The purpose of the traffic lane spotter prespray is to:
- Improve cleaning, particularly on difficult areas.
- Prevent over wetting, which might occur if too many wet passes are done over a heavily soiled area in an effort to get it clean. Overwetting will result also in stains and spots reappearing.
- Help remove large areas of spills and stains.
- Reduce time spent on the job, thereby reducing labor costs and increasing profitability.
What happens if you have such a heavily soiled area (such as traffic lanes, turn areas, entry areas, in front of tellers, in front of elevators, etc.) that a lot of extra time (your biggest cost) and effort is going to be required with strong potential for over wetting?
Many carpet cleaners would prespray such an area with a high-pH carpet traffic lane spotter to soften and loosen the compacted soil. Butyl Cellosolve (Ethylene Glycol Monobutyl Ether) is commonly used in such products because it is a unique solvent that is soluble in water yet is so strong that it is commonly used in wax strippers and heavy-duty ready-to-use cleaners. However, Butyl Cellosolve is absorbed through the skin and lungs and may be harmful to the kidneys and liver.
In homes, the prespray is sometimes needed in carpeted kitchens, halls, turn areas, entries, in front of sofas and chairs and on stairs. On carpets in homes, the pH of the traffic lane spotter must be below pH 10 to avoid voiding most carpet warranties.
In restaurants, prespraying is frequently needed between the dining area and the cooking area, but prespraying the entire carpet followed by agitation is sometimes required because of the high grease content. Presprays used in restaurant cleaning usually are high-pH and/or contain enzymes and may include a solvent such as citrus or d-limonene.
In offices, it is usually necessary to prespray heavy traffic areas, congregation points such as coffee machines and photocopiers, in front of elevators, in lobbies and entry areas, dining rooms and areas coming in from warehouses and production.
The chemicals in presprays are usually geared primarily to dissolving and removing oils because the oil film in carpet (from cooking, pollution, smoking, plastics, auto exhaust, etc.) attracts and holds onto other soils and also pulls soil off the soles of shoes when walked on. Because Preface® Prespray / Traffic Lane Spotter, which is diluted 1:10 with water, so readily emulsifies oils, it is an excellent prespray for wet cleaning of upholstery, especially in getting out hair oil and body oil.
For high levels of cooking grease and oil as found in most restaurants, normal pre-sprays are often inadequate. There are several approaches that can be used for heavy cooking grease. One could “boil and blast” it out with an overpowered machine, use solvents, use enzymes or saponify the grease.
TLS® 2000, uses the saponification approach for restaurants. With its high pH (12.5 at 1:10 with water), it converts the cooking fats and cooking grease to soap for ready removal. Since the grease is now water-soluble soap, it is readily removed. NEVER use TLS 2000 residentially, on upholstery, on prints, on natural fibers or on BASF Zeftron® 2000 fibers.
Pro-Zyme uses the enzyme approach to cooking grease. Enzymes should be handled carefully to avoid skin contact and inhalation.
Olefin fibers are frequently difficult to clean because of their tenacious affinity for oils. In fact, olefin (sometimes called polypropylene) is so oily itself that it is the only carpet fiber that floats in water! From research in the oil spill cleanup industry, Bane-Clene has an answer to the olefin problem - Bane-Clene® Olefin Preconditioner can also be used on extremely heavily soiled nylon.
When you encounter carpet that looks more like asphalt, a light spray of Citrus APS™ will instantly break the soil viscosity so that your subsequent cleaning procedure can easily lift the soil from the carpet.
One of the biggest causes of resoiling is overuse of prespray and not removing all of the prespray out of the carpet. Remember, the prespray should only be used where necessary.
For cleaning technicians new to carpet cleaning, we recommend the use of the Consumer Demonstration Kit to more easily tell whether you’ve removed all the prespray and soil. If you see a lot of foam as you’re extracting, extract until there’s very little foam left.
How are presprays dispensed? The hard way and the easy way!
- You can dilute the prespray and apply it with the Stainless Steel Pump-Up Pressure Sprayer or
- You can dilute the product and spray it from an electric sprayer, such as the Spray 1™ Electric Sprayer or the Multi-Sprayer® Deluxe Electric Sprayer.
- But, the easiest way is to simply put the undiluted concentrated traffic lane spotter / prespray into the Injection Sprayer, connect to the solution hose and spray the hot, diluted product to the soiled areas!
Related Articles and Information:
Carpet Cleaning Traffic Lane Spotter Prespray Products and Applicators:
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Published by: Bane-Clene® Corp.
Copyright: Bane-Clene Corp.
Author: Donald W. Terry, Sr., Bane-Clene’s Chemist
Date Modified: November 10, 2022
Date Originally Published: February 17, 2016