Comments on: Frugal Carpet Care: Using a Steam Cleaner

By: Upholstery Cleaning

Upholstery Cleaning — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 06:35:16 +0000

Simply awesome… I think Steam Cleaner is the best method of cleaning if you have kids and pets in your home.

By: Jesse

Jesse — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:16:28 +0000

At home we actually bought a very similar carpet cleaner a few days before reading your article. We split the cost with a close by relative so our cost came to 75$ or so plus the cleaning solution.

I was against the purchase at first but after my wife cleaned the carpets and they look really great, I think it was worth it. I also have been toying with the idea of renting the machine out to neighbors for a small fee which would really make me feel better about the cost.

By: Holly

Holly — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:29:55 +0000

Yes, Jenny. The water does come up dirty, but each time just a lighter shade of dirty! It may have something to do with the padding underneath holding on to the dirt. I have a Bissell, too, and am happy w/its performance on our berber carpet. One thing to note is that I have a fairly expensive ($450) synthetic area rug that the dog lays on. It typically costs $120 to send to the rug cleaners–not sure why it costs a lot…the company says it’s because it has a design. I decided to try the Bissell @ home. I can say that I was not impressed since the dog odor became worse even after cleaning it twice (maybe because the fibers were dampened which cause a release of the odor), and the edges and fibers became fuzzy and less distinct. I will likely need to replace this rug. Be careful using the steam cleaner on expensive area rugs.

By: Jenny

Jenny — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 06:56:24 +0000

Do you find that steamcleaners get your carpet actually clean?

What I mean by this is that my mom rented a steam cleaner, and the first time she used it in the living room, lots of muck came up and the water was almost mud when she dumped it. She did this again, and the water was still very dirty. After 8 washes of the living room, the water was still coming up pretty dirty. She did even more passes of a smaller section, but the water never did start coming out clean. This was in a house with three kids and a dog, but you’d think that it would have gotten all of the dirt after so many washes. Has anyone else found this??

By: MEOIP

MEOIP — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:24:01 +0000

I think I would buy one. They are expensive to rent so I think I would go buy one, they tend to go on sale around Christmas so I could pick one up then I’d be in a position to lend it to friends and family, somethings can and should be shared.

By: Ameraclean Carpet Cleaning

Ameraclean Carpet Cleaning — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 06:06:52 +0000

Very logical and no doubt effective. Not always does your house need professional carpet cleaning. I tell all my clients that one of the most important things to do to preserve their carpet is simply vacuum it regularly. Now, if they could steam clean it 4 times a year as well… they would be set!

By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 01:37:18 +0000

@dawn: Ours isn’t all that loud — sounds like your typical vacuum. Kind of shocked to hear it is that loud.

@Patrick: Yea… our dog is an inside dog, and still… wow. Yuck.

@MEOIP: But what if you didn’t have one to borrow? Would you buy then?

By: MEOIP

MEOIP — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 17:36:53 +0000

I don’t own one… I just borrow my sister in law’s. It’s much more economical, I’ve used it twice this year and now that I’m goign to be having kids I’m sure I’ll use it more.
For area rugs I just go down to the local DIY Carwash clip it to the wall and spray it off then dry it outside for the day. It comes in claen and smell fresh.

By: The Happy Rock

The Happy Rock — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:27:49 +0000

@Leann – Try the first couple years! The amazingly beautiful part of it all is that the sacrifices pale in comparison compared to the rest of the awesome experiences.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:22:22 +0000

Yes, it’s worth it – especially if you have children or pets!