True GREEN Cleaning

Who says it’s not easy being green?  Enviropure Home Services, Ottawa’s leading natural and certified Green house cleaning service, offers the highest quality cleaning packages with only eco-friendly products.  This award-winning business has over eight years of experience in Green cleaning, and was founded on the principle that a family’s health is essential to a comfortable and happy home environment.

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A sparkling house is great, but not by way of toxic chemicals and harsh abrasives that leave a stench of unhealthy fumes.  The products used in every Enviropure home cleaning package are pet friendly, free of harsh chemicals and safe for children to be around.  By promoting both personal and environmental health, a green home improves the indoor air quality and provides a safer environment for the whole family.

Enviropure uses the most effective natural cleaning techniques and stays abreast of the latest green industry news.  In addition to a full range of eco-friendly cleaning services, the company also offers an Asthma and Allergy Control service, a package that includes regular house cleanings with hypo-allergenic products, HEPA filtration vacuuming and mattress sanitation.  The Asthma and Allergy Control service also makes use of cutting edge technology to kill dust mites and allergens using a UV-C light and Vaportek dry vapours.

Get Free Dryer Duct Cleaning Service in Union, NJ

It’s one of the leading causes of home fires in New Jersey. Each year countless fires are caused by accumulated lint and debris which can turn homes quickly into an inferno. Each fire costs homeowners in the Garden State thousands of dollars and devastation. Removing lint from your dryer isn’t enough to keep your home safe. It’s highly recommended for homeowners to clean their dryer ducts annually. NJ Duct Cleaning is now offering homeowners free dryer duct cleaning for customers who order house duct cleaning services in Union, NJ. The deal allows customers to save $79.
To take advantage of this great opportunity, simply visit NJ Duct Cleaning’s website at www.njductcleaning.com and print out the coupon near the bottom of the screen. This great offer is valid through November 30. Customers must present the coupon at the time of service.
The professionals at NJ Duct Cleaning can provide air duct cleaning services and air quality tests in Union, NJ for a variety of different HVAC makes and models. By keeping air ducts clean, homeowners can enjoy living in an environment with cleaner air, free of pollutants and contaminants. It not only increases the quality of indoor air, it also enables your HVAC system to work more efficiently, which can help save homeowners money on their energy bills. To learn more about the benefits of air duct cleaning, contact NJ Duct Cleaning free today at (973) 337-2444.
About NJ Duct Cleaning:
The indoor air specialists at NJ Duct Cleaning provide dependable and complete air duct cleaning services in Union, NJ and throughout the state. Since 1991, the company has been New Jersey’s trusted source for customers to keep the air quality in their home clean and safe.

Startup Aims To Tidy Up Cleaning Services

What could sophisticated software possibly bring to a home cleaning company, whose stock in trade is personal attention and manual labor?

Plenty, as a partnership between cleaning company owner Neal Whittington and software developer Steve Dowd is proving. Their venture, Indigru – launched in August – was one of three area startups invited to demonstrate their technologies at the Council for Entrepreneurial Development’s (CED) Tech Venture Conference in Durham earlier this month.

Whittington and Dowd were separate tenants at the Double Eagle flex space in downtown Wilmington. Whittington, who runs a commercial cleaning service, bemoaned the difficulties he was having with scheduling jobs and finding qualified, reliable people to do the work. Dowd, a programmer and web application builder, had successfully designed scheduling software for several clients.

Working together, the two developed a web-based business model for a residential cleaning service. Dowd’s software allows clients to select an available date and time for the service and also to specify how much cleaning time they wish to buy and add any options. The cost is then shown on the screen, and customers can click and pay.

The order software also allows clients to add notes, such as “Dog is harmless” or “Don’t clean the countertops.”

Once an order is placed, a description goes out to Indigru’s residential cleaning staff via a text. The first staff member to respond can claim the job, Whittington said.

New staffers must complete Indigru’s two-day training and certification process. After that, they begin receiving the job order texts. If their client reviews are positive, they move up the priority list, Whittington said.

