What’s a carpet pad and does your business need it? If you’ve never heard about the existence of carpet pads in the past, you’re not alone! These, however, can be quite practical. The right pad makes your carpet a lot softer and also increases its lifespan.

​Now that we’ve told you about the existence of carpet pads and the fact there are numerous varieties, it’s time to take a look at the essentials. Determining whether to get a carpet pad for the office is far from a challenging task, as long as you take some time to assess the pros and the cons of the purchase.

The carpet pad is a piece of supportive material that’s usually positioned underneath a carpet designed for home or commercial use. This material is soft, which means it can be cut according to your preferences. A carpet pad can be positioned underneath any type of carpet variety, regardless of the surface area or the shape.

Chances are that when renovating and furnishing the office, you were told that a carpet pad isn’t a necessity. This is far from the truth and people are quickly understanding the range of benefits.

​The primary purpose of the padding is to absorb the shock of impact that the carpet would otherwise be subjected to. This is how the selection of the right padding can increase the lifespan of the carpet significantly.

Making the surface underneath your feet softer is an added benefit of using carpet padding rather than the primary one. The same applies to the noise absorption properties of the pads. This is why they’re often chosen for retail stores and high traffic areas.

​Because many people believe that the creation of a softer surface is the primary goal of carpet padding, they commit a number of mistakes when choosing a cushion. Choosing a pad that is too soft will make it bottom out due to a lot of traffic. As a result, it will not provide the necessary support to the carpet.

The other common mistake is buying a very thick carpet pad. Once again – this mistake will keep the pad from doing its main job, which is protecting the carpet against wear and tear. Choosing the most appropriate variety will be essential for enjoying all of the benefits and enjoying commercial carpets for a much longer period of time.

Now, let’s move on to a slightly more complicated territory – the diversified world of protective carpet pads.

​The market has several main varieties to offer, each one with its specific characteristics:

• Rubber pads (waffle): this is used to be the most popular carpet pad variety. Today, it’s lost some of the appeal due to more innovative options. The rubber that this pad variety is made of happens to be too soft to offer proper support, especially in the case of commercial carpets.
• Urethane foam: one of the most inexpensive and lightweight carpet pad options. The urethane foam pad is not suitable for high traffic areas because it will be flattened quickly. Urethane foam is best suited to residential use.
• Bonded urethane: also known as rebond, this is one of the most popular and practical padding products for commercial venues and offices. It’s made from the same high density urethane used in automobile and furniture manufacturing. The densities vary and you can choose one or the other on the basis of traffic or the heaviness of the carpet. For light traffic areas, the rebond cushion should have a weight of five pounds per cubic foot and a thickness of 3/8 inch. For heavy traffic, the weight increases to 6.5 pounds per cubic foot while the thickness remains unchanged. 
• Wool and synthetic fiber pads: as the name suggests, these are made of either natural or synthetic fibers. The pads are mostly used with commercial carpets in high traffic areas because they provide excellent support, they are breathable and mold-resistant.
• Specialty pads: these are supposed to address a particular problem. There are moisture barrier products, air filtering pads and odor absorbing pads. Some experts find the qualities of these questionable and advise against the purchase of specialty pads.

If you have expensive carpets in your office or your retail store, you may want to invest a bit more in the purchase of a quality pad. The investment will pay off in a longer lifespan and reduced maintenance expenditure.

As already mentioned, to enjoy the benefits, you have to choose the right cushion variety. Most consultants will help you go through the products, understand the differences and choose the right variety. An appropriate weight and thickness is very important, especially for high traffic areas.

​Keep a few things in mind when making a purchase. High density padding is usually best for places that see a lot of traffic. The higher the density, however, the higher the price of the pad is going to be. A more expensive, high density pad will remain in a good condition for approximately 10 years. Needless to say, this is the variety that will simplify office or store maintenance and keep the carpets from premature wear.

Vinegar is one of the most versatile natural cleaning substances; there is almost no place in your home or office where this pungent liquid doesn’t work miracles!
If you are already using vinegar to sanitize your home, you must have noticed its advantages: it’s cheap, natural, and doesn’t release harmful substances in the environment. Although most offices are kept clean by using the services of commercial cleaning companies, this doesn’t mean that your workplace and natural cleaning products are not compatible. Maybe you want to do your best to keep your office clean or you own a small business and you do the cleaning by yourself. Here are some ideas for using vinegar at your office:

The refrigerator is the most common place that gets overlooked whenever someone decides to clean the kitchen; keeping different foods inside it for weeks causes a foul odor that you can hardly get rid of. The easiest way to solve the problem is to clean the refrigerator with a solution of equal parts water and white distilled vinegar.

