.”

Meanwhile, Henderson also shared some incredible steps for marketing and management growth strategies. “Outline the growth of your company, from its beginning to now. Share any revenue or percentages as you can. Chet started Carpet Tech from his garage with a single cleaning van, and we have had exponential growth ever since. Every year I have been part of Carpet Tech, we have grown. We have had a record year every single year. When I started, we had not yet hit $1 million in sales, and we ended 2023 with over $40 million in revenue.”

As Henderson explained, over the years, the company cultivated and grew additional service lines as the need and demand arose. “We started as a floor care and emergency restoration company. When we saw that so many customers needed renovation help after their flood or fire, we began CT Construction to help get our restoration customers back to pre-loss condition.”

During the pandemic in 2020, Carpet Tech rolled out disinfecting services for commercial and residential customers. This sustained the company and grew revenue once again to beat previous company records.

Each time Carpet Tech opened a new location was in response to seeing a need and an opportunity. In 10 years, the company has built the brand, grown service lines, and earned the community’s trust in Collin County.

“And for the first time in 2022, we saw growth across all service lines in all locations, not just cleaning and restoration, due largely to outside sales and marketing efforts to cross-promote services to consumers,” Henderson added.

Additionally, grassroots marketing has been critical to the success for Carpet Tech. Connecting with individuals, business owners, and managers, and networking in each city they serve, was paramount to success. “We are a very community-driven company, supporting nonprofits and answering needs where we can all around us,” Henderson said.

Future-focused

When Clendenning focuses on the future, he knows it takes a comprehensive strategy with both practical business sense plus some creativity. “I adamantly follow the doctrine of do, document, then delegate. By creating strong repeatable systems and procedures and having checks and balances in place to monitor that they are being followed, you develop a ‘systemized’ business that can be constantly improved and refined over time.”

Then comes the fishing aspect of marketing. “The more poles you have in the water, the better chance you have of catching more fish. You can’t rely on just one or two sources of leads and jobs,” Clendenning explained. “You need to be marketing online through organic reach, Google Maps, various paid lead sources, and social outreach. Offline, you need to be marketing and connecting with your database consistently, driving positive brand awareness in your community, and reaching out to referral sources and strategic partners.”

Constantly building and marketing your strong reputation goes a long way in helping to convert more of the traffic (those who see and hear about your business) into leads and inquiries, Clendenning added. “Having a system to nurture everyone who contacts us and staying in touch with them consistently for years, even if they don’t book a job right away, is a huge advantage.”

As the work comes in, it’s not time to rest. “To grow your company, you need to make sure you have the training, system, and procedures in place to deliver a truly excellent customer experience from all your technicians and new hires. Nothing gets around faster than poor service,” Clendenning said.

Overcoming obstacles

The final element of a strong leader and company is the ability to overcome obstacles and learn from past experiences and mistakes. As Lovasz shared, “Overcoming any personal thought patterns that need to be adjusted is crucial. If you have thought a certain way or reacted a certain way for your whole life and you learn that it is no longer serving you, changing that is the toughest thing I have done. I learn from people who have done that and what they did to change their thought patterns.”

When asked what he might do differently if given the opportunity, he elaborated, “I’m not sure I would do anything differently. There were mistakes made and things I wish did not happen, but I believe you must face adversity to grow. I do not know anyone who is at the peak of the mountain who has not said the hard lessons they learned along the way were crucial to their success.”

In an industry as competitive and yet closely connected as the cleaning industry, never forgetting where you started, learning from your past, and growing with your network is key. As Lovasz explained, his inspiration for being in the industry came from a close friend, and his initial success can be attributed to this friend as well. “The person who got me in this industry, and one of my closest friends, is Nick-Anthony Zamucen, founder of Best Option Restoration. Nick took a chance on me and taught me everything I know about business. He has been my biggest inspiration professionally. Besides artists and philosophers I admire, my wife has been my biggest inspiration. To see what she has overcome personally to become the mother and person she is today would be inspiring to anyone. She is the most caring, patient, insightful, and loving person I have ever met.”

