Encapsulation Carpet Cleaning Explained

Everything You Need to Know About Oxi Fresh’s Encapsulation Cleaning Method

At Oxi Fresh, we’re proud to be experts in the field of encapsulation carpet cleaning. But what exactly is encapsulation carpet cleaning? And why does it matter for you and your life?

In the following paragraphs, we dive deep into how encapsulation works, how the chemistry evolved and developed over the decades, and why encapsulation cleaning is the best choice for you and your carpets. To put this together, we spoke to leading experts in the industry who have played important roles in the development of the products and methods used.

So, if you’re looking for a comprehensive deep-dive into the world of encapsulation carpet cleaning, you’re in the perfect place. Read on to learn a whole lot more!

How Encapsulation Cleaning Works

When we say “encapsulation,” we’re talking about a specific kind of chemistry that’s used in certain modern carpet cleaning methods, like Oxi Fresh’s.

In this approach, specialized cleaning products that contain encapsulating polymers are applied to the carpet, then agitated with a machine like our OF1000 to ensure even application. As these liquid polymers dry within the carpet pile, they form crystals that “encapsulate” and surround the soil trapped in the fibers. This dirt and debris, now encapsulated in brittle crystals, can then be easily removed with a vacuum, leaving the flooring fresh and clean.

In the illustrations below, we’ve tried to capture the essence of this process in five simple graphics.

Even after the main cleaning process is complete, encapsulation products will continue to work their magic on the carpet in a process known as “dehydration phase cleaning.” As the pile continues to dry out, any remaining soil or solution will ultimately end up trapped in crystalline formations that can be easily removed with routine vacuuming.

That means that, with Oxi Fresh’s encapsulation approach, your carpet should look better and better in the days after the cleaning (as long as you continue to vacuum).

With this advanced chemistry in our toolkit, Oxi Fresh is able to offer low-moisture carpet cleaning services that produce truly exceptional results on a consistent basis.

The History of Carpet Cleaning Chemistry: From Basic Soaps to Advanced Encapsulators

In the earliest days of carpet cleaning, carpets and rugs were made of natural fibers like wool and hair. The people that attempted to clean these carpets relied on basic soaps that were similar to what they would’ve used at the time to wash their own hair or face.

Unfortunately, these early products created a new problem that would plague generations of carpet cleaners to come: rapid resoiling (meaning the carpet quickly got dirty again). The soap products used in these early processes left behind a substantial amount of residue in the carpet. After the cleaning, these residues tended to attract dirt and soil—making the carpet even dirtier than it otherwise would have been.

Next in the history of carpet cleaning chemistry came a wax-like substance called Ludox, which developers thought would fill grooves and crags in carpet fibers in order to prevent soil from being captured and trapped. Slightly better than the soaps used previously, Ludox didn’t solve the resoiling problem and created a dirty slurry that would ultimately interfere with the carpet’s ability to refract light, leading to duller, uglier flooring over time.

Ludox was followed by the emergence of so-called “detergent encapsulation” products. Mr. Mark Warner, former President of the Low Moisture Carpet Cleaners Association, explained the thought process behind this evolution as such:

“This was an attempt to enhance the rinse-ability of the cleaning chemical by increasing its soil load capability and assisting in its ability to be flushed out of the carpet. As a point of fact, many of these early cleaners were not much different than diluted Fantastic, containing butyl as their active solvent.”

Still plagued by various issues, detergent encapsulation did at least offer customers and carpet cleaners some slight improvement in terms of resoiling.

First-Generation Encapsulation Products

In the mid-1980s, a new line of products emerged in the world of carpet cleaning which eventually came to be known as “true encapsulation cleaning.” By this time, carpets were mostly being cleaned with liquid solvents (a substance used for dissolving something else) and surfactants (a substance that decreases the surface tension between two other substances).

But these products had a major flaw: when they dried all the way out, they still left behind a tacky or gelatin-like residue. Again, these residues attracted dirt and grime and led to frequent, rapid resoiling.

