Keeping it green

In late 2012, David Wikum grew tired of selling home loans. He decided to change his career focus altogether and turned to carpet cleaning. First, he chose to gain firsthand experience as an apprentice at a carpet cleaner out of town. After breathing in fumes on the job from conventional cleaning products, Wikum says he could feel the harshness of the chemicals permeating his lungs. “His stuff would kill me every day,” he said. A few eco-friendly clients changed that. The company’s owner told Wikum they were going to switch up their products “for the hippies,” Wikum fondly recalled. Those products, which were hypoallergenic and biodegradable, weren’t harsh and didn’t cause him any pain. But the green products cost about three times more than the conventional ones, so they weren’t used on every job. That’s when Wikum knew he wanted to go green, regardless of cost. In 2013, he started his business. Today, Go Green Chico Carpet Clean is going strong, using all eco-friendly products. For more information, call Wikum at 592-2574 or visit his website at gogreenchico.com.

What services do you provide?

Definitely carpet cleaning. Some pet odor and urine removal, but in a natural way. No harsh chemicals. You don’t have to use harsh chemicals for odor removal. And I do tile and grout cleaning and upholstery cleaning like couches, chairs, stuff like that.

Natural products actually work for removing the smell of pet urine?

Yeah, yeah. There are chemicals, but they’re all natural, biodegradable. Actually, the pet enzyme that I use to remove odors, I’ve squirted it into my mouth before. I wanted to make sure that it was safe. It tasted a little minty, to be honest.

What’s the toughest thing about carpet?

The problem with carpet is it’s like a sponge. It just soaks up all your kids’ spills and what you’re walking on from the inside, the outside. That’s why it’s important to take off your shoes when you get into your house, because you’re bringing the outside in, and you’re bringing that into your carpet. That’s never good.

Any other tips for keeping carpet clean?

Watch what you use with spot cleaning. A lot of people use soaps and detergents, and … it makes peoples’ carpets dirtier faster—they have soap residue left in their carpet that attracts dirt.

What do you hope to offer your customers?

My best. I don’t overbook myself, so I’m never in a huge rush. I could make more money, I guess, if I booked more jobs per day. But then you start cutting corners and you’re just not doing the best job possible for your client.

Aside from being green, what sets you apart?

If you use my services, you’re going to get somebody who really cares about his clients, that genuinely wants to do a good job. Because Chico is small, I run into clients all the time. I just try to be authentic and genuine with them. Not everything is about money.