Do you own a carpet cleaning machine?

Why the reluctance to rent one? I do every now and again. That way, I don't have to store it, maintain it or pay to have it repaired. They're no more difficult to operate than an ordinary vacuum cleaner, apart from tipping out the waste water and cleaning out the filters, which always seems to leave a bit of a mess. The kind commonly on rental here can be ferried to and fro on the bus, so it's not that difficult to pick them and take them back.

Jut to pass on a tip: Whatever you do, do not use too much water. My regular carpet cleaner (he's been doing this for over 30 years) says that a lot of homeowners make the mistake of using too much water when they do their own carpets. Too much water destroys the carpet pads - but you dont' see it, so you don't know it. When the sponginess of the carpet pad goes away, you're increasing the rate of wear and tear on the carpet itself.

I have a Bissell but I think it is only good for light carpet cleaning. It is really not that good at tough stains. I leave mine at our storage unit as it is a pain to store in my small apartment. I think you would be better off renting one.

What about a steam cleaner for celaning tile floors, and furniture - has anyone used or owned one either?

Aren't the rental ones heavy? I have stairs and am thinking about my back and shoulder. You are right about the storage space though. Good tip on the water.

I'd leave it to the professionals. I think a lot of people who do it themselves use too much water or do something not quite right ... To me, most carpets never look as nice after a non-pro has cleaned them.

I've seen too many places where the homeowner rents a machine and screws it up. You end up with wet floors that end up smelling like wet dog, or crunchy carpet somehow.

It's easier to simply spot clean any messes, vacuum and have a pro come in when it really needs a full cleaning. I'd never buy one but that's simply because I can't imagine using it often enough to warrant the expense and hassle.

The one you can rent at Von's or Alberston's Food Stores are pretty easy to use. Even a novice like myself can figure it out and use it safely without damaging the carpets.

I used it to clean the carpets in my classroom and it's a gigantic room without any mishaps.

I would rent one and do a small area, if it doesn't work out for you - you can then call in a professional. It is only a nominal fee to rent one.

$30.00 to rent one vs. $100.00 plus to pay to have it done. The only difference is the operator.

We bought the Bissel (< $200.00) carpet cleaner several years ago and used it for several years. It's definitely for light stain use. It has an attachment for upholstery that actually works very well on tougher stains.

We changed to hardwood, laminate and tile floors throughout the house this year and now have the steam cleaner, I think it's a Shark. Has micro fiber pads on the bottom. Just fill it up and go to work. If there is a sticky stain such as soda from the little kids that visit, it usually takes two or three passes over it to clean it, then you move on. We have two pads, one for the bathrooms only, and the other for the rest of the rooms. Simply throw them in with the wash and they're ready to go.

I used my brother's Hoover cleaner and it worked great so I bought a Bissell on sale. Returned it after one use and spent the extra money on the Hoover. Love it still after many years of use, including loaning it out several times. Was especially useful during the aging pet years.
Definitely don't use too much water, it's best to go over a spot a couple times lightly. Best of all to get the spot when it's fresh. I pour hot-hot water directly on a stain and then make an effort to get much of the water extracted from the area. Don't use too much soap/detergent, it can set stains and you don't really want to spend more time rinsing and extracting. Home depot has a gallon of carpet cleaner for about $7-8, much cheaper than the stuff at the grocery store.

Anyone who has purchased carpet recently, within the last year or so, would do well to go to the manufacturers website as well as the fiber website..Stainmaster for example..and READ their maintenance and warranty information. It's the information they don't give you on the back of the sample when they are telling you how wonderful their product is.

Some of you can be voiding your warranty by cleaning your carpet yourself. This is just FYI, that's all.

We get our carpets professionally cleaned 3-4 times a year. It isn't that expensive and they do a great job.

Good morning, crefloors, I was hoping you would see this thread. The flooring company we always used told us to never attempt to clean our carpets ourselves. They said doing so really wears out the carpets. They never mentioned that it would void the warranty but over the decades our carpets were still beautiful and in excellent shape which sure helped when we sold our properties.

We have a Bissell we bought at Costco. I think it works pretty well. It doesn't quite work miracles but the carpet is noticably cleaner when we're done. It takes as much dirt out of the carpets as the ones you rent.

Good point crefloors, we aren't big warranty people anyway. Most warranties are limited warranties and their worth is generally overstated. We buy quality stuff, take care of it and usually don't worry about warranties.

I would never state I "own" him

SV

I'm not a big warranty person either, but some are, but they should know all the gory details IF they are. I print a bunch of the information off the websites for my customers and give it to them as a packet when the install is done, that way they have all the information they will need if the occasion ever arises that they want to register a complaint. They also know ahead of time what is and is not covered in the warranty and any exclusions.

It's definitely best to know what your warranty says so you know your part and their part.

I had a Bissell Little Green Machines Deluxe that was fairly effective and easy to use in small areas. BUT the plastic screwtop on one of the bottles cracked, rendering the entire machine useless. I called the company, looked in parts stores, and checked eBay but never could find a replacement.

I have Hoover steam cleaner and swear by it. With kids and pets, its a no brainer It works extremely well, is easy to use, and has lasted about 9 years so far. I had a Bissel about 17 years ago and it was worthless, but that may have just been the model I had. This Hoover though has been great and a few other friends bought it and have been just as pleased. I have had our carpets professionally done a few times, and I do just as good of a job.