Ruth has had many interesting cleaning and restoration "opportunities" in her career, including this mold remediation and restoration of a giraffe skin for one of her favorite clients. Ruth's account of the giraffe remediation was featured in the March 2001 issue of ICS Magazine. She was inducted into the CM hall of Fame in 2002 and was voted as one of Clean Fax Magazine's "Dream Team" in 2003.

	For many years Ruth wrote a monthly column, "The Rug Lady Report" for CleanFax Magazine. She also wrote many articles in ICS Magazine as the IICRC President.  Some of the topics she's written about include: "Background Checks for Employees," "Naming Your Business," "Professional Appearance," "How and Where to Find Good Employees,"  "Inspection Misimpressions" and of course, "Color Correction."
	Professional Presentations Ruth has made throughout the US, Australia and England include: -"Add-On Sales" -"Carpet Spot Dyeing" -"Carpet Color Corrections" -"Commercial Upholstery Cleaning" -"Desktop Publishing" -"Guaranteed Pet Odor Removal" -"Specialty Spot and Stain Removal"
	And what about her Classes? Go back to the HOME page to find the schedule for the next few months.   Work "smart" not "hard" in your business. In addition to the principals and techniques of rug cleaning, odor control, carpet inspection or color repair, in Ruth's all PowerPoint classes you'll learn:   IICRC-Approved Senior Carpet Inspector  The course includes: §          Introduction: scope and purpose of the course; role of the inspector; role of the commissioner; IICRC §          Module 1 – Fibers: natural, synthetic, blends; carpet distortion and fiber characteristics; fiber identification (burn, chemical testing); fiber life cycle; fiber-related inspection issues §          Module 2 – Yarn Manufacture: continuous filament v. staple yarn; inspections related to yarn §          Module 3 – Backings: purpose; types; miscellaneous considerations; inspections related to backings §          Module 4 – Report Writing: IICRC policies; report form; report sequence; documentation; basic English and grammar! §          Module 5 – Carpet Construction: weaving; types of weaves; tufting; other constructions; pile designs (styles); construction-related inspection issues; rugs §          Module 6 – Carpet Dyeing: dye types; methods; dye problems; characteristics of color; commercial color matching; reasons for color change; color transfer or variation; dye migration factors; dye migration avoidance; natural color loss; chemical color loss; dye-related inspection issues §          Module 7 – Finishing: stain resist treatment; drying; backing lamination; fluorochemical application; curing; shearing; inspecting; shipping; finishing-related inspection issues §          Mill and Laboratory Tours §          Module 8 – Carpet Cushion: purpose; types; cushion-related inspection issues §          Module 9 – Warranties: types; organizations; warranty categories §          Module 10 – Inspection Tools and Equipment: basic inspection kit; supplemental equipment; spotting kit; test cleaning equipment; carpet repair kit; color repair kit; testing chemicals §          Module 11 – Photography: equipment; essential to photograph; background; lighting; flash; inserting photos in claims reports; photos evidence §          Module 12 – Specifying Carpet: fiber; face weight; pile design; color; pattern; cushion; installation method; specification-related inspection issues §          Module 13 – Carpet Installation: methods; subflooring; procedures; installation-related inspection issues §          Module 14 – Carpet Soiling: psychology; definitions; classes; new carpet odor; soil-related inspection issues §          Module 15 – Carpet Maintenance: exterior, entry maintenance; vacuuming; maintenance spotting; interim v. restorative cleaning; maintenance-related inspection issues §          Module 16 – Cleaning Basics: chemistry; principles; methods, inspection issues §          Module 17 – Spot and Stain Removal: identification; principles; equipment and chemicals; agents, digesters, color removers; inspection-related issues §          Module 18 – Inspecting Challenges: Shading, Oily Tracking, Yellowing, Filter Soiling and Fume Fading, Streaking, Browning, Rippling, Delamination §          Module 19 – Litigation: Expert witness testimony §          Module 20 – Marketing Inspection Services Students begin writing claims on day 1 to enhance writing skills.  Every day begins with inspection reviews to reinforce training objectives, and ends with homework.  Multiple samples are included.   Course materials for all students include: 1.      Complete and comprehensive student manual with all the technical details 2.      IICRC S100 Standard and Reference Guide for Professional Carpet Cleaning 3.      IICRC Inspection Reference Guide 4.      CRI 104 Commercial Carpet Installation Standard 5.      CRI 105 Residential Carpet Installation Standard 6.      The Cleaning, Restoration, Inspection and Safety (CRIS) Glossary 7.      A complete book of examples of commercial and residential carpet claims with photo documentation, divided into sections to include: manufacturing-related claims specification-related claims installation-related claims end-user-related claims maintenance and cleaning related claims 8.      