A usual problem with coffee makers is the mineral deposits caused by hard water. You can expand the lifespan of your coffee maker by cleaning it regularly with vinegar – fill the reservoir with white distilled vinegar and run it through a brewing cycle. Don’t forget to rinse with water in order to remove the vinegar odor.

If the microwave oven at your office is a mess, don’t worry – you can solve the problem in just 5 minutes. Prepare a solution of equal parts water and vinegar, and place it in the microwave on high. The steam will loosen the dirt and make it easier to clean afterwards. This will also help eliminating unpleasant smells.

The scissors at your office are sticky? Cleaning their blades with soap and water can rust the metal, so use a cloth dipped in white vinegar instead.

Faucet areas covered in grime or mineral deposits can be cleaned with a mixture of four parts vinegar and one part salt. Use it as a scrub and the faucets will look shiny and clean again.

Room odors that are hard to eliminate will disappear once you remove the cause, but you can deodorize the area faster if you also place a bowl of vinegar overnight and let it rest until you come back to work the next day.

If you don’t wash your coffee mug properly after each use, coffee and tea residues will build up and cause stains. These stubborn stains can be removed with a mixture of vinegar and salt instead of using aggressive cleaning substances.

The stubborn rings that appear when you place wet glasses on wood furniture will disappear by rubbing them with a mixture of vinegar and olive oil. In the end, polish the surface for best results.

You can get rid of that bad smell coming from the kitchen drain by pouring in a cup of white distilled vinegar once a week. Let it stand for 30 minutes and flush with cold water.

Windows will gleam and lose the usual films of streaks if you clean them with a solution of white distilled vinegar and warm water. Use a soft cloth to dry the window.

By Cliff Derksen
Owner of First Impressions Janitorial

Whether you are a small business owner or are responsible for maintenance in a large company, there is one vital aspect you will always need to consider: keeping the premises clean and organized.
Cleaning is often one of the last problems one has in mind when running a business, but making sure the place where you work and meet your customers is neat and orderly has a major impact on your company’s success. At the same time, developing a janitorial department may be a too complicated or burdensome task. We understand both the importance and the difficulties of having a clean office, and our recommendation is to outsource your janitorial services. Here are the benefits you’ll enjoy by leaving this to the experts:

It’s common for small businesses to count on their employees to keep things tidy at the workplace, but this is not a good idea if you want people to focus on what matters most. Completing cleaning tasks such as emptying trash cans, cleaning restrooms and dusting is time-consuming and distracts employees from their work. Moreover, this makes them feel that their skills are not important to you and creates resentment among the staff.

By outsourcing janitorial services, not only will you make sure your employees have plenty of time available to concentrate on doing their job, but they will also become more efficient. Calling to the services of an expert also helps you save money because you don’t need to hire an employee just to do the cleaning and support all the associated costs.

Making a first impression about a business is just a matter of seconds – your clients and partners will notice in a blink if desks are cluttered, the floors have not been mopped in weeks, and the air in your office is stale. In such circumstances, the prospects of a business meeting at your office are bleak. On the other hand, a tidy office will foster a positive outcome of your work interactions and make you look more professional.

Productivity depends on a large extent on your state of mind. A messy workplace has a negative impact on your capacity to complete tasks fast and accurately, because your mind is distracted and you often waste time looking for missing folders or office items.

A professional janitorial service will always do a better job than someone in your staff – they are experienced, use high-quality equipment and professional cleaning products, and do their work fast. By outsourcing cleaning in your company, you will make sure the kitchen will be a pleasant place to eat, restrooms will be sanitized properly, and office equipment won’t become a health hazard.
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Outsourcing janitorial services may be more advantageous and affordable then you think; hiring someone to do the cleaning at your workplace is not an additional expense, but a way to spend money instead of valuable time that your staff can use more effectively. Think in terms of return on investment – you will spend a certain amount of money on this type of service, but benefits will definitely exceed expenses.

By Cliff Derksen
Owner of First Impressions Janitorial

References:
Hidden Benefits of Janitorial Services. Retrieved from the Shine On Group blog: http://www.shineongroup.com/hidden-benefits-janitorial-services/ 
Meyer, Erin; Clutter is Disruptive: The Benefits of Commercial Cleaning Services. Retrieved from the Gator Cleaning Solutions website: http://www.gatorcleaningsolutions.com/clutter-is-disruptive-the-benefits-of-commercial-cleaning-services/