Choose the Perfect Kitchen Tile

Cooking in the kitchen can make you feel uncomfortable, especially on hot summer days. Imagine how great it would be to feel the cool sensation of tile flooring under your feet. Needless to say, tile flooring has many perks - it’s easy to clean and looks beautiful too. But how do you choose the right one?

If you’re having trouble deciding, here are three primary types of tile to consider:

Porcelain. Made from minerals and sands. This water resistant flooring is a great option for those summer parties where you’re more likely to have a spilling accident. Porcelain is also hard and dense, making it ideal for installation if your kitchen is a high traffic area in the home.

Ceramic. Made from various types of clay. Ceramic tile is simple to install, but more prone to damage than porcelain. So be wary about dragging chairs or dropping heavy pots and pans on the floor if you’re thinking of investing in ceramic tile.

Stone. Possibly the most expensive type of tile, but also the most durable. This beautiful flooring option requires sealing but once intact, you’ll have a timeless element added to your kitchen. 

Play up tile flooring with different shapes and sizes. Squares are a popular shape, but rectangles, hexagons, and octagons can also make a bold statement. Consider the durability, texture, and level of water resistance upon making your decision.

If you’ve already found the perfect kitchen tile for your home make sure to keep them looking clean! Constant foot traffic, the use of cleaners, and even the presence of moisture especially during the warmer seasons take their toll on tile flooring. For a professional cleaning and sealing of these surfaces, call the textile specialists at Triple S.

We have three main plant locations:

Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street

Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue

                                              Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue  

For cleaning tips and updates, connect with us on social media!

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Stop Dirt at the Door

With summer on the horizon, it’s inevitable that more time will be spent outside, which means we’re likely to carry dirt inside the home. Constantly cleaning the floors can be a nuisance and one less chore we’d all like to check off our to-do list, so cut the mess at the source of the problem - stop dirt at the welcome mat with these four tips:

Keep dirt on the doormat. Don’t take a step forward! Place mats inside and outside the home so you bring less dirt into your home. A mat should be long and wide, just enough so you can walk across with both feet upon entering the house. This allows you and your house guests to scuff mud off your shoes before walking into the living room or the kitchen.

Put a limit on entrances. If you want to reduce the dirt entering your home, limit the number of entrances you use. In other words, use either the front door or the back door, but try not to use both frequently. If one of them has an easier-to-clean floor, make that your main entrance.

Make your house a shoeless zone. To keep hardwood and carpet as clean as possible, politely ask family, friends, and guests to kick off their shoes before entering your home and leave them just inside the door. Adding a decorative basket or painted shelf where people can place their shoes will make this gesture more inviting.

Close your doors. Dirt loves to travel and spread all over your house! It hides in all those corners you wouldn’t even think to look or clean, so keep your doors closed. This includes drawers, wardrobes, and cabinets too. You’ll realize that dirt will stay more out in the open, where you can easily vacuum or sweep it up.

Will you think twice next time before you walk through the door? If your carpets need a deep cleaning from all the dirt your shoes are picking up this season, call the textile specialists at Triple S! We have three main plant locations:

Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street
Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue
Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue  

Expert Tips for Allergy Cleaning

Sneezing more often? It’s that time of year again! Allergy season is upon us, which means being outdoors can get uncomfortable. It also means that pollen can easily creep inside our homes. The good news is that a little cleaning in each room can solve the problem. Here are a few expert cleaning tips you can start using now:

  
Bedroom. A third of our lives are spent in the bedroom, so it’s important to start there. Pollen, dust mites, and pet dander easily catch onto bedsheets, so make sure you wash them weekly. As for comforters - clean them at least once a month. Allergens collect on your flooring too, so mop hardwood floors weekly and regularly clean your carpets for a good night’s rest!

Bathroom. Warmth and moisture combined create a moldy environment. While a hot shower may feel refreshing, it causes mildew to grow unless we clean frequently. Clean shower stalls and bathtubs weekly, and don’t forget the shower curtains too! Scrubbing away soap scum is the number one way to keep mold and allergens away. 

Kitchen. Prevent allergens in the kitchen by making it a habit to clean a little bit each day, especially if you cook often! For starters, clean food and grease from your stove after each use and soak up spills immediately. Did you know insects can attract allergens? To avoid them, remove the trash daily and clean in and around the fridge. Last but not least, wash your floors weekly.

