By: Tim Riley
Maid Brigade (www.maidbrigade.com) is the only Green Clean Certified(TM) (www.greencleancertified.com) home cleaner that uses green cleaning chemicals certified by Green Seal for a safe, yet thorough cleaning of your home. Green Seal (www.greenseal.org) is a non-profit organization devoted to setting environmental standards, product certification, and promoting environmentally responsible cleaning products. Maid Brigades products contain no toxins or harmful carcinogens. "Green cleaning is for the health of your home, family and pets," said franchise owner, Steve Miller. "Green certification means that chemicals are not harmful to the environment or to individuals. We do not use ammonia or bleach products because they may be harmful to the surfaces and potentially harmful to you." Miller explained that when cleaning products are applied to a surface, residue is left behind which can potentially be ingested. For example, after cleaning with a bleach base product on a kitchen counter your child uses it to make a sandwich. They lay the bread on the countertop which allows the bread to absorb the residue. When they eat the sandwich, they ingest that residue which could cause the child to have a reaction. Just because you may not smell cleaning products in your home after a green cleaning does not mean your home is not clean. Maid Brigade uses the BETCO (www.betco.com) line of chemical products, which are Green Seal Certified and leaves behind very little odor. "People who are not familiar with us ask what products are used and how we clean a surface, my cleaning staff only uses our green products," Miller explained. "As to how we clean, we use color-coded cloths so we will not transfer bacteria between rooms. For example, if you are in the bathroom you are using a red cloth. We have four different colors for four different areas we are completing in the home." Maid Brigade uses micro fiber cloths and mops instead of those made of cotton or paper. Micro fiber uses a scientific weave that is more effective at removing dust, dirt, germs, grease and lime safely and effectively, reducing chemical use. Micro fiber cloths last longer than traditional cloths, reducing environmental impact. Maid Brigade also uses a state of the art cleaning system to clean their cloths. "We do not use soap to clean our cloths; we use an ECOQUEST LaundryPure System which is energized water with silver nitrate," Miller added, "which means we are not polluting the environment by dumping detergent down the drain." Maid Brigade also uses the ProTeam (www.pro-team.com) 4-stage filtration vacuum, which removes 99.9 percent of all air particulates to improve the air quality in your home. ProTeam has partnered with the American Lung Association to educate the public about the importance of healthy indoor air quality. "In conjunction with cleaning from a "green" perspective, each new team member goes through a complete background check and are fully trained on the process of how to clean a home in an efficient way. This includes a listing of what areas they are cleaning first, second, third, fourth, etc., and this process is followed in every home." Per Miller, if you have a two-story house we begin at the top and work down. The first area of focus is to begin in the bedroom(s) and bathroom(s) and then move on to other identified rooms with the last room being the kitchen. The two different team members will split the responsibilities across these rooms in order with one person taking all the wet areas (bathroom, kitchen, mopping) and the other is dusting, trash collection and vacuuming all surfaces. We also do tasks in a logical order to ensure optimal results - i.e. dusting is done before any vacuuming is completed. While the kitchen as a last step in the process is being completed, a field supervisor walks through and performs an inspection on the home." For additional information about Maid Brigade or their services and/or products, please use one of the options to contact Steve/his staff: local office location (7805 L St., Suite 160, Omaha), via their website http://omaha.maidbrigade.com or via phone at 402-991-9650.
The entire contents of this publication are © Copyright 2010 The Omaha Newspapers and may not ethically nor legally be reproduced in whole or in part without the written permission of the Publisher.