How many time clean carpet

[JohnB]

Hi all.

Just bought a Hoover carpet cleaner, $300 worth. So far I like it fine. Seems durable, leaves the carpet very dry.

I have been very lax in carpet maintenance in the 3 years we've lived here. I clean it about once a year and vacuum only every few months. As such, our carpets are filthy!

So, I cleaned it once and the water in the recovery tank was very dirty, almost black, not surprisingly. So, on a whim I cleaned it a second time with pretty much the same results. Then I cleaned it a third. Then I cleaned it a fourth, this time with only hot water. This time I got a little foam which means that I probably didn't rinse enough the prior 3 times. Then I cleaned it a fifth time, again with only water, and the water is still dirty. My question is, per the wife's instructions, will I damage the carpet in some way if I continue to clean it until the water is clean(er)? Will the brushes wear out the fibers of the carpet. I'm not too worried about the carpet getting too wet. I get about the same amount of water in the recovery tank as I put in the top tank. The carpet dries somewhere between 30 minutes and one hour, which is the best I've ever seen. The first time my cat was lying on the carpet 20 minutes after I finished!!

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance. JB

[JoeSpareBedroom]

Your house sounds disgusting. Have the carpet cleaned by a professional. Then, vacuum every week or two. And, start taking your shoes off when you come in the house.

[Marty B.]

My first thought is, just take a water hose and flood the rooms. Then, you and your wife can roll around in the mud, like the pigs that you are. OINK......OINK!

[willshak]

on 10/30/2007 5:16 PM JohnB said the following:

Look up 'Compulsive-Obsessive'.

[Phisherman]

Good housekeeping recommends vacuuming twice a week, more often if you have >2 people or pets. Your carpet will need less-frequent shampooing with frequent vacuuming. Rinse until the waste water is clear. Keep the nozzle slowly moving at all times. Hot water can damage some carpets; cool water is best for rinsing.

[buffalobill]

the labor on using these things home units is too long as we all must learn. the garden hose and wet-vac are the ultimate solution, but you will water-damage the floor and building. give the hoover to an enemy, or "loan" it your friend who doesn't return tools. :) call the cleaning company and get a flat rate for your project, and let your wife supervise it. in different climates and conditions we have different dirt or mud or sand or dust or grime arriving onto the carpet, so the intercept plan of janitor mats at entrances may work at some hallways, where washable rubber back throw rugs may work in others. the still wet padding underneath your carpet is now growing mold and there are dirty water stains into the wood floor. or maybe not. the cat's not talking. :)

[HeyBub]

You cannot wear out the carpet with the brushes. The carpet gets "brushed" equally hard with the vacuum.

As to how many times you should clean the carpet, clean it until it's clean enough for you. If it looks swell right now, leave it alone.

[JohnB]

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Now THAT'S an answer to my questions. And thank you to anyone else who made an honest effort. Also, thanks to these nice people, I don't have to yell at the people who called my family ugly names! That was a close one! :>)

JB

[observer]

To be honest, we don't vacuum but perhaps every 1.5 months and clean our carpets perhaps every 5 years or more. However, we have a small family (no kids), no pets, no smokers, always remove our shoes (this helps a lot) and don't eat or drink over our carpets. And we do have some floor mats before walking on the carpet. Believe it or not, the carpets look pretty good and are now about 9+ years old. The real negative is when the wife cooks something smelly but then I try to open the windows to vent it. So I'll be the last person to criticize another for lack of vacuuming as you can see.

[HeyBub]

Just common sense.

I'm amazed at the people who shower their whole body when it's so much easier to note prior to turning on the water which parts are dirty and merely do them.

[Dan Espen]

I call BS.

I have one of those Hoovers, and I've rented units at the rental place and I've had pros come in. They all do exactly the same thing. They get the carpet wet then pull out the mud.

The difference is, one of those Hoover units in your home is a whole lot cheaper and more likely to be put into use.

If you like strangers in your house and have money to burn go for the pro. Otherwise one of those home units are a good deal.

[Stormin Mormon]

How many times should he look it up? Three for a bare min?

[AshleyEeee]

replying to Marty B., AshleyEeee wrote: Wow so RUDE you don't know these people so don't be so quick to judge for you haven't even seen their home. So rude to say those things! I am a very clean person and I had shampooed my carpet 5 times over and water still came out dirty. Doesn't mean I am dirty. I deep clean my home once a week and vacuum on a daily basis. But my carpet was really dirty and water wouldn't come clean. Now if he were truly dirty then he wouldn't even bother using a shampooer or asking advice.

[ItsJoanNotJoann]

Hey dummy, you're getting your panties in a wad over a NINE YEAR OLD POST!! Can you retards at HomeMoaners not read?? Evidently not, you losers are always replying 7, 8, 9, 10 year old threads. But I blame that worthless homeownershub for most of this stupidity and but you junior high school dropouts are responsible as well. You for visiting such a stupid site and not reading the dates you are posting replies to.

[ItsJoanNotJoAnn]

replying to AshleyEeee, ItsJoanNotJoAnn wrote: Yoo-hoo!! Did you even read the date of the post that you're getting all hyper and defensive about? I didn't think so.

[Asheeee]

replying to ItsJoanNotJoann, Asheeee wrote: Junior high drop outs have better grammar skills than you do.... AND you sir have your panties in a wad too since you also responded to an old thread. Don't be so hypocritical. Honestly sorry to make you so angry sounds like you have a lot going on and need to take it out on somebody.

[Jack G.]

Your problem is poor vacuuming practice and you are doing is wearing out shampooer. You need to vacuum real slow and check the amount of dirt in your vacuum when it is low then you can shampoo.

[ItsJoanNotJoann]

BWAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA, I just proved my point on your reading skills. You don't have enough sense to realize Joan and JoAnn are female names.

I responded to you, nitwit, because you got pissy when called out about a post made NINE YEARS AGO. Did you even look at the date before you tried to read Marty the riot act?? The date is right there on the post, so no denying it. Fess up, you know you've been caught so no back peddling and trying to deflect criticism because you're none too bright. Now head on back to HomeMoaners and let everyone know you truly are a dunce.

[Paintedcow]

What about the boy named "Sue"?

OUCH.... Sounds like a bad case of PMS !!!

Are there any doctors on this newsgroup who could assist?

[ItsJoanNotJoann]

Ashley needs the help of an optometrist to see 9 year old threads and resist the impulse to rip someone a new rectum (Marty) and then get an attitude when her reading inabilities are pointed out to her.