carpet cleaners

 Stanley Steamer...:)  I do have a Bissell Pro Heat, one of the smaller versions because of a bad back.  It's a bit streaky, but works for in between professional cleans.  But I do have a blind dog who won't go outside anymore, and it's a struggle to keep things relatively clean.

Honestly, it would take me a few days to clean the carpet in the whole house, not to mention the exhaustion.  For a few hundred dollars, they come in and do the house in a couple hours, scotchguard and deodorize.  I do that a couple times a year, and spot clean as needed.

I have a Bissell and I suppose it does an OK job - the only one who really uses it is DS #1 who borrows it every now and then. I'm like Marty - it's not worth the aggravation of moving everything and trying to do it myself while also trying to keep Max out of the way.  I move what I want to move and hole up in the computer room with Max while it's being done.  When we come out, that room gets done.  It seems to dry faster when it's professionally done anyway. I think their machines are better at sucking the moisture back up.

Joyce

I've usually used Stanley Steemer but was just wondering if maybe I should invest in a personal cleaner. Thanks!

We have a smaller Bissell that we use for emergency cleanings, etc.  Honestly, we rent the machines from the grocery store place 3x a year.  They do a really good job.  One of the secrets is to use HOT STEAMING water and vinegar and no soap.  Trust me it totally works.  The soap never really washes from the carpet and just attracts more dirt.  The vinegar helps break down old soap and get up all that old stuff.  I spot clean with SPOT SHOT and then use the vinegar/water combo to make sure I get all the residue up. 

I would love to have someone come in and since our place is on the smaller side it probably would only be $100, but we always decide at the last minute usually before someone comes into town and we just end up doing it ourselves.

mrstjohnson

One of the secrets is to use HOT STEAMING water and vinegar and no soap.  Trust me it totally works.  The soap never really washes from the carpet and just attracts more dirt.

Agree! The cleaner I had years ago wasn't that great and I didn't know better, so I ended up with a lot of residue left behind and it did attract dirt.

 Back when we had more carpets in the house, we used to get the machine a few times a year. When they used to actually close supermarkets for a holiday, we'd get it the day before the holiday, then the store would be closed, and we'd get an extra day out of it. Our only carpets now are in the bedrooms, mine and the upstairs bedrooms, so we haven't done it in forever.

That's good to know about the soap and vinegar.  I'll pass that along to DS who has probably used my cleaner all up and will be wanting more.

Joyce