Living Area. Between carpets, drapery, and furniture, there’s plenty of surfaces to vacuum. When you find that vacuum bags are about half way full, throw them away and replace with a new one. We recommend HEPA filtered vacuums or central vacuum systems that exhaust outside.

Believe it or not, a room with carpets and draperies has better air quality than hard surfaces because textiles act as a sink and hold contaminates until removed by cleaning. However, it’s important to always keep them fresh! Call the cleaning specialists at Triple S! We have three main plant locations:

Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street
Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue
Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue 

How to Remove Paint from Drapes

Looking to repaint your home? Before you pull out the paint brush, make sure you’re prepared to keep your fabrics clean! It’s important to remove drapes before painting your walls to prevent stains, but just incase you’ve already got a headstart without removing them, here’s how you can get them looking fresh again:

Step 1. Scrape off wet paint. Before any paint gets absorbed into the fabric of your drapes, scrape it off using a knife. Careful not to push the excess paint into deeper layers of the fabric as this will be very difficult to remove!

Step 2. Wash with detergent. Mix liquid dishwashing detergent with cold water. Dip a clean white cloth into the solution and work it into stains. The best technique is to press and twist your drapes firmly into the paint spot so it saturates.

Step 3. Rinse. Next step is to dip another cloth into clean water and blot to rinse out the detergent. Are all the paint spots gone? If not, apply some more detergent and rinse it out once more. Repeat this process until you are free of stains.

Step 4. Blot remaining stains. You’re almost done! For drapes that are non-washable, blot any remaining spots with acetone. For washable fabric, apply a pretreating stain remover to the remaining stains.

Step 5. Have a professional cleaning. Some paint is too tough to remove without professional cleaning. If stains dry before you get a chance to wash them or detergent isn’t having an effect, take your drapes to your local cleaner.

Call the specialists at Triple S for a professional cleaning today! Our Take-Down and Re-Installation Service can help you protect your fabric while you repaint your home! Our trained professionals will remove your draperies and make sure they are thoroughly cleaned and then pressed, sized, and returned to you with new pins, exact length and perfect hemlines. Call our experts before your next paint job and leave the work to us!

Triple S has three main plant locations:

                                                Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street
                                                 Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue
                                                Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue

Rug Padding FAQ

To pad or not to pad - that is the question. When it comes to carpeting, there are many factors to consider. With different types of flooring and carpet fibers, you may be wondering if you need an under pad for your area rug. In an attempt to help, we’ve put together our most FAQ’s and expert tips to help you decide:

Do my area rugs and oriental rugs need pads under them?
Although entirely your decision, we recommend you pad your rugs for three main reasons: they prevent slipping and sliding, control curling and wrinkling, and reduce wear and tear.

What surfaces are rug pads used?
Rug pads can be used on all surfaces, but be careful of which pad type you buy. There is padding designed for hard surfaces like, hardwood floors, laminate, tile and stone floors. Others are designed to be used when a rug needs to be placed over carpeting or another rug.

Should I put a pad under a rug being laid over wall to wall carpeting?
Yes, you should! Area rugs placed over wall to wall carpeting tend to shift position, causing it to buckle and bunch - a potential tripping hazard! Choosing proper under padding will keep the rug flat, safe, and increase it’s life expectancy.

 What is the best type of rug pad?
100% synthetic performs the best as it contains no animal or plant fibers to decompose, or irritate allergies. A dense, “needle-punched” synthetic fiber pad that prevents shredding, decomposition, and mildew is your best bet.

What do you recommend?
At Triple S, we recommend three different pads to our clients. For hardwood floors and tile, try Dura-Hold and Omni for very small rugs. These two pads offer a non-skid backing to prevent it from sliding across the floor. Do you have wall-to-wall carpeting? We recommend NoMuv, which is designed to prevent your rug from moving on carpet.

Looking for a top rated pad for your area rug? Triple S has an array of recommended padding solutions. For more expert tips on carpets and padding, call the cleaning specialists at Triple S! We have three main plant locations:

                                            Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street
                                             Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue
                                            Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue

Green Carpet Cleaner for Your Home

Want greener products in your home? Look no further than Deirdre Imus Carpet Cleaner! In trying to keep your home environmentally friendly, Triple S has proudly used DICC for about 7 years. In 2001, Deirdre Imus founded The Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center with experts from the Hackensack University Medical Center. Together, they created, Greening the Cleaning (GTCTM), a not for profit corporation. 