“Our ranking algorithm [allows] the top-ranked cleaners to get the best jobs as well as first dibs on jobs,” he said. “It’s a motivator.”

Although Whittington and Dowd continue to tweak the software and plan to launch an app for both Android and iPhone in October, Dowd knows he doesn’t have to invent everything.

“We use a lot of integrations, all hosted in the cloud,” he said. “Our payments are done with Stripe, text messaging is done with Twilio and MailChimp handles our email transactions. Being able to piece together all these third-party programs … leads to our ability to expand.”

And expansion is in Indigru’s sights.

Once the company has gone through its shakedown cruise in the Wilmington market, its owners plan to roll out the service in other cities.

“The technology makes us scalable, so we have plans to expand pretty quickly into Raleigh, Greensboro and Charlotte,” Dowd said.

“We’ll have a city manager for each city to handle management, inspections and communication to the cleaners,” Whittington added. “We’ll focus on residential to start with,
but if the demand is there, we could possibly expand into commercial.”

Dowd said Indigru has also been accepted into Microsoft’s BizSpark network, which means the startup gets free software and support, access to investors and advisors and business training.

“It’s like getting a startup grant from Microsoft,” he said.

Both men reported positive results from exposure at this month’s CED conference.

“The conference certainly provided Indigru with credibility and momentum to move forward quickly,” Whittington wrote in an email after the Sept. 16 and 17 event. “Steve and I had numerous confirmations that we have a good idea and technology that addresses real problems. We are excited to have follow-up meetings scheduled to talk with investors.”

Carpet Cleaning In Bury Is Best One

An experienced and well-trained carpet cleaner often has the necessary equipment to do the work efficiently and effectively. They also knows the best methods and techniques to be used in different kinds of carpets. Carpet cleaning Bury by hiring only the most qualified professional carpet cleaner can bring the best results and can provide value for one's hard earned money. In hiring a professional carpet cleaner to handle Carpet cleaning in Bury, a home or business owner can seek the referrals of friends, family members and colleagues who have already hired a carpet cleaner. carpet is the most eye-catching and essential house eye-catching thing that offers warm and convenience. If it is a carpet cleaner you need then here are some helpful to finding the right professional for you. A professional carpet cleaner also has all the available cleaning solutions. There are many types of carpets made from different materials and in different blends. So, the cleaning process too will depend on the type of carpet and the usage area. Top quality support and perfect good care servicing program to choose in the reasons for client's need and price range. It also keeps the carpet beautiful. Professional carpet cleaning companies can do this job with proper equipment and using cleaning chemicals, shampoos and alkaline.

Laundry service app launches in Chicago

ed your laundry done? There's an app for that.

Starting Wednesday in Chicago, the busy and the lazy can place an order on their phones to Washio to have their laundry picked up by runners — they are called "ninjas" — washed, folded and returned within 24 hours.



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Washio is the latest to join Chicago's sharing economy. Such businesses rely on sharing human or physical resources or both. For example, the launch in 2000 of Zipcar, a membership-based car rental company, paved the way for Uber and Lyft, which involve drivers using their personal cars like cabs. Chicago has Instacart, a grocery shopping and delivery service. Companies like TaskRabbit send someone to run your errands for a fee.

Washio launched in Los Angeles a year and a half ago and expanded to San Francisco and Washington. The company won $10.5 million in venture capital funding in June and plans to expand to 10 to 20 additional cities in the next year and 60 cities in five years, the company said.

That doesn't necessarily mean Chicagoans will be open to using the business, said Linda Darragh, a Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management entrepreneurship professor.

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Quality will be the biggest concern, Darragh said. Customers will be hesitant about whether clothes will be well cared for and washed to their particular standards, she said.

"Transparency does a lot to mitigate these quality and safety issues," said Darragh, also executive director of the Levy Institute for Entrepreneurial Practice. She said she would want to know where her laundry will go to be washed and dried.