Stephanie Henderson

When asked the same question regarding overcoming obstacles, Henderson shared, “Our main challenge is maintaining the customer experience from the initial phone call to the home with the growth we have had. With 15 employees, it’s easy to teach and practice the same processes, but with 200 employees, is difficult to maintain the feel of the brand and train people to do things the way Chet did when he started the company.”

The second challenge was the lack of any sort of blueprint to run a $40 million privately owned floorcare company. “So, we created our own processes and procedures and figured out how to maintain profitability with our growth,” Henderson explained.

Henderson also shared her thoughts on doing things differently if given the opportunity, “I would not change anything. Even in failure and challenge, I have grown into a better version of myself and the company with me. I believe we find success when we can learn from every experience, good or bad.”

Clendenning also had a unique answer to the question of overcoming obstacles. “I think one of the toughest challenges would have been the economic slowdown in 2008-2010. Our business has been around for 12 years and has grown steadily. But then, we were faced with consumers who were tightening their belts and who had less disposable income. What we realized is we needed to cut down on frivolous expenses ourselves and tighten our belts and market much more heavily than we’d ever marketed before. The simple truth is, you can’t land customers if you don’t get a marketing message in front of them.”

One solution to Clendenning was to market to his database more often and in more strategic ways. “We marketed to gain new strategic partners and referral sources. We marketed to the neighbors of our very best, ideal customers. We expanded our marketing budget, stabilized our revenue, and grew our market position during that downturn which set us up for explosive growth when the economy turned around.”

When asked what he would do differently if given the chance to start over right now, Clendenning expressed, “I’m not sure if I would do much differently because the journey of learning and adapting and growing has been a very important one to go through as an entrepreneur and business owner,” he said. “But, I guess if there was one thing that would help make the start-up and scaling stage quicker, it would be having the knowledge to invest extensively into effective, multi-channel marketing from day one. As a new business owner, it is easy to get caught up in feeling proud about bootstrapping and seeing marketing as an expense and not an investment in growth and future earnings.”

The truth, Clendenning added, is that he learned the business that invests more in its marketing, doing so more aggressively, will get over the start-up phase faster, and begin to scale into a viable and successful business that supports the lifestyle and goals the owner started out with.

Parting words of wisdom

As we concluded our interviews with these industry leaders, we asked them each to share a final piece of advice for business owners and leaders looking to grow their cleaning companies in 2023. These insights serve as the final key elements to help companies see the results they have been hoping for just in time for the new year.

• Clendenning: “Running a successful cleaning or restoration business is no different than any other type of successful local business. Those who dedicate a lot of time working on their business versus just working in their business — constantly thinking about and putting in place actions to improve every aspect of their business, building systems and processes to allow their employees to be successful — will stand out and become the go-to authority in their local marketplace.”
• Lovasz: “Find your reason, beyond the money, for why you are doing what you are doing. When you are discouraged or have a setback, focus just on that, even though it may be hard and painful. Also, consistency over time will make you successful.”
• Henderson: “Make your people your number one priority, and they make the customer their number one priority. Customer experience is everything! I also believe in training even your most entry-level helpers from a technical standpoint with the goal of growing them into crew chiefs. Our technicians need to understand the science behind their cleaning, know how to operate the truck, and maintain the equipment. The more they know, the better job they will do. It’s a bigger deal than it may seem to keep trucks and equipment clean and running perfectly.”

At the end of the day, everything boils down to having a strong connection with your customers and employees from a place of compassion, humility, consideration, and collaboration. With this mindset of transparency and empathy, your company is sure to succeed in this new year and see continual growth and success in the cleaning industry for decades to come.

Samantha Hager is the associate editor of Cleanfax. You can reach her at samanthah@issa.com.

The post The 2023 Cleaning Industry Leaders Review appeared first on Cleanfax.

Once the fire department has extinguished a fire, restoration contractors are on-scene shortly thereafter to secure the property, do initial clean-up, and perform emergency services.

In this first phase of a fire restoration project, restorers often find themselves working in and amongst a vast array of hazardous gases and byproducts of incomplete combustion.  At this point, restoration contractors rarely conduct any type of hazardous material testing as this is usually done later, and only if the building is old enough to warrant it. Even if testing is deemed necessary, it is typically limited to asbestos and lead.

