Enough is enough, we need a carpet cleaner. I have never rated Vax, but have not used one in years maybe the new ones are better, had a Bissell until recently and it was a pile of crap, maybe we just had a bad 'un. What other makes are there, I'm not arsed what it looks like, can the industrial types be picked up at a reasonable price?
Any recommendations would be appreciated.
Oh, we have a dog, short haired (doberman).
Cheers, Rick
This is a bargain
The reason I picked that type of carpet cleaner is because I've used that model on a heavily soiled(and I mean heavily) carpet and after two sweeps over the carpet in the soiled area I ended up having to do the whole carpet. :-(
ps its pick up only if you havn't noticed? why they said FREE postage is beyond me?
Yeah, I noted it was collect, it's quite a distance but could be well worth it depending on the final price.
I haven't listed anything collect only on eBay so I don't know what the options are, but have noted this a number of times when looking at items, maybe it's the only way?
Most machines just apply and extract liquid. Isn't the key thing the type of cleaning chemical that you are using?
Of course it is but its no use using the best liquid on the market if the machine is naff at delivering the liquid and sucking up the dirt whilst the tool is scraping the carpet as it cleans.
The message from "R D S" contains these words:
I have found, over many years of cleaning, that a steam cleaner does a much better job than any of your 'shampoo applicator' jobbies.
Cleaners which use shampoo always leave some shampoo in the carpet (I don't care what sort of claims they make!) and the shampoo then attracts dirt, so the carpets, through time, get dirtier quicker.
I use an Earlex, which also strips wallpaper, etc.
The shampoo is needed to revitalise the carpets wool...same as you would use a shampoo for your hair to give it bounce. ;-) By the way after the carpet is completely dry you would normally hoover it to suck up the remains of the dry shampoo particals. ;-)
Your shampoo analogy doesn't really work, as after six weeks, _hair_ becomes self-cleaning. No carpet does that!
As a house-cleaner, with some 15 years experience, I reckon I used every carpet cleaner available - and yes, I am aware of all the claims they make- and I _still_ haven't found anything that does a better job (including Vax, Bex-Bissell, Kirby, etc. etc.) than the Earlex steam cleaner. It leaves the carpet looking like new, removes dog hair, etc, and every one of my clients were delighted with the job done, and _none_ of them had any need of having their carpets cleaned again within a matter of months, as used to be the case with 'shampoo' cleaners. YMMV, but the OP asked for opinions, and/or recommendations, and this is mine... ;-)
British Institute of Cleaning Science qualified instructor here!
You are both right. The quality of detergent is crucial, the ones sold by the hire shops/sheds are designed to give maximum profit not maximum cleaning. Most of the trade use Prochem.
In an extraction cleaning machine, the solution pressure & volume AND the vacuum power affect the ability to clean. The vacuum is not just for water removal, it plays an important part in soil removal as well.
But where does the soiling go? Unless you use an absorbant cloth on the steam head it remains in the fibres, just deeper down. Even with an absorbant cloth a steam cleaner only removes surface dirt, it can't clean deep down into the pile.
Depends on which kind of shampoo. Dry foam shampoo e.g. 1001, Bex Bissel etc are designed to crystallise as they dry, trapping the dirt particles. How much residue is left depends on the effficiency of the vacuum used.
Extraction detergents like those you would use in the Karcher or the George are low residue anyway, and if used properly leave very little residue behind.
You are right in what you say though - any excessive residue will attract dirt.
The best way to clean carpet IME is an old American technique, now much overlooked. Scrub the carpet with a rotary machine, soft brush & low foam detergent. Follow up with an extraction machine without any detergent to rinse. Almost 100% soil removal, no residue whatsoever. Needs a skilled operator mind.
I would have thought high foam would be better for carpets so that the grime is suspended in the foam. Mind you, I have made a point of knowing nothing about such matters :-) Interesting that after a thorough vacuum clean I can still go over our carpets with a damp sponge and pick up handfuls of fluff belonging to our long haired cat. I guess it sticks to the foam by electrical attraction, but certainly nothing else shifts it. In fact you wouldn't know it was there at all because the carpet looks clean enough.
AIUI the key points to look for are:
- pressurised water delivery
- contrarotating brushes
- rigid tanks rather than bladders
- good suction
NT
The message from "The Medway Handyman" contains these words:
The Earlex comes with a terry towelling and thin foam bonnet, which wears out very quickly. So I found a use for all the old, rather disreputable-looking towels that were lurking at the back of the airing cupboard! I found double or triple folds worked well.
It also makes a great job of dragging animal hairs out of what looks like a perfectly clean carpet...
Two questions then.
Where on the scale dose a rug doctor fall into this? Where can I obtain Prochem?
Dave
The message from Dave contains these words:
Isn't Prochem a franchise? I think that's the one my son distributed for a year or so...
If that's the case, there's probably a distributor somewhere near you - but whether they do one-off sales is debatable.
You might find your nearest distributor here:
I'd say the Rug Doctor would be excellent. Known in the trade as a self contained extractor. It uses an oscillating brush between the spray & vacuum to greatly increase cleaning ability. Less water per square yard cleaned, less residue, faster drying, deeper cleaning.
I'd reckon the detergent sold by Rug Doctor would do a good job in the machine, the mechanical action of the brush is doing a lot of the cleaning & Rug Doctor have been around the block enough times.
Look in Yellow Pages for Janitorial Suppliers - most stock Prochem & will serve the public.
Not as far as I know.
Most janitorial supply houses will do one off cash sales.
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