Though Washio teams with a laundry and dry cleaning service, Chief Operations Officer Juan Dulanto said the company doesn't disclose the names of those partners.

"We want to make sure it seems like it's magic," Dulanto said. "We believe the best way to create the best customer service is to own that whole process."

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The laundry service costs $1.60 per pound, and dry cleaning is on a per-item basis. Washio also has a delivery fee for orders less than $35 and an order minimum of $20.

"We really try to be in the median price range," said CEO Jordan Metzner. "We're not the cheapest, but we try to have fair market prices."


After customers download the app (for iOS or Android operating systems), they register and select a time for pickup, which is a 30-minute time slot. Customers are texted when drivers are on their way and when they arrive. Customers can leave their dirty laundry outside their door, or explain to the drivers stains or missing buttons that need to be remedied.

Adenrele Ojo, an actress from Los Angeles, said her work in that city as a Washio ninja usually means she has driven to a distribution center, where the clothes are sorted, by 6 a.m. She grabs her supplies, including laundry sacks and garment bags.

When she arrives at a home, directed by her Washio app that runs on a real-time algorithm based on customer requests and availability, she asks a few questions: Any issue with scented detergents? Need allergen-free? Want starch on those shirts or a crease in the pants?

Within 24 hours, she or another driver appears back at the customer's doorstep with the laundry. Customers get an itemized receipt emailed to them after drop-off.

Washio's ninjas work only the hours they want.

Ojo said she drives 20 to 50 hours a week with Washio, and also works as a photographer and producer.

"A lot of what we do as artists, particularly on the actor side, is auditioning," Ojo said. "In the meantime, while we're getting gigs, hopefully building up to larger gigs, it definitely helps balance out the finances. When you have slower times on the creative side, you can pick up more time at Washio."

Washio drivers must have a vehicle that's not older than a 2000 model.

The company had 20 runners ready to roll on launch day in Chicago. They will be paid $7 per stop, and, on average, they will work in 2 1/2-hour chunks, 16 to 18 hours per week.

Bryan Griesbaum applied for the Washio ninja position in Chicago after he saw an ad on Craigslist.

He plans to finish a degree at DePaul University soon and likes that he can switch between full time and part time whenever he wants.

He said he thinks the business idea is "brilliant."

Nursery education, street cleaning and town centre events under threat as RCT Council announces third round of cuts