Every fire is unique, and the combustion byproducts depend largely on the types and quantities of materials that were burned. Materials may include plastics, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), insulating foams, fiberglass, adhesives, carpet, or a vast array of household products such as electronics, furniture, cleaning products, etc. Even the burning of a wool sweater creates hydrogen cyanide, which was a gas used in World War I as a chemical warfare agent. The list of potentially hazardous gases and chemicals created in a structure fire are endless.

A particular concern is one chemical that few in the restoration industry have ever even heard of that is present in most, if not all structure fires. Its scientific name is 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), better known as dioxin. Dioxin is so toxic that some consider it to be the second most toxic chemical known to man, second only to radioactive waste.

What are dioxins and how are they created?

Dioxins are environmental pollutants and are part of a family of compounds that share distinct chemical structures and characteristics. They are formed when products containing carbon and chlorine burn, especially plastic, paper, pesticides, or other products where chlorine is used in the manufacturing process. Dioxins can also be produced when fuels such as wood, coal, or oil burn.

Depending on the ambient temperature in a fire, dioxins can be adsorbed or chemically bound to smoke particles or remain in a vapor phase. Adsorption is when particles bond with one another, like how magnets bond with iron, rather than being absorbed like a sponge absorbs liquids.

Human health risks of exposure to dioxin

Sir Percivall Pott (1714-1788) was an English surgeon and the first scientist to demonstrate that cancer may be caused by an environmental carcinogen. In 1775, Pott found a correlation between chimney sweeps’ exposure to soot and a high incidence of a condition called “soot wart,” a cancer later found to be squamous cell carcinoma. The cancer primarily affected chimney sweeps who had been in contact with soot since their early childhood.

In the 1700s and early 1800s, boys (often orphans) as young as four years of age were used as chimney sweeps due to their small size, which allowed them to fit inside chimney flues. During this time in history, most people burned wood in their fireplaces to keep warm. It wasn’t until the early 1800s that coal became the preferred option.

Boys as young as eight years old contracted the disease and many suffered an array of other debilitating illnesses resulting in respiratory and cardiovascular ailments and even blindness. It is believed that dermal absorption, inhalation, and ingestion of soot triggered the diseases. Dioxins were likely the root cause of these diseases.

Startling facts about TCDD dioxin

1 | Diseases which have been linked to dioxin seem endless. Dr. Joe Thornton, Assistant Professor of the Center for Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Oregon states, “Dioxin’s health effects include endocrine disruption, reproductive impairment, infertility, birth defects, impaired neurological development, damage to the kidneys, and metabolic dysfunction. There is no evidence that there is a safe level of dioxin exposure below which none of these effects will occur.”

2 | The U.S. National Toxicology Program, the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization, and the EPA have determined that TCDD is a proven human carcinogen.

3 | TCDD is on the Special Health Hazard Substance List because it is a teratogen. A teratogen is any agent that causes an abnormality following fetal exposure during pregnancy. Pregnant women and their developing infants are extremely vulnerable to the effects of Dioxin.

4 | TCDD is genotoxic and a well-known mutagen.  A mutagen is a physical or chemical agent that causes a mutation, which is a change in the DNA of a cell. DNA changes caused by mutagens may harm cells and cause certain diseases such as cancer. TCDD alters the genetic structure of living cells. The effect TCDD has on cell structures and genes can be passed down to future generations. In 2012, a scientific study found that dioxin affects not only the health of an exposed rat but also unexposed descendants through a mechanism of epigenetic transgenerational inheritance. Michael Skinner, Ph.D., a professor in the Center for Reproductive Biology at Washington State University, discovered that “exposure to dioxin caused changes in the DNA methylation patterns of sperm that were transmitted across generations to affect the health of multiple generations of descendants. The grandchildren of exposed rats showed dioxin-induced effects ranging from polycystic ovarian disease to kidney disease. Due to its extremely long half-life, dioxin may still affect pregnancies occurring even 20 years after exposure.” The genetic effects of TCDD may skip a generation and reappear in third or subsequent generations.

