subject: Deciding Which Carpet Cleaner To Choose [print this page] In order to figure out which one is best for your circumstances, consider the different ways you can clean your carpet, but don't forget to think about the cost savings of owning your own carpet cleaner, versus the expense of renting equipment or using professional carpet cleaning companies.
With your own carpet cleaner, you can prolong the life of your carpet and keep it in better condition because you will tend to clean the carpet more frequently. Even if you have been using some of the "spray and vac" products for carpet cleaning, getting out the ground-in dirt is important. Deep cleaning your carpets involves removing stains before they are set in and getting the dirt that lies below the upper layer.
Carpet Cleaner Types
No matter what type of carpet cleaning machines you decide on, you will quickly realize the cost savings in a few uses, once you consider what you would have spent renting equipment or calling a professional to clean your carpets. Steam cleaners are popular for deep cleaning and they are also known as hot water extraction carpet cleaning machines. Chemicals and hot water are laid into the carpet through steaming, allowing the cleaning solution to reach the padding. The dirty, hot water is extracted by the machine, much the way a vacuum cleaner works, leaving you with cleaner carpet that is deep-cleaned down to the levels where dirt and grime reside.
Heavily soiled carpets in high traffic areas can benefit from a dry compound carpet cleaner. The cleaning compound is scrubbed into the carpet with a brush and when it is vacuumed up, dirt and grime are lifted, but the carpet remains dry. Dry cleaning or bonnet machines operate on the same principles except chemicals are applied with a bonnet or soft cloth. While they might not be quite as effective as the hot water extraction method, there are circumstances where dry cleaning carpet is the best option. In cases where colorfastness is a concern, it is the best method and wool carpet isn't as likely to shrink.
Another type of carpet cleaner that operates similarly is the foam cleaning machine. A foamy shampoo is scrubbed into the carpet and when it has dried, the residue is vacuumed up, taking dirt and grime with it. Because the residue attracts dirt and grime, this method can be effective, but there might be a need to steam clean occasionally to remove any remaining residue or dirt that is deeply ground into the padding.
As you can see, the most popular types of carpet cleaners use foam, shampoo, bonnet, dry and steam, but there are different advantages, depending on your carpet. There are a number of ways you can get to the dirt and grime in your padding, but the main goal is a cleaner carpet, with a longer life. Deep-cleaning the carpet and padding is the best way to accomplish these goals and it is more cost-effective and much easier to do with your own equipment.