To improve these products, carpet cleaning chemists developed a novel “encapsulating” solution. They added new components made of acrylic co-polymers to these solvent and surfactant blends. Similar to floor finish, these acrylic co-polymers caused the chemicals to dry down into a hard, crystalline material that formed a rigid shell around both the carpet fiber and the entrapped soil. As people walked around on or vacuumed their carpets after the cleaning, these hard shells would fracture and break away from the fiber so they could be vacuumed out of the carpet at a later date (at least in theory).

Today, we consider this evolution to represent the first generation of true encapsulation carpet cleaning products. This concept proved to be fairly popular and marketable, but it still had its downsides. As the process created a dirty slurry, some of which was left behind in the carpet pile, any residual acrylics tended to take on an amber-brown color, blocking the carpet’s ability to properly refract light and leading to dull, discolored carpets.

Second-Generation Encapsulation Products

In the late 1990s, the same chemical innovations that had revolutionized the world of nonstick cookware with coated pans entered the encapsulation carpet cleaning scene. In these new cleaning products, fluorocarbon-based polymers left a Teflon-like substance on the carpet fibers, causing dirt and soil to easily slide off.

Just like Teflon, however, these “second-generation” encapsulation chemistries ultimately raised health and environmental concerns amongst consumers. (But don’t let this worry you about Oxi Fresh: our modern Encapsulator is Safer Choice-certified by the EPA!) Like their carpet cleaning predecessors, these second-gen products continued to lead to rapid resoiling, as the fluorocarbon polymers tended to draw moisture from the atmosphere down into the carpet pile, attracting dirt and soil to the carpet fibers.

Third-Generation Encapsulation Products

By the time the third generation of encapsulation carpet cleaning products came on the market in the 2000s, chemists had discovered and introduced entirely new solvents and surfactants. Where earlier products relied on solvents and surfactants that left behind tacky, gelatin-like residues, these third-generation products dry down to a powder all on their own, without the need for any other additives.

Beyond these improvements, today’s third-generation encapsulation products also make use of a non-bonding polymer material. As the carpet is cleaned, the solvents and surfactants loosen the soil and create a slurry. As it dries, the non-bonding polymer encapsulates the soil and any other residues in a brittle, crystalline film (unlike the hard, rigid shells formed with first-gen products). Since the encapsulating polymer doesn’t bond to the carpet fiber itself, the encapsulated soil can be easily, freely separated from the pile and vacuumed away.

With these new chemistries, these products can perform at the highest levels without requiring any acrylics, fluorocarbons, perfumes, or other undesirable ingredients from bygone eras. They’re also more eco-friendly than previous carpet cleaning products, especially at Oxi Fresh. Beyond that, these cutting-edge encapsulation products have dramatically improved carpets’ resistance to resoiling, greatly reducing this core problem that had limited carpet cleaning’s efficacy since the very beginning.

Paired with other innovations like the development of dual cylindrical counter-rotating brush machines like our OF1000, these advancements have ushered carpet cleaning solutions into the modern era.

Industry Reactions to Third-Gen Encapsulation Products

With the advent of these powerful encapsulation products that drastically reduce resoiling, much of the carpet cleaning industry has embraced low-moisture approaches like Oxi Fresh’s with open arms.

In the distant past, carpet mills and industry organizations like the Carpet and Rug Institute had focused on hot water extraction (HWE) as the leading method for professionally cleaning carpets. For some time, they avoided recommending low-moisture encapsulation carpet cleaning methods to their customers—largely because of the resoiling problems associated with those older products from the past.

But as the industry evolved into the third generation of encapsulation cleaning products, those key players came to recognize the crucial benefits of these newer methods for both customers and their carpets. In particular, they realized that invasive, disruptive, and expensive HWEs weren’t ideal for the vast majority of carpet cleaning needs, which are better addressed by low-moisture cleaners like Oxi Fresh.