5 | TCDD is neurotoxic. Neurotoxicity affects the central and/or peripheral nervous system. This may include limb weakness or numbness, loss of memory, vision, and/or intellect, uncontrollable obsessive or compulsive behaviors, delusions, headaches, cognitive problems, and sexual dysfunction.

6 | The International Joint Commission, comprised of the United States and Canadian governments, have publicly stated that zero exposure to dioxin is the only safe level. There is no permissible exposure limit set by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

7 | TCDD is bio-accumulative and becomes more concentrated with repeated exposure. Once internalized, they accumulate in body tissues resulting in chronic lifetime exposure (Schecter et al., 1994).

8 | Dioxins are so toxic that they are measured in picograms—that is, trillionths (0.000000000001) of a gram. TCDD, even in picograms, is associated with severe health damage that can shorten the lives of people exposed to it.  A picogram of dioxin is the equivalent of a single grain of sand in an Olympic size swimming pool.

9 | No antidote for dioxin toxicity is known.

10 | TCDD was a key ingredient in Agent Orange that was used as a defoliant in the Vietnam War.

11 | Since TCDD is a persistent organic pollutant and can travel long distances in the atmosphere, sunlight, ozone (O3), and hydroxyl (OH) have little effect in oxidizing TCDD or removing it from the air. This indicates that the use of oxidizers in the restoration industry, such as ozone or hydroxyl, would be ineffective to remove TCDD from fire or smoke-damaged structures, soft goods, or textiles.  The only other known way to destroy TCDD is by physically removing the material it has contaminated, or by incinerating it at temperatures over 1550°F.

Safety standards for the fire restoration industry

OSHA states that a hazardous substance is “any biological agent and other disease-causing agent which after release into the environment and upon exposure, ingestion, inhalation, or assimilation into any person…will or may reasonably be anticipated to cause death, disease, behavioral abnormalities, cancer, genetic mutation, physiological malfunctions…or physiological deformations in such persons or their offspring.” It is abundantly clear that TCDD qualifies as a hazardous substance.

Wear protective clothing and equipment

The CDC states this: “All workers who may be exposed to TCDD should be equipped with adequate chemical protective clothing and equipment to ensure their protection. In the selection of protective clothing, consideration should be given to the utilization of disposable apparel due to the uncertainty of decontamination of clothing. The protective apparel should consist of both outer and inner garments. The outer garments should consist of a zippered coverall with attached hood and draw string or elastic sleeves, gloves and closure boots. If exposure is to particulate or dust, the coveralls should be made of a non-woven fabric such as spunbonded polyethylene, Tyvek®. In cases of exposure to liquids, the coveralls, gloves and boots should be made of chemically resistant materials such as disposable laminates, e.g., Saranax® coated Tyvek®, or synthetic elastomers such as butyl, nitrile or neoprene rubber. The inner garments should consist of cotton coveralls, undershirts, undershorts, gloves, and socks and should be disposed of after use. The effectiveness of the protective clothing should be evaluated under simulated use conditions, regardless of the type of clothing used. All disposable clothing should be placed in marked and approved containers and disposed of appropriately. All reusable clothing and equipment should be thoroughly cleaned and checked for residual contamination before reuse or storage.”

There is much to learn about dealing with what we might have thought were routine cleaning and restoration tasks. Stay informed and stay healthy.

Sean Scott has been in the restoration and construction industry for over 42 years and is the Author of and . He has also written numerous articles and papers on smoke and fire related issues. If you would like more information on estimating fire losses, please feel free to contact him at info@ChampionConstructionInc.com or call 858-453-6767.

Briana Scott is the co-author and editor for Heritage Publishing & Communications. She has been instrumental in providing and interpreting information regarding the ecological effects of disasters, and also adds invaluable knowledge and understanding of scientific processes and her research has been instrumental in raising awareness of a wide range of post-disaster health and environmental hazards.

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Is it true that the one thing we as cleaners and restorers can’t guarantee is odor removal?

Cara Driscoll: Odor removal is difficult to guarantee for many, many reasons. Such as    animals that continue to urinate in the home after urine removal treatment. But this is the case also because psychological odors are impossible to remove; therefore, I tread cautiously when “guaranteeing” complete odor removal.

