Pressure and PSI

What is actually happening

For most soil, pressure is not the interesting variable — the four suspension variables of the IICRC S100 sequence are chemical action, heat, agitation and time, and pressure is a delivery question rather than a cleaning one. Pet urine is the exception, because there the problem is not on the fibre at all. A full accident passes through the face fibre, through the primary and secondary backing, and soaks into the pad; on a large or repeated deposit it reaches the subfloor. Depth is then the whole job. Spiker runs 4.0 GPM at 1,200 PSI through the wand for cleaning, and injects enzyme at around 700 to 800 PSI for urine work specifically, then flushes until the recovery water runs clear.

How you prevent it

Ask any company how much solution actually reaches the pad on a urine job, and how they know when to stop flushing. A method designed around keeping moisture OUT of the backing cannot reach a deposit that is under it — that is a description of the design rather than a criticism. And the honest limit stands regardless of pressure: we never guarantee a result on pet urine, and the complete fix is replacing the pad and sealing the subfloor, which Spiker does not do.

Pressure decides how deep a treatment can reach. Surface cleaning stays on the fibre; reaching contamination in the padding and the subfloor requires enough pressure to drive solution down into those layers. Spiker injects enzyme treatment at around 700 to 800 PSI to saturate the pad and subfloor.