In this article we will take a look at some of the questions you should be asking yourself before making you final buying decision. Armed with these question you will be able to search with confidence, seeking out the cleaner with just the right features and specifications for you.
Will steam cleaners wear out my carpet?
Constant cleaning with chemical solutions, rotating brushes and scrubbing etc will on some level put some wear on your carpet but really this is unavoidable if you want to keep them clean. In fact cleaning is still preferable to dirt when i comes to longevity for your carpet. Nevertheless there are some things you can look for in your carpet cleaner that will certainly help to take extra care of your carpets. If your carpets are particularly delicate then you will want to wash them with water at a lower temperature, therefore carpet steam cleaners that have internal heating systems that boast especially high water temperatures are probably not necessary or a great idea. Secondly look for a model that has soft rotating brushes, if the bristles are too stiff they will take their toll after a while.
Also consider any cleaning solution that is recommended with the machine. Continual washing and cleaning will start to remove the scotch guard protection, or any other protection that may have been added to your carpets originally at the factory. Therefore looking for a machine or cleaning solution that replaces this protection during the cleaning process could be a good idea.
Will my carpet steam cleaner work on bare floors?
As the name suggests a carpet cleaner is primarily designed for your carpets, although it is taken as read that they will also clean your rugs and upholstery. However in the modern household it is commonplace to have a number of different floor services including floor tiles and floor boards. To have a vacuum cleaner, a steam cleaner and a separate tiles cleaner would mean an overload of machines. Thankfully technical advances have lead to some manufactures making cleaning machines that can be used on bare floors as well. It is well to search these models out if needed.
What about portability and size?
Carpet cleaners come in many shapes and sizes and to a certain extent your choice will be dictated by the size of your home. Put simply the bigger your house and carpet area the bigger you will want your machine to be. Larger machines have both a greater capacity for cleaning, with bigger water tanks and larger cleaning paths and more powerful features, like internal water heating, high pressure water injection and stronger extraction. If you have a large expanse of carpet then a bigger machine will make the job less labour intensive and efficient. Having said that if you need to get into small or cramped spaces or if you only use the machine occasionally to deal with small areas and specific stains then a more compact model could be right for you, especially if you are short of storage space.
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