Mark Cornelius: In my opinion, as long as I know I can get to the source of the problem, I can guarantee that certain odors will be gone. With that said, I will give provisional warranties when it comes to odors.

Do disinfectants have any role in your odor remediation processes?

Cornelius: If you are cleaning something for an odor then you need to use a cleaner. If you are trying to inactivate, kill, or destroy a microorganism, then you use a disinfectant. If you have the odor of mold, then you have mold and need to address the actual problem. There are occasions when a disinfectant could be used for odor mitigation like pet urine or protein issues, but once again, almost every biocide is tested on previously cleaned nonporous surfaces. So, let’s get to cleaning and leave the disinfectants for the surfaces they were tested on.

Driscoll: My answer would simply be no. As Mark states, disinfectants are used to kill or inactivate microorganisms after proper cleaning. The basics of odor remediation are source removal and cleaning. I don’t see many instances where a disinfectant would be useful to remediate an odor.

Can you use aqueous CLO2 for source removal?

Cornelius: All oxidizers including liquid ones must have cleaning capabilities designed for the task at hand. If you have a heavy synthetic PIC residue and you are just using a liquid oxidizer (bleach, peroxide, CLO2) with no surfactant that can emulsify the gross contaminate then you are wasting your time.

All an oxidizer can do is oxidize the surface, or crust, blocking the remaining odor molecules from getting into the breathing zone of the occupant. Utilize an appropriate cleaner for the soil then engage a product such as liquid CLO2 for odors that your GPC can’t touch.

If the CLO2 product is formulated with a surfactant that will break down the target soil, then an all-in-one cleaner could be appropriate. Keep in mind that even most “one-step cleaner disinfectants” state you must first clean the gross contaminates from the surface then reapply the product for proper disinfectant activity.

How do you remove the carbon odor build-up after fires on the premises?

Cornelius: After the initial “knockdown” phase of a fire/smoke project, you are chasing the odor particles down to their gaseous (molecular) form. First, clean the large particulates off of surfaces.

The majority of the products on the market used for the cleaning and restoration industry incorporate chemistry to address the target problem, PIC (particles of incomplete combustion) in this case. Once the surface has been cleaned using a general-purpose cleaner, products can be applied that will address the odor a little more specifically.

People must understand that liquid products can only penetrate so deep into a surface due to the size of the water droplet. This is where gas phase deodorizers (ozone, hydroxyls, Clo2, and the like) come into play. These items address the remaining odors that may have gotten into pores or tough-to-reach areas.

For all we do, we have the basic four steps to follow:

• Step 1: Remove the source.
• Step 2: Clean the source area.
• Step 3: recreate conditions/penetration.
• Step 4: Seal.

If steps 1-3 are not properly followed for odor mitigation, it does not matter how much encapsulant or sealer they spray.

Driscoll: I would add or just reiterate that the fastest, most effective way to reduce carbon odor build-up immediately following smoke/fire damage is to ventilate the building and employ AFDs with carbon (charcoal) filters.

Some people have the perception that because something smells like roses or gardens and pine that it is cleaned. We should never replace one scent with another. What are your thoughts on that?

Driscoll: If someone believes that fresh linen or lemon or pine scents mean something is clean, then I can add those fragrances to my cleaning solutions. During my conversation with the customer, I ask if they prefer a fragrance or no fragrance at all.  Then, I understand and can manage their expectations of “clean.”

Cornelius: We as restoration contractors depend on deodorizers, but most fragrances are re-deodorizers/masking agents.

The only real benefit to using a “masking agent” is to address the psychological odor from the start. We should never use a masking agent, in my professional opinion. The restoration contractor can select respirator cartridges that would allow for organic vapors to be detected while filtering out the bad particulates. The client should not be smelling the bad smell once the contractor has taken possession of the work site because the client should not be in the danger zone.

I know that will never happen in our industry; however, we must stop using masking products from time to time to ascertain if we are making progress. If you do use them, use them as sparingly as possible.

The industrial plant I clean is 24/7/365. What can I do to help keep odor down, not necessarily eliminate it? My techs are in and out of restrooms twice a day. What can I teach them to do to help with odor mitigation?

