SUMMIT COUNTY - SteamMaster has served Summit County since 1978. But, it won’t be until the world-renowned cleaning company builds its new Breckenridge store that its workers have a definite place to stay.

Building on a concept already in place in Minturn, the company is looking for ways to give workers the security they need when taking a job in Summit County.

“The shop in Frisco was just a commercial space that we rented,” SteamMaster owner Gary Gilman said. “In Minturn, we bought a lot where we could build employee housing. We want to incorporate those same uses at our Breckenridge site.”

The Breckenridge store will have 7,080 feet in the storeroom space and...

...The high cost of living in Summit County is a concern for Gilman, who is looking at alternative ways to staff the new shop. Another concern is not having enough people in the county who want the job. In that area, he said he’s able to use his Web site to advertise job openings all over the world.

With the housing boom in Summit County and the growth of time-share units and rental buildings, Gilman may need all the help he can get. Not only does SteamMaster play a large role in new developments, but the company is often called out to rental units to tidy up.

“We’ve done a lot of cleaning for property management in Keystone and Breckenridge,” Gilman said. “We do turnovers from rentals, too, so I deal with several people who are trying to rent their house. I think a lot of these services are much in demand, so we’re looking forward to being better able to better serve the community.”

SteamMaster is currently renting a space on Ten Mile Drive in Frisco, but even in its successful location, SteamMaster owner Gary Gilman said he’s planned to move to Breckenridge for a while.

“Eighty to 90 percent of our work is done in Breck, which is where the affluent end of the market is, especially for our specialty finishes,” Gilman said. “A lot of these expensive homes need other services than carpet cleaning, so we’re also doing some wood floor cleaning and recoating.”

SteamMaster has been cleaning carpets and restoring houses after water and fire damage since it started but has emerged in recent years as a complete specialty cleaning company.

Services include grinding, honing and polishing precious stones, removing scratches and water stains from almost any surface and sealing and cleaning granite.