Hi Hogey,
There are plenty of new starters on the site and even more time served professional carpet cleaners, so you've found the best place to come for advice. There's an abundance of start up advice on the Frequently Asked section.
I'm also relatively new and am due to start my cc biz on Dec 1st. Here's my pointers :
I've seen the Alltec Advantage in action and it looks to be a very impressive machine. Only those who have been in the biz for many years and have tried various machines can advise which one they prefer, but as for us new starters, it's just a decision you have to make and stick to until your budget allows for a change.
I've been on the NCCA course and it definitely opened my eyes that there is more to CCing than cleaning carpets. Unless you already have knowledge of carpet and upholstery fibres, construction and how they are treated, a course or 2 is an absolute must.
Apart from the machine and attachments, you'll also need various other tools of the trade plus leaflets, advertising with Yellow pages if you wish to, survey forms, public liability & treatment risk insurance. The list is endless but you'll pick up the majority of info on the NCCA or IICRC course.
You may not get many other replies because the start up topic has been covered so many times. You also need to fill in your profile a bit more as people generally like to see who they're talking to and might offer you on the job training if your lucky and not too far away from them (but far enough not to be competition).
Anyway, good luck.
Best regards
Cheryl