Driscoll: Consider increasing or adding additional ventilation and/or the addition of charcoal filters to the air filtration system. Without the ability to truly clean surfaces, maintaining heavily used restrooms is difficult. Deodorizers can be added to busy restrooms in the form of scented urinal blocks, urinal mats, and toilet deodorizers. If the urine has made it to any components behind the tile, the smell can continue to come back.

Cornelius: Without knowing the cleaning protocols currently in place, it is very difficult to coach on any additional steps. Restrooms are tough to deal with when you have a limited clean time. When urine absorbs into items, especially grout lines, we do not really get the ability to perform the third step, which is recreate conditions/levels of penetration.

This is especially tough when this is a 24/365 facility. You can try to apply strong masking agents that will last between cleaning cycles, but that will probably attract complaints from the client. Not everyone likes the overwhelming smell of lemon or cherry.

If they could get the client to agree to shut one of the restrooms down for a day or two and the crew was able to properly address the problem, they might be able to get ahead of the odor mitigation issue. I stress, might be able to.

What do you do about urine-soaked wood flooring?

Cornelius: This is probably the easiest one to answer, but the client will not like it. Remove the wood floor, discard the wood floor, address the subfloor, and install a new wood floor after completing all the steps of cleaning and deodorizing. They will probably have to seal the subfloor.

Can you save a carpet pad that has been contaminated with urine? Or is it better to just replace it?

Cornelius: What is the value of the carpet? Is it a brand-new carpet and a brand new pet that has only had a couple of accidents, or is it 10-year-old carpet with a previous occupant with a pet?

Carpet underlay is cheap. If there are extensive pet spots throughout the room, then the spots are much larger than what they can see on the surface. I have never found cleaning the padding to be cost-effective. You are still going to have to reinstall the pad and the carpet as well as address the other issues like the subfloor. Replace it, don’t clean it unless you want complaints later.

Driscoll: For minor urine in carpet pads, one could use flushing and sub-surface extraction tools to rinse and remove the urine from the pad. Injecting oxidizers or enzymes into the pad is another option. But heavy urine damage requires removing the relatively inexpensive pad.

How do you remove odors from concrete?

Cornelius: How long has the odor-causing issue been present? I sound like a broken record. Step 1: Remove the source. Step 2: Clean the source area. Step 3: recreate conditions/penetration. Step 4: Seal.

When it comes to concrete, how long has the issue been there? If the problem is pet urine, for example, if the pet has been urinating in the same area for five years, there is no way I can recreate the conditions, unless they want me to move in with them. The likelihood is, as much as I avoid sealers/encapsulation, step 4 will happen 99% of the time due to the inability to complete step 3.

If it is a protein decomposition odor that has only been a few weeks, you might be able to address it with localized gaseous/liquid oxidizers and heat to open pores. The heat will speed up decomposition of odor molecules and open pores of the concrete allowing products to penetrate deeper. They may still have to incorporate step 4, however.

Driscoll: If odors are deeply set in concrete, use an epoxy sealer after thorough cleaning.

When do you know if it is best to discard or clean in a trauma situation?

Cornelius: You are going to have to consider multiple aspects. This is where economics come in to play. What is the item worth and how much will it be to clean it? Will the cost of cleaning it to the point that the item will be returned in a sanitary condition be worth it or not?

When it comes to the odor aspect, it is no different than any other odor. Once it has been cleaned, it should not smell. If it is a soft good, then once again gaseous/liquid oxidizers can be incorporated.

The restorer will have to have the client involved in determining the actual cost of an item to determine if there is any economics to it. In closing for this question, they should strongly consider taking the IICRC Trauma and Crime Scene Technician (TCST) course, purchasing the S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup, and reading it. In the S540, we discuss the ability to clean porous, semi-porous, and nonporous as well as saturation vs splatter, and transfer of biologicals.

Driscoll: My only comment on this one, as Mark states: Attend the TCST class, and read the S540. That will answer this question.

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I hear so many owners say, “I just can’t find good people.” My question back is always, “What do you mean by “˜good people?'” In response, I usually hear something to the tune of, “At this point, I’d settle for anyone that shows up.” Why?

