Have 2-3 year old carpet (and a two year old) that is in need of cleaning. The carpet is light colors and we mainly have traffic dirt and a few minor stains...

A few months ago I hired a local chemical-dry cleaning contractor for a different room and really wasn't impressed with the results.

Would like to clean this carpet myself but have limited experience with carpet cleaning..

What is the best (economical) way to clean carpet. Should I rent a cleaner from my local safeway store..

Thanks!!
Scott

 

Hire it done but go with someone who uses hot water extraction (they might call it steam). DIY carpet cleaning machines don't have the power you need to do the job you want.

 

DEFINATELY find a "reliable" carpet cleaning company that uses "Truck powered" steam cleaning (hot water extraction). I have seen what a good deep cleaning job it can do but remember the equipment is only as good as the operator using it. The other carpet cleaning methods are inefficent.

 

Before you jump to conclusions about cleaning methods conceder this

It all depends on the material of your carpet, soil load in the carpet, you personal expectations, realistic expectations and your budget.

For example: if you have olefin carpet say near a kitchen...no matter what method is used the carpet will only remain clean for so long

Why is this? Olefin is plastic and it loves to hold onto grease and oily soils.

Berber style carpets: Can be olefin, nylon and very rarely wool...but berber style carpets...trap and hold soil load and Hot water extraction is NOT the preferred and best method if the carpet has a heavy soil load. Why is this? The carpet will hold more moisture than other styles of carpet. Thus causing a wicking method after cleaning. So, some soil load or spills may return, even thou the person doing the cleaning may of done everything right.

Now if this dry cleaning method was a form or powder cleaning..were you pour powder into the carpet, agitate and vaccum out. Than yes, that is not the right way. It was thought to be great back in the 80s, before it was proven that you never get all that powder back out and it damages the carpet.

Low moisture cleaning...which is now commonly called encapsulation...removes the top load of soil from the carpeting and some spills. A cotton bonnet is used to agitate the cleaning solution in and pull some out at the same time. Remaining chem dries in the carpet to form a polymer around the remaining light soil to be removed during the next vaccuming. This is very effective on olefin and berber style carpets.


Truck mounted cleaning is very effective-BUT if you have a cleaner that rushes or uses to high of a PSI you will not have great results.

Portable cleaning systems can yield the same results as a truck mounted, with the difference the machine would be inside the home during cleaning.

And last...mitch is right you will not be happy with DIY rental machines....like you said the machine is not even half of the equation...you can never factor in how much a persons experience is worth. It can mean the difference between replacing your carpet and making it last serveral more years.

 

As stated "the equipment is ONLY as good as the OPERATOR using it". After cleaning thousands of sq. ft. of carpet, I will put my money on Truck powered cleaning against anything else on the market. Comparing apples to apples, using proper cleaning solutions and HARD work, nothing will get your carpet cleaner than a truck powered unit. From my experience portable units just dont have the vaccum power to get the moisture and deep down dirt back out like a truck powered unit does. Thats where DIY people make their biggest mistake and leave to much moisture and soap in their carpets and wonder why it stays wet for a week!! You HAVE to get OUT what you put IN !! A good truck unit's vaccum will "suck the chrome off a tralior hitch". I have cleaned dirty rental units that other cleaning methods couldn't touch. I have seen what comes out of DIRTY carpets using truck power and it aint pretty. People were amazed at the crud that was in their house's carpets. You get what you pay for. In my opinion, if you want a real cleaning, use a truck mount but even the very best equipment wont do it all by it self. The person on the other end of the cleaning wand has to know what they are doing and want to do the job right!!!

 

I purchased a Rug Doctor about a year ago. It has the carpet in my whole house looking like new. The carpet is a creamy off color white.. like pewter. It has alot of suction as well. The only down side (not by much) is that it uses alot of hot water. With two small kids and pets, it has already paid for itself.

I'll be using it over the weekend to clean the carpet in my family room. I can take before and after shots if I remember..

 

Leases on our rental units specifically disallow using a rug doctor because we believe the average person will make things worse, rather than better, by using one.

