Anyone hired a Rug Doctor?
The web site video suggests that the carpet will dry within 2 hours - is this accurate?
How close to the skirting boards can you get? The video skips over cleaning around the edges.
I have used Vax carpet cleaners and similar which are reasonably effective - how much better is the Rug Doctor?
Anything to watch out for, or better alternatives?
TIA
Dave R
Not that make, but I've used plenty of 'self contained extractors with power brush'.
Depends entirely of the type of carpet pile fibre. Wool can absorb 40% of its own weight in water, nylon less than 1%. No vacuum can suck water from the fibres.
However, since the cleaning is faster - due to the brush - less water is used per sq mtr so less water to dry out IYSWIM.
Dont know, but you get a hand tool & hose with the package.
Several hundred percent I should think.
Get the detergent dilution right - use a measuring jug - not 'a few glugs'.
More info here;
Yep - they're good, if not rather heavy.
Depends - in todays Southeastern heat it might. Normally, because I had to scrub the sh*t out of mine (babies) it would take most of the day.
Couple of inches - you can use the hand tool if you need to get right up close.
If you have bad marks such as dropped food or grease, it's best to get the spot cleaner spray too and zapo some of that on. I used fairly warm water too which helped.
yup, couple of times.
Depends on the carpet and what its made from I expect. Something synthetic, quite possibly.
Within an inch or so with the machine, and there is a hose assembly that will take you closer if you need (the edges are not usually as dirty as the rest IME since they get less foot traffic)
On a scale of 1 = crap, and 10 = excellent, I would put the vax et al (assuming tis the posh one with pumped detergent) at about a 2 or three, and the rug doctor at 8 or 9)
The rug doctor consumables are expensive although they work ok. I expect a trip to a commercial cleaning suppliers would yield far cheaper supplies.
Thanks for the helpful responses so far.
We are debating cleaning the nice light coloured carpets which we think were fitted by the previous owners to market the house, or lifting them and just having floor boards which would be much more practical if the boards are good.
Cheers
Dave R
In article , David WE Roberts writes
IME you're more likely to see problems cleaning to the edge with a light carpet than with a dark one. The strength of the rug doctor is the brush based cleaning action but the edging tool doesn't have that so can only clean as well as a regular carpet cleaner there. For a heavily soiled light carpet that can mean a darker band at the skirting. Also, in contrast to John's experience, I've found that older draughty properties have dirtier edges on the carpet due to underfloor dust being blown up at the carpet edge. There you need to avoid sending cleaning jets under the skirting gap then sucking (very) dirty water into the edge of the carpet, making the problem worse.
Overall score for rug doctor 8/10, it's all I would hire now, but they do try to get you on the consumables.
Agreed about cleaning efficiency; and ISTR hiring one from somewhere and they *insisted* on flogging you the matching cleaning fluid
David
I've found them good too, but they do work better with the RG cleaning fluid which seems to have some sort of foaming reducer. ISTR running out once and finishing off with conventional carpet cleaner fluid (1001 or similar) and having problems with excessive foaming.
Chris K
They are two entirely different cleaning chemicals. Detergents for extraction machines are designed to be low foam. 1001 or similar are designed to be high foam and are not suitable for extractors.
If you want to avoid an argument, tell them you bought the large size last time and have loads left over. If they still don't like it then I'm sure you've got the vocabulary to tell them where to stick the edging attachment. Just about everywhere is doing them these days, Morissons, Tesco and dry cleaning shops so you can always go elsewhere.
Shop around - I found they were much cheaper to hire from Morrisons than the dry cleaning place around the corner. Homebase was much more expensive.
Got it from Morrisons, no hard sell on the chemicals at all.
Darren
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