Why as business owners should we have to settle for just anyone who can manage to get to work? Shouldn’t that be an unspoken rule? One of the few things in this business climate that we should still expect unequivocally is that our employees will “˜show up.’

Good employees have heart

But maybe we aren’t looking for the right things in our candidates. Instead of looking for “good employees” that check the boxes, we should be asking “˜do they have a background in the industry, do they have the certifications, did they show up for the interview?’ We should be looking for the “goodness” in people instead.

Do they have a heart for helping others? Restoration is hard, the days are long, and the work is dirty. For an employee to last, they must believe that day in and day out they are helping someone deal with a loss.

Do they care about their coworkers? Employees that care about their coworkers show up on time and give their all. Why? Because if they are late or if they slack, they let down people they care about.

Are they leaders? No, not everyone you hire will be a department manager, but everyone you hire should have general leadership qualities. Each of your team members, no matter their rank, should want to be an example to those around them of what excellence looks like. They should always be willing to help because that’s what leaders do.

Yes, it would be great if all our candidates came with certifications and three years of experience. But you can teach the experience and you can pay for the certifications. An employee that wants to be part of your team, wants to do the job right, and really cares if the company succeeds—that is priceless.

Look for candidates that have longevity in their previous jobs. Job hoppers as I’ve dubbed them are people who have had more than three jobs in a two-year period, and they rarely make good employees. Candidates that complain about their current manager or every previous job they’ve had don’t make good employees either.

The best hires are the ones that show up slightly early for the interview, are dressed one level above the position they are interviewing for and come prepared with a list of questions for you. During the interview process, you want candidates that are engaged in conversation. They should be excited to share their work experience and intrigued about becoming part of your team.

Hire for core values

This sounds great to most leaders, but how can you get those kinds of people to apply? Just like anything else, you recruit for them—you recruit for the heart, not for the skill set. It starts with building a solid company, defining your core values, and outlining your mission and vision statement.

Core values should be 3-5 nonnegotiable standards for your team. Then, with these defined, you should weave these core values into as much of the job description as possible. When you call the candidates for the interview, mention the company’s mission. When you sit down for the interview, go over the core values, define what each one means for your team, and ask, “Which one of these resonates with you the most?”

If they give you some halfway answer—move on. They are not the right fit for you. Core values are either something that people connect with, or they’re not. If the candidate doesn’t connect with them, it’s okay, they are just not the right employee for your team. When you go over your company’s vision for the future, ask the candidate, “How do you see yourself fitting into this?” You want the person who has imagined what it’s like to be part of your team and who has wanted to work at a place that helps people recover and pave a path back to normalcy. If they haven’t given that any thought, you won’t want them on your team.

Retaining new hires

Once you hire the ideal candidate, you need to be able to keep them. Remember, you likely hired a less experienced person counting on their “heart” to carry them. This method of hiring will work, so long as your company invests in training them and growing their skillset. People with “heart” like clear expectations. Make sure that learning milestones are defined and frequently discussed.

Employees that are learning a new skill and possibly an entirely new industry will need constant feedback. I don’t mean a pat on the back and a “well done” spoken in their direction as you head out the door. I mean weekly scheduled meetings with their direct manager to answer the questions that matter to them. “What’s going well? What needs work? What’s next?” It’s always the “what’s next” that keeps the employee energized.

They need to know what they are working towards and why. As you’re reading this, I’m sure the dollar signs are rolling around in your head. Your managers’ time is expensive, paying for certifications is costly, and tracking so many things is time-consuming. Yes, yes, it is.

However, employee turnover is more expensive. For the average technician, turnover costs about $12,000. Retaining the right employees will add to your bottom line. When you build the right team, they are well worth the investment.

Ashlee Hofberger, with First Onsite Property Restoration, began her career in the restoration industry in 2010, cofounded what would be the largest restoration company on the Gulf Coast in 2012, and received her SHRM-CP designation in 2020. Hofberger then received her SHRM Talent Acquisition Specialty Credential in 2021 and became an Emergenetics Certified Associate in 2022. She can be reached at ashlee.hofberger@firstonsite.com.

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