 

Carpet cleaning is best left to the professionals who have the experience, equipment, and recommended cleaners. They have the big trucks with enough suction to remove excess moisture which can cause delamination of carpet backing and mold/mildew problems. They have the ability to maintain water temperature at 180 degrees plus to disinfect carpet and remove soil. They also have the proper cleaners that do not leave residues that can cause rapid resoiling of carpet.

The Carpet Rug Institute recommends a professional cleaning every 12-18 months, more often depending on traffic. Stains are best attended to immediately before they set. Different stains require different spotting solutions, so a knowledge of stain removal is required. There will be soiling and wear in high traffic areas. Placing mats at doors and removing shoes can minimize carpet soil.

DIY carpet cleaning machines are not intended to replace professional carpet cleaning. Call a professional.

Learn more about carpet and care and maintenance at the Carpet Rug Institute's site at http://www.carpet-rug.org/residentia...mers/index.cfm

 

It took me awhile to get use to the Rug Doctor. Knowing there are better carpet cleaning machines commercially, I've also had a couple of Bissell units. Those units suck. Any advise you can give on how to professionally clean a carpet, I'm all ears.


Thanks,

jnt412..

 

My wife's cat knocked over a flower pot I had put water in earlier this morning. Now I have wet dirt and dirty water on my off-white carpet. Aftert my wife and I scooped up the dirt, I bought out the Rug Doctor. After a couple of passes on the dirty area, all the stains where gone.

I'm not saying the Rug Doctor beats Professional Carpet Cleaning by no means, but in the above example a few points stand out. First, my wife and I didn't want to schedule a appt. with a Professional, thus having this stain sit on the carpet for hours or even days until a Professional arrives. Second, in cleaning the effected area myself I saved time and money on my part. Since we have pets, we actually have a Professional come by, but not as often.

 

Ok, due to the GB game I had to rush these pics and get the carpet clean before the game started.


Here is the before pic. Due to auto-flash not coming on, you don't see all of the stains, but some are noticable in the pic. When you have kids, this area can get dirty real fast over time..

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/g...2/DSC01489.jpg

Here is the after pic. Carpet is clean and a little moist. A ceiling fan above pushes air down to dry the carpet in about 30 minutes. Wanted to start a fire, so my footprints are present in some areas.

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/g...2/DSC01495.jpg

 

"DIY carpet cleaning machines are not intended to replace professional carpet cleaning. Call a professional."

As illustrated, a carpet cleaning machine can come in handy for a quick cleanup of accidental spills and can save the carpet from permanent staining. All stains should be attended to immediately before they dry and set. DIY carpet cleaning machines also come in handy for maintaining high traffic areas in between professional cleanings. Care should be taken to not oversaturate the carpet and to set up fans to expedite drying to prevent mold/mildew problems. Many have removed carpet to discover hardwood flooring that has suffered water damage from oversaturation from DIY carpet cleaning machines.

Tips for how to professionally clean carpet? There are none. We don't have available to us the big truck with the 180 plus degree water, the hose with strong suction, or the professional cleaners and chemicals. They don't rent those out at the local equipment rental stores. It is always best to follow manufacturer's recommendations for care and maintenance of carpet.

 

DIY rental machines just dont cut it in my book.

Old saying you get what you paid for...24 dollar for rental on a couple thousand dollar carpet + install

kinda like paying 97 cents for motor oil in your 40k truck

 

The Rug Doctor works pretty well for my needs. With kids and pets my carpet looks like it was just installed. I can't afford to have a Pro. come out and clean my carpets when I like.

Besides, this is a DIY Forum right?. Maybe we can discuss how to properly clean a carpet. Wash/Rinse, solutions.. etc. I recently purchased a bucket heater to make the water I use hotter.. (150+ degrees) and noticed a big difference in how much dirt was vacuumed out. I'm also thinking about using vinegar as a rinse..

 

It is a DIY forum, but most of us here believe carpet cleaning is not a DIY task, thus the recommendation to hire it done.

 

Yes diy fourm. But we as moderators would not be doing our job, if we didnt share our experience and knowledge. Im sure when used on a regular basis and if proper vaccuming is done, a Rug doctor or such machines can be a good interim solution. But i just do not believe it is the whole ball of wax, so to speak.