At my last count, we sell over 30 different traffic lane presprays here at Pembertons! That can make things pretty confusing for the most experienced cleaners. Much of that variety exists because of brand, fragrance, and other preferences. To simplify things, you can break prespray products down into four categories:
Standard Traffic Lane Cleaners, Olefin Preconditioners, Enzyme Presprays, and High pH Presprays. The names of these categories are mine, but they give you an idea of what each one is.
Standard Traffic Lane Cleaners usually have a pH around 10, and are considered by most carpet manufacturers and fiber producers to be safe for all synthetic carpets. These products have solvents and surfactants as part of their formulation to create products that really do most of your cleaning. You'll find that they emulsify oils, suspend soil, and break down most spots so completely that you need to use little, if anything, in your extraction solution. Products such as these have lead to the use of acid rinse agents and detergents, and sometimes simply the use of clear water rinses. There remains a place for alkaline cleaning detergents of course, and we'll discuss that at a later time.
Olefin preconditioners are made primarily to cope with the issue of the way oily soils, especially oily particulates, cling to oil loving fibers such as olefin, polyester, and triexta. These products use advanced surfactant technology to break the bond of these oily soils and allow for easy suspension and later extraction. The use of such products will lessen the chance of wicking as well.
Enzyme presprays work specifically on food based soils, such as proteins, carbohydrates, and starches. If you clean restaurants, cafeterias, and other food service areas, such products can speed up your cleaning, and eliminate the need for special spotting. These products are not necessarily as effective on the oily soils that are often found in Asian restaurants, however.
Your ultimate "nuclear option" is the use of highly alkaline presprays. Such products have pH ranges between 11 and 12, and may not be suitable for non colorfast carpet fibers. Their distinct advantages are the fact that they can be used for abused rental property carpet, as well as restaurants and other carpets that have been exposed to heavy traffic, accumulated synthetic and protein based oils, and general abuse.
