A Little Bit about “Wicking” – What is It and How to Deal with It

So, let’s talk about “wicking.”  On Monday we blogged about low moisture carpet cleaning. Cincinnati Maintenance is a big believer in this type of carpet cleaning which is also called encapsulation. You can see from that blog that we usually adhere to this type of cleaning because it dries fast, is non-toxic, and does not create a large “footprint” in the enviroment.
But, there is another reason we employ the encapsulation technique when serving our residential and commercial clients. It’s called “wicking.”
And, you don’t want it. Wicking, that is.
Have you ever had your carpets cleaned – particularly a specific stain – and it looks great but in a few days, that stubborn stain mysteriously shows back up? Frustrating, huh?  Well, THAT’S wicking.
Wicking is caused when a stain is created – usually from a spill – and it has penetrated deep into the carpet.  Then, when the carpet cleaned – commonly by a “wet” (water) extraction method – the part of the stain that has deeply penetrated the carpet is not completely removed.  After this type of cleaning is performed and the carpet has dried, the residual portion of the soiled area “wicks” its way to the surface of the carpet fibers.
Then, BAM! The carpet looks bad again because the stain has creeped back up to rear its ugly head.
With Cincinnati Maintenance’s green, low moisture technology, dry time is often only 45-90 minutes and also prevents that nasty wicking or reappearance of stubborn stains.