Greening the Cleaning® has a line of products that strive to eliminate all cleaning agents containing hazardous ingredients and replace them with eco-friendly products. 

Here’s why you should try it:

It’s all natural. Greening the Cleaning® makes a strong effort to make formulas that contain naturally-derived, plant, and mineral-based ingredients - avoiding harmful toxins.

It protects animals and people. These products are never tested on animals and are not formulated with animal-derived ingredients or known human carcinogens. All ingredients are fully disclosed!

It’s used in facilities nationwide. Greening the Cleaning® products have been implemented in hospitals, schools, day care centers, government facilities and businesses around the country. Not to mention, they are used at Hackensack University Medical Center - the 4th largest hospital in the country.

It helps non-profits. All profits from GTCTM products go directly to the Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center for supporting the Greening the Cleaning® program. It also funds research and education to ultimately protect the environment from toxins that threaten children's’ health. It also helps the Central Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired (CABVI) to provide for those who are blind and visually impaired.

Triple S helps protect the environment while keeping your home eco-friendly! We are a Clean Trust* certified firm that can help you meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommendations for Indoor Air Quality programs. We have three main plant locations:

                                           Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street
                                            Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue
                                           Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue

Way to Go Norwalk Mad Bulls!

Triple S is proud of our Mad Bulls wrestling team for their newest accomplishment! On May 2nd and 3rd five Mad Bull national qualifiers traveled to the Wicomico Civic Center in Maryland to meet the best youth wrestlers in the country. Although a very tough tournament Norwalk had two wrestlers place 2nd and 8th in their respective weight class, making it the best showing for Connecticut in 48 years that the Youth Nationals have been held.These wrestlers were our third national place winners in two years and are now National All-Americans!

Between state, regional, and national championships, the Norwalk Mad Bull program is currently a top ranked Connecticut and New England team. Among the accomplishments, the crowning fifteen State Champions, two New England Champions, as well as three national place winners ALL in their five short years of existence.

Meet the team:  

Art Schad, Manager of Triple S Carpet & Drapery Cleaners Corporate Services Department and Textile Specialists is the head coach and founder of the Mad Bulls of Norwalk, Connecticut.

The Mad Bulls program is a non-profit, volunteer organization that was formed in 2010. The program believes that wrestling instills the values of commitment, discipline, sportsmanship and good overall physical fitness. The Mad Bulls also give the kids a safe, sanctioned place to exercise, socialize, and develop lifelong skills. The roster peaked at 85 members this year and added an all-girls team last year!

We are proud of Triple S’s Art Schad and his team of hardworking athletes for their huge accomplishments. For up-to-date happenings in the Norwalk area, check out our Facebook Page!

Looking for a trusted carpet cleaner in Fairfield County? Call the textile specialists at Triple S today!We are located in Connecticut with three main plant locations:

Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street

Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue

                                              Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue

What is an Abrash Rug?

Looking for a new rug that is sure to make your home a one-of-a-kind? Leave it to a hand-knotted rug to spruce up your favorite living space. When you walk into a store, ask for an Abrash rug - an oriental rug color with a truly authentic design.

Here’s why an Abrash rug is a unique choice:

It has different color variations. The term Abrash, from the Arabic word for mottled, is used to indicate color changes that run horizontally across the rug. So a light shade of blue may have hints of darker blue, but these hues will never be the same as another rug.

It has a unique dyeing process. Abrash results from variations of the dyeing process. it’s never a perfect match, which makes each one stands out. Because the weaver runs out of one batch and restarts with another, it results in different shades. How cool is that!

It cleans up well. The true colors of Abrash are easily obstructed by soil, causing it to lose its vibrancy. Luckily, Abrash reacts well to a professional cleaning, bringing back the rich hues. Unlike other rugs, an Abrash rug will look new for years to come!

What do you think of the Abrash oriental rug color? Tell us what you think on our Facebook page!

Need a deep clean for your oriental rug? Call the textile specialists at Triple S! We have three main plant locations:

Stamford Plant | 400 West Main Street

Norwalk Plant | 337 Westport Avenue

   Stratford Plant | 1800 Stratford Avenue