Divestiture (Details) (Tennant CEE GmbH and OOO Tennant) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2014 EUR (€)	Dec. 31, 2013 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 EUR (€)	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($)	Jul. 31, 2012 USD ($)	Jul. 31, 2012 EUR (€)
Divestiture
Date of divestiture	Jul. 31, 2012	Jul. 31, 2012
Cash received as part of the selling price						$ 1,014	€ 815
Amount financed as part of selling price							5,351
Total selling price							6,166
Total amount of installment payments received quarterly in 2013			2,826	2,126
Total amount of first anniversary payment received			1,435	1,075
Total amount of second anniversary payment received	1,418	1,075
Remaining amount of payments remaining to be received on the third anniversary date	1,357	1,075
Disposal Group, Not Discontinued Operation, Gain (Loss) on Disposal					$ 784