Carpet wahers

Carpet Washers! Sorry.

I wondered what a carpet waher was, thought it might be some new gadget

I had one a few years ago so no not this one you re asking about but it was totally useless

I have a Vax cafrpet washer - not the most up to date model, I purchased it about four years ago.#

It works carpet. I have never managed to get the gadget to do stairs to work, - gave up - had cream carpets on my stairs in the house and before I moved out I had a professional carpet cleaning carpet.

When I moved into my flat there was a old, expensive carpet throughout. Not to myj taste but wanted to keep it for a yjear whilst I decided what I wanted. Problem ws teh Living room area had sort of black grease type marks on it quite prominently. Spent the first few weeks cleaning those with th vax machine, and much to my surprise, they all came out eventually.

As the only carpet I now have is one in my main bedroom.,do not have much use for this now. However, my daughter used it on the absolutely disgusting carpet that was appeared beneath all the rubbish in the bedroom, when one of her teenagers moved out. Again, did take three or four applications, but came up okayj at the end of it.

I would say they do the trick, and once purchased are therefore quite cheap to operate, not as wonderful as they show on the demonstrations, but perfectly good.

I've bought the new Vax Platinum and it is excellent. I have rugs on wooden floors, and the dog has made them grubby in spite of having her paws wiped when she comes in from the garden. I'm so glad I bought it. It takes about twenty minutes to shampoo a rug, and the machine sucks virtually all the water out . On a mild day with the windows open the rug is dry in an hour or so. I couldn't believe the amount of dirt that was lifted out - even from bedroom rugs that were fairly new and never subjected to outdoor shoes.

We have hired a “Rug Doctor” which does the job on fixed carpets but would not be great on rugs, main drawback is that it’s very heavy. We also have an old wet and dry vacuum with a carpet shampoo attachment, it does a pretty good job and is very cheap to use.

I have an older Vax model and it works great on wall to wall fixed carpets, but not on rugs at all.

Katie59

We have hired a “Rug Doctor” which does the job on fixed carpets but would not be great on rugs, main drawback is that it’s very heavy. We also have an old wet and dry vacuum with a carpet shampoo attachment, it does a pretty good job and is very cheap to use.

Totally agree - heavy but made a huge difference!

I had one but was not impressed, having one in the house means you will probably clean your carpets too often. Unless you spray with scotch guard after each cleaning carpets will stain easier and lose their soil retardant.

I’ve just ordered a Vax Platinum (pure coincidence😄), because we had a huge rain storm last week and a tile let in gallons of rain which came through a bedroom ceiling causing some of it to fall onto the carpet and staining.

Never had a carpet cleaner - we’ve always had someone in - but thought we would give it a go.

I have a vax which must be 7 years old and it's brilliant.

I have always believed that if you clean your carpets and leave any kind or soap or detergent residue in the carpet, they seem to get dirty again more quickly. The soap is sticky and it attracts the dirt.

I would get a professional in but one that uses a process that sucks the water out. There are some machines that clean carpets using a towelling type pad that spins around and is supposed to clean the carpet. I can't honestly believe that this is an effective way of getting dirt out of a carpet.

I have bought a rug doctor, it is the best machine I have ever had, there is no fiddly setting up, ait is ready to go with in minutes, the carpets are left just damp dry in a matter of hours, the power on it is amazing

We have a Vax. Frankly it is embarrassing just how much muck comes out of relatively clean looking carpets. I recommend that if you are of a delicate disposition you get professionals in to do the job.

Thanks so much for your comments. I could get a professional in - he lives two doors away. The cost for cleaning 3 quite big carpets and a large rug is getting on for the cost of the carpet washer. For those with a vax, is it heavy to use?
I would use all the accessories that come with it - upholstery to clean etc. I'm really trying to justify the purchase I realise!
If I buy it, I'll come back and let you know how it copes.

I've had my Rug doctor about 10 years now, I have very light carpets and I honestly wouldn't be without it. These days I've only got the two Pugs whereas I used to have larger, muckier dogs and it always got the carpets pristine. I've seen the vax advert and thought if my Rug Doctor loses the will to live the new Vax would be top of the replacement list.

I’ve used my daughters for years.
I use it when we are going away. It’s the last thing I do before we close the front door. That way I know it’s completely dry.

I have a Vax machine bought about 8 years ago. I think the trick to leaving the carpet in the best condition is to use the "rinse" setting after cleaning to get the last of the cleaning liquid out. If I don't do that, the carpet is left a bit stiff and sticky after cleaning and attracts more dirt than it should. I used the machine a couple of weeks ago and, as *Esspee says, the amount of dark brown water that I emptied out was embarrassing - particularly as I don't have any mucky pets!

I'm thinking of buying one and read somewhere yesterday it's important to go over the carpet a second time using just water to remove the residual detergent.

I have a 'good' Bissell carpet washer. It lives in the garage these days (unless a friend or family member borrows it). Yes, it does a decent job - but it's hard work and furniture needs moving. So, I get someone in to clean the carpets (and take the rugs away for washing) instead. It doesn't cost much for a far better result.

You tube

Suggests just going over with the suck thing after rinsing to suck up as much water as possible.

I’ve recently bought the Vax platinum. It is excellent - easy to use on rugs and fitted carpets
I’ve got 2 cream rugs- and a dog. (great combination!) both rugs are man made thick pile. Vax great for both. Much, much better than my previous vax and much easier to use than a rug doctor hire. In the past I’ve used professional carpet cleaners - cost a lot- - and I was not particularly pleased. Buy the Vax cleaner instead! Does leave carpets damp not wet, they dry quickly. Tools easy to use- did a great job on my fabric dining chairs.
Only criticism is that you need a cloth to wipe up the odd puddle that lands on the hard floor next to the rug!

Lupin, wanted to add that the new Vax will rinse the carpet as well, to prevent the sticky build up. You shampoo, suck out the dirty soapy water, rinse with clean water and then switch the machine to 'dry only' setting to suck out as much water as possible. It really does work well and takes the minimum time to dry. I also discovered that hiring a machine, or getting the rugs professionally cleaned, wasn't far short of buying the Vax, and we have used it several times which has effectively covered the cost of any other option.

Thanks again to all people posting. ROSINA and SUZIEHI you have convinced me. I have been scrubbing areas with Vanish but it does seem to make it worse or attracts more dirt.