The custodial supply places near me sell carpet extractor
detergent. One brand they had, really had a stink to it. The
other brand much milder. I ran out of the mild, one time.
Used some of the stinky stuff. The customer commented that
was good stuff, smelled like it was doing something.

Definition of EMULSIFIER
: one that emulsifies; especially : a surface-active agent
(as a soap) promoting the formation and stabilization of an
emulsion
See emulsifier defined for kids »

Definition of DETERGENT
: a cleansing agent: as a : soap b : any of numerous
synthetic water-soluble or liquid organic preparations that
are chemically different from soaps but are able to emulsify
oils, hold dirt in suspension, and act as wetting agents c :
an oil-soluble substance that holds insoluble foreign matter
in suspension and is used in lubricating oils and
dry-cleaning solvents
See detergent defined for English-language learners »

(Actually, most detergents are great emulsifiers. And many
emulsifiers are made from detergent.)
I've not heard of carpet cleaning school. I'm guessing the
large chains have in house training.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Ron" wrote in message
...

I am glad to hear that your experience was that portable
equipment is as
good as truck mounted equipment.

Some of what I have been reading is to not use detergent,
particularly
powdered detergent, when doing carpet cleaning. Apparently,
there is some
type of emulsifier that carpet cleaning companies use
instead of detergent.

Aside from figuring out the right type of equipment to get,
one other thing
I will have to figure out is where to get actual training on
how to do
professional carpet cleaning. I have heard that there are
"carpet cleaning
schools" that people can attend, but I haven't found any
yet.