Because of these newer chemistries and their many benefits, international standards from the two leading industry groups in the world of carpet cleaning—the Carpet and Rug Institute and the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification—now recognize the importance of low-moisture carpet cleaning for keeping carpets’ cleanliness and appearance at the highest possible levels.

Encapsulation Cleaning at Oxi Fresh

Founded in 2006, Oxi Fresh Carpet Cleaning has been a pioneer in the use of advanced, third-generation encapsulation chemistries on a national scale, and we continue to innovate. Today, we’re one of the biggest brands in the world of carpet cleaning, bringing these highly effective and efficient services to our customer’s homes and businesses throughout the U.S. and Canada.

In our specialized approach, we use state-of-the-art solvents and surfactants—all of which dry to a powder on their own—in combination with a novel encapsulating polymer that forms brittle, easily removed crystals around dirt and soil. This entire formulation is liquid, allowing for an even application of the product and a deeper level of cleaning. (Note: our Encapsulator is just one of several products utilized in any normal Oxi Fresh carpet cleaning.)

According to carpet cleaning chemist Dave McQuiston, a leading expert with more than 30 years of experience in the industry, Oxi Fresh’s unique encapsulation formula has “just the right amount of solvent in there, but not a coalescent or plasticizing agent, so it allows it to dry and brittle like we want, while the solvent and surfactants make all the dirt cling to it.”

Mr. McQuiston also noted that our Encapsulator has a “higher acid number,” which allows it to be stable alongside another core Oxi Fresh product that can help brighten carpets and improve cleaning results.

Oxi Fresh’s approach to encapsulation carpet cleaning has also received a stamp of approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for its environmentally friendly nature. The EPA thoroughly tests and analyzes cleaning products in order to issue “Safer Choice” certifications to solutions it finds “are safer for human health and the environment,” including Oxi Fresh’s Encapsulator. So with Oxi Fresh, you can rest assured your carpet cleaning won’t introduce harsh, harmful chemicals into your home or business.

Plus, our encapsulation-based approach enables us to clean carpets with significantly less water than our HWE or steam cleaning competitors, making our innovative approach even more friendly for the environment.

The Benefits of Encapsulation Cleaning for You & Your Family

At Oxi Fresh, we’re all about the customer. That’s exactly why we opted for encapsulation carpet cleaning in the first place: because we know it offers our customers better results and a more convenient, satisfying experience.

To wrap this whole thing up, here’s a quick rundown of some of the major advantages of choosing Oxi Fresh’s encapsulation carpet cleaning for your next service:

• Consistent, top-quality results
• Saves time and resources with low-moisture, fast-drying methods
• Greater resistance to resoiling
• No sticky or crunchy residues left behind
• Cost-effective cleanings
• Eco-friendly chemistry
• Lower risk of carpet damage or deterioration

With all these benefits, we know our cutting-edge approach to encapsulation carpet cleaning is a win for everyone involved. For your next carpet cleaning, try Oxi Fresh’s innovative approach!

*We’d like to thank two people for sharing their expert insights and knowledge during interviews which formed the basis for much of this article. First, we’d like to thank Mr. Dave McQuiston, a professional R&D chemist with more than three decades of experience crafting products for the carpet cleaning industry.

Additionally, we’d like to thank Mr. Mark Warner. Still heavily influencing the direction of the industry, Mr. Warner has served as the President of the Low Moisture Carpet Cleaners Association, the Technical Advisory Committee Chair and Division Leader for the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification, an Advisory Board Member for the Housekeeping Channel, a member of the Board of Directors for the International Sanitary Supply Association, and so much more. Mr. Warner also shared several of his previous articles which also supported this piece, including his technical white paper, “Understanding Encapsulation Chemistries,” and his April 2011 Cleaning Specialist article, titled “Low-Moisture Cleaning: Time to Re-think Carpet Maintenance?”