A third round of drastic cuts to services across Rhondda Cynon Taff has been revealed with nursery provision for three-year-olds, music lessons for pupils, street cleaning and town centre events under the threat of being axed. The council’s cabinet will meet next week to consider cutting more front-line services in a bid to bridge next year’s £30m funding gap. No specific details of the areas being considered have been revealed. It will be the second time the controversial proposal to cut free full-time education for young children will be considered. The initial decision to scrap the provision was overturned by a judicial review earlier this year after Mr Justice Supperstone found RCT Council acted in “clear breach of its statutory duties” and “failed” to adequately consider childcare issues when passing the measure. Parents Against Cuts to Nursery Education RCT group led the campaign which culminated in the landmark court victory and as a result, free full-time education, free school meals and free school transport went ahead in September. However, the nursery provision proposal has been given new life and cutting the service from September 2015 will be considered again along with provisions for music services inside and outside schools – which according to the council currently receives “a massive subsidy”. Cutting funds for corporate service areas, including customer care and the town centre events programme, will also be considered. As well as this, the reports placed in front of cabinet will include proposals to reduce service standards in areas such as parks and street cleansing services. Councillor Andrew Morgan, leader of RCT Council, said: “I have been leader of the council for around four months now and in that time I have sought to ensure that every area of expenditure is reviewed. “This has included cutting my salary, cutting the budget of the mayor, stopping the publication of the council magazine Outlook and bringing forward a review of senior management which will save in excess of £1m. “Even with all of these savings they will only make a small dent in the massive budget gap we face as a result of public sector funding cuts. “Funding cuts by the UK Government and means local government in Wales will face a budget reduction of around -4% next year. “For Rhondda Cynon Taf that means an estimated budget gap of more than £30m next year. “With this rate of decrease predicted for the foreseeable future over the next three years we will need to reduce our net expenditure by more than £70m. “When you consider these figures in the context of rising demand for services such as social services, other financial pressures and the direction to protect the five to 16 schools’ budget, non-protected areas of spending which are provided above statutory levels will therefore have to take the brunt of the cuts.” As a result of this, Coun Morgan said the council has “no alternative” but to consider difficult decisions focusing on the services which are not statutory. He added: “That is why when cabinet meets next week there will discussions around considering to again consult upon amending our nursery admission funding arrangements. “I fully accept this will cause a great amount of public concern and as a new leader if I had a choice this is not something I would not want us to do. “If cabinet is minded next week to reconsider this matter, I will want us to engage much more effectively to explain the rational and need for this decision than the council did previously. “I will want to ensure that lessons are learned from how we managed this matter previously. “The decision of the new cabinet to rule out any amendments to nursery admission arrangements until at least September 2015 will allow the council to engage more productively than we did this time last year. “The startling reality of the situation is that even if cabinet support consultation, where appropriate, and then subsequently adopted all of the service change proposals due to be on the table next week, we would still face a remaining £13m budget gap that would need to be addressed.” In a bid to plug Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s £70m budget gap, over the next four years, two phases of cuts have already been rubber-stamped. These include shutting, or handing over to community ownership, 14 of the region’s 26 libraries, and 10 day centres. The Meals on Wheels service has also been reduced to see customers given chilled meals – delivered on a Friday – to heat up over the weekend. The Muni Arts Centre in Pontypridd and the Cynon Valley Museum and Gallery have both been axed, and the Coliseum Theatre in Aberdare and Park & Dare Theatre in Treorchy now face reduced programmes. All 12 outdoor paddling pools in the county borough have been closed, while all streetlights will be switched off in non-residential areas overnight. Meanwhile, leisure centres in Tonyrefail, Rhondda Fach, Hawthorn and Abercynon will remain open with reduced hours.

Fast-growing carpet cleaner Zerorez moving headquarters to St. Louis Park

Zerorez sounds like a growing company whether you spell it backward or forward.
The privately owned carpet cleaning firm will move its Minnesota headquarters to St. Louis Park later this year, shifting almost 170 employees out of cramped offices and a tight parking lot in Richfield.
Growth at the firm is behind the move, co-owner Michael Kaplan said.
"We moved to Richfield in 2011 and bought a building. At the time we had 22 vehicles for cleaning. Now we have about 50 and are continuing to grow," he said.
Zerorez has been on the Business Journal's list of the 50 fastest private growing company for the past two years, ranking 29th in 2013 and eighth in 2012. Zerorez Minnesota is a franchise of Zerorez Franchising Systems Inc., based in Draper, Utah.
Zerorez is the first tenant to be announced for Hillcrest Development's renovation of a large office and warehouse that was formerly home to the St. Louis Park Nestle factory. The firm will move into about 60,000 square feet on the east end of the site. The building is near The West End retail center.
The new space in St. Louis Park will give the company room to grow and to expand its services, Kaplan said. It is known for providing residential carpet cleaning but the company also has a growing commercial carpet cleaning business, a service cleaning out HVAC ducts and a fine-rug cleaning business.
The St. Louis Park site is fairly centralized in the metro area. It has easy access off and on Highway 100, although there will be headaches to work around like traffic and road construction, Kaplan said.
In its new home, Zerorez is working with CenterPoint Energy to get a compressed natural gas dispensing station for its hybrid fleet. Its vans use traditional fuel and natural gas that it purchases at a handful of sites around the Twin Cities.
Zerorez has retained Colliers International Minneapolis-St. Paul broker Eric Batiza to sell its 26,000-square-foot building along Highway 77 in Richfield.