A complete CD containing all the claims referenced on the above for individual inspector use to ensure accurate and professional claims reports on the first attempt   The ASCI course is taught by internationally acclaimed instructors, lecturers and authors Jeff Bishop and Ruth Travis, IICRC MTCs and SCIs: Guest instructors include Lew Migliore, Benny Wood, Sim Crisler, Lee Phillips, Gary Asbury – all experts in their fields.   Course Exam prerequisites are IICRC CCT and RRT certifications.     Students must bring their own computer for report writing.   IICRC - Approved Color Repair (Correction): Color is the number one reason consumers choose carpet. When an unknown "menace" causes a stain or discoloration that ruins that "perfect carpet" the consumer ultimately turns to the cleaning professional for help. Whether a discoloration from acne medication, household bleach, insecticide or urine removes color, or a stain from coffee, plant food, mustard, furniture or soft drink adds color to the carpet, trained technicians can become "heroes" after completing this in-depth two-day course.   The Carpet Color Correction Course covers the history of dye, color theory, the carpet dyeing process, carpet fibers and construction, and spotting procedures, as well as on-location carpet dyeing.   Color restoration for sun fading, color enhancement for faded traffic areas, side-match correction and "wear" related conditions such as shading, pooling and watermarking also are addressed.   IICRC-Approved Rug Cleaning: Don't Let Industry Changes Pass You By! The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification recently approved a new certification category to be named Rug Cleaning Technician (RCT).  The first IICRC-approved RCT course was in August and finished with great enthusiasm and knowledge gained.   It's particularly beneficial to have the new RCT category in place because, with consumers turning to more hard surface flooring alternatives for living areas, area rugs have climbed to 25% total production market share.  And that figure doesn't include the import of Oriental and specialty rugs.   Dont know about you, but by far Id rather clean a rug in my facility for $3.00-5.00 per sf2, than drive to a home or business and clean wall-to-wall carpet for 30" per sf.  Thats $324 for a single 9x12 rug! This RCT course is unique because it features two instructors! Ruth's assistant instructor is none other than the long-time industry author, convention and workshop trainer, magazine columnist and former IICRC Technical Director, Jeff Bishop.   Jeff brings over 34 years in cleaning and restoration experience to the course. RCT covers natural (wool, silk, cotton, linen, coir, sisal) and synthetic (rayon, nylon, polyester, acrylic, olefin) fibers, weaving, hand-knotting and tufting; dyeing; rug types and identification; cleaning techniques ranging from minimum-moisture to total-immersion; fringe cleaning, blocking and minor repairs.  This is the industry's most extensive hands-on rug cleaning course, with live demonstrations of hooked, Flokati, Dhurrie, Kelim, oriental and designer rugs, and also demonstrations of actual cat urine removal and 3 methods of fringe cleaning.    You'll learn to identify all major types of oriental and specialty rugs, with actual examples of over 100 rugs on display.  The course is being held in a cleaning/restoration plant and features complete submersion cleaning in a rug pit that you can build or purchase.    Prerequisites for taking the RCT certification are the Carpet Cleaning Technician (CCT) and Upholstery and Fabric Cleaning Technician (UFT) Certifications.  This is one course that you cant afford to miss.   The IICRC RCT-141 exam is offered at the end of the course. All PowerPoint presentations with videos, including the history of rugs and actual demonstrations of hand-knotting techniques.   WoolSafe-Approved Fabric Care Specialist: The purpose of the WoolSafe® Fabric Care Specialist Training Course is to provide professional cleaners with a convenient means for advancing their knowledge of wool-rich carpet, rug and upholstery cleaning.  The course is intended to supplement training received in the IICRC-approved Carpet Cleaning Technician (CCT) and Upholstery Cleaning Technician (UFT) certification courses.  The 7-hour course is approved for 2-IICRC CECs in the cleaning, restoration or inspection categories. This course is divided into a number of sections or modules and includes subjects such as: History of Wool Characteristics of Wool Wool Cleanability Wool Fiber Structure Limitations of Wool Chemical Damage Abrasive Damage Specialty Spotting Wool Cleaning Related Challenges and WoolSafe Approved Cleaning Products WoolSafe Program  WoolSafe® Fabric Care Specialist approval is conditional upon passing the course exam with an 80% or higher. Once approved, the WoolSafe® Fabric Care Specialist’s company is then eligible to apply as a WoolSafe® Approved Service Provider.  Their company contact information will be listed on the International Registry at www.woolsafe.org and they have permission to use the WoolSafe® mark in all their company promotion.

SCRT	Clean Fax	ICS

ruglady@mindspring.com