[BVC]

hi

Sorry to gatecrash, I Need to start cleaning my carpets regularly. (3 young kids and cream carpets!) Cant afford someone to do it every month so looking to invest in a carpet cleaner to do them myself.

Would be grateful for any advice, do I need to go for something commercial or will a vax or similar be completely useless? As a wc I know a squeegy from B&Q would be a waste of time, Would a domestic machine be the same?

In short new domestice machine or used commercial? to clean 4 bed house once a month.

many thanks in advance

BVC.

[Billy Russell]

If i was you i would keep your eyes on ebay for a 2nd hand one!

[BVC]

Thanks for your advice mate. Anything in particular I should be looking for?

BVC

[markpowell]

70 psi pump and 1 x 3 stage vac as a bare minimum mate, prochem galaxy or craftex sabrina
Mark

[Kinver_Clean]

My spotting machine is better than that.
You want a twin vac and 130 psi minimum.
You don't say where you are, I have a second hand mc if you are in the midlands.

[Billy Russell]

i would agree with kinver!

[Billy Russell]

Something like a prochem steempro powermax is a good all rounder and would be ideal for what your looking for!

[Jim_77]

If you need to clean your carpets once a month you need to change your carpet cleaner!  If you set about your carpets with a shyte machine and tons of detergent to make up for the poor machinery, you'll just ruin the carpets and frustrate yourself! (using cowboy "professionals" has exactly the same effect too.)

Leaving loads of detergent behind will make more dirt stick to the carpets, you'll get into a vicious circle of more cleaning, putting more detergent in the tank, leaving more behind each time, carpets get dirtier......

I'd suggest you find a really good local carpet cleaner and maybe make some sort of "arrangement" to help out with the pricing side of things, if you're trying to save the pennies.

Even the most extreme situations customers throw at me (kids, pets etc) I'll only be there every 6 months or so.

Or are you or the mrs a clean freak? one speck of dust and the whole lot has to be scrubbed!   I have some customers like that, keep the cash flow going nicely

[Doctor Carpet (Ret'd)]

Couldn't agree more Jim.

I'm a carpet cleaner and even I have to motivate myself to clean my own carpets regularly. Once a month.

I've lost count of the number of clients who have "invested" in a kirby at approx £2000 only to get me in on a regular basis to clean the carpets. You can have a lot of regular cleans of your carpets for that sort of money.

Rog

[derek west]

i'm with jim as well.

your carpets just need a dam good clean by someone who knoiws what there doing,  they should stay clean for a lot longer after that.

[Steve Rothwell]

What part of the country are you in ?
you may get some offers from kind peeps on here..

[Joe H]

Maybe the "once a month" thinking originally stated by BVC comes from having a window cleaning hat on.
If I was you I would get a good carpet cleaner in that has a machine that will do a deep clean and leave your carpet in a neutral ph state.  This will mean your carpet will stay cleaner (& healthier) for longer.
The you may have a chance to maintain the main traffic areas to a good state. I reckon you could use a Vax or a Bissell type machine. These machines are not brilliant as they do not have a lot of power to remove soiling and the cleaning fluid - especially if these have been over used.
If you want to do a low cost clean on a regular basis on the traffic areas what I would  do if using a Vax or Bissell type machine is

get a 5 litre sprayer
a long handled stiff brush
either M-Power (Solutions Cornwall) or Nemesis (Restormate, Cramlington) - 1 litre will go a very long way.
Using sprayer, spray warm diluted Mp or Nem onto the area
Agitate with the long brush
Wait for 20 minutes
Suck with the Vax/Bissell  BUT  only using water in its tank - you are rinsing the cleaning solution and dirt out of the carpet using just water.

If you have any stubborn spots both of the suppliers mentioned will have "spotter" sprays suitable, or use a stonger mix of the M-Power or Nemesis

[jim mca]

BVC
 
Why dont you let everyone know where you are tie in with a local carpet cleaner
and sell there service to your customers in return get them to clean your carpets.

Jim