Home carpet cleaning.

[Kern Dog]

My skills at carpet cleaning are either terrible or my carpet is beyond help.
We bought this place in 2004 and the carpet looked pretty good then. We have no kids but always have at least 3 dogs here. The back yard is 65% grass, 35% decomposed granite. I'm a Carpenter and a car guy so I'm usually dirty or greasy during the day. A lot of dirt comes into the house.
I have a Hoover "Homeowner grade" carpet cleaner with 5 small brush wheels. It has 3 reservoirs. One each for soap, water and the waste.
There are a few problem areas in the carpet so I decided to go over them yesterday. I figured that the spots had come back because I flooded them with soap before and maybe the soap hadn't washed out enough, attracting more dirt.
This time I just used hot water. I figured I'd speed things up so I poured water directly on the carpet and used a scrub brush to loosen the dirt.
The cleaner sucked up the water nicely, it looked dark brown and ugly. I went over one 4'x4' area for 45 minutes until the suds quit coming up. The carpet looked great!
I went over a few other spots in the house. Hot water only at first, then a little Clorox bleach was added. It all looked really nice.
As the carpet dried, the spots started coming back. Now it looks like I actually dumped dirt on the carpet and stomped it in. Yeah, even after watching gallons of dirty water come out, the carpet looks worse than before.
I felt really good that the stains had been sucked out only to find that they look worse now.
I do plan to replace the carpet eventually but what the heck?
I've tried several cleaners. All of them appear to clean because the waste water always looks dirty but in every instance that I can recall, as the carpet dries, the stains come back.
Is there any product that you use that really works?
I've tried commercial grade stuff, products from Bissel, Hoover, Rug Doctor and even Purple Power.

 

[Kern Dog]

Could it be that the stains are so deep that I keep pulling dirt from further and further down? If so, does this mean that maybe I just need to keep at it?

 

[Budnicks]

I have a Kirby with all the attachments
(my dad had an even older one than mine)
I used Oxiclean (I think it's detergent for clothes)
or some generic brand that said Oxiclean in it, in hot water
I had to go over much of it twice
on bad stubborn spots, I used a concentrate of Oxiclean, like paste
do it by hand with a brush, on hands & knees, scrubbing it vigorously
I use the shop-vac wet/dry to suck up the bulk of the water/paste
then go over it with the cleaner again

it's plush pile style of carpeting, 3/4" dense foam pad underneath

(I tried it in a small spot first, to make sure it wouldn't bleach or spot etc.)

had to stay off it until it was dry, took all-day
a couple of fans sped that process up some

I must say worked pretty damn well
tan carpet, not a lot of stains
My elderly dad spills stuff a lot, he rarely sees it or cleans anything up
most the stains were icetea or food stains,
or booze when he was still drinking
I've had dogs my whole life, 2-3 at a time in many cases
& had the Kirby for about 30+ years
seems to work well

I had white-ish Burber carpet in my house in Rancho Murieta
a lot of stains, dogs & golf buddies drinking, especially by my bar
it worked great there too
when I sold the house/Duplex both sides back in 2007
I did the same thing there

whatever it/Kirby can't clean
I'll pay a professional to come in & do

 

[Aarons Air]

Windex contains ammonia. Very good for carpet stains. Use a clean terry cloth wash cloth

 

[440Coronet500]

Hardwood or laminate flooring! 440'

 

[DeltaV]

Same answers in your earlier thread

https://www.forbbodiesonly.com/mopa...-for-a-great-carpet-cleaning-solution.194182/

 

[DeltaV]

16+ year old carpet owes you nothing. Replace it all right before you put it on the market. By the way, light-colored carpet makes a room appear larger.

 

[Kern Dog]

Same answers in your earlier thread

https://www.forbbodiesonly.com/mopa...-for-a-great-carpet-cleaning-solution.194182/

Hmmm....I thought that I had posted this topic before!

 

[Kern Dog]

16+ year old carpet owes you nothing. Replace it all right before you put it on the market. By the way, light-colored carpet makes a room appear larger.

I've heard that.
Throughout the week, I wear different colored underwear to keep her guessing.

 

[metaldad]

she has a bissell.
she cleaned the carpets.
we've always had 3 dawgs.
last year, new carpets, pet guard whatevertheyspritzonit. first day of new carpet, blond dog pukes on it. cleaned up exceptionally well.
part of warranty - must be professionally cleaned (for the paperwork).
stanley steemer did an excellent job
she threw out carpet cleaner

 

[Dennis H]

Stanley Steemer. Amazing results.

 

[Kern Dog]

Back on point....
From 2010 to 2018, we had my older Brother's dog, Buddy.

Funny, funny dog.
He got old though. He started peeing on the carpet randomly. As he got older and closer to the end, it wasn't just urine.
We cleaned up after him each time along with accidents from the other dogs, food spills, whatever. Each time the standard response was some spray type cleaner and wet towels. I wonder if the soap buildup was immense.

 

[metaldad]

16+ years on a carpet, with dogs. not telling you what to do - but -
really time to consider a new one.
orange box offers free install, with some furniture moving, for purchase over $500
buddy is a good looking dog, btw

 

[Kern Dog]

At 2:00 today, I went back over an area in the master bedroom that looked perfect after cleaning yesterday and then worse than ever this morning. I went over it repeatedly until the waste water looked about like Squirt soda. Not dark, not clear but sort of white.
Three hours later it still looks great. I hope that it stays this way.
In the Living room, I decided to do a test. I ran one strip, several times to see if the color changes over time.
This is at 3:00.

Keep in mind, the dark spots were maybe 1/4 that dark before I did anything yesterday.
This is at 5:30:

So far, so good. I'm going to see how it looks later and if it stays looking decent, I'll do the other spots and remember not to bring this topic up again anytime soon!

 

[PRND21]

It appears that somebody was murdered there sometime in the past.

 

[gkent]

A man will bust his balls and spend HOURS "trying" to clean a carpet. A woman will call a pro, get it done in a fraction of the time at a fraction of the cost and will watch a home show while its being done !!

Well maybe !!

A couple weeks ago my wife wanted to take a rug out of one of the bedrooms and clean it - the dog had had a few accidents on it! "How are you going to do it?" I asked. "Hose it down and scrub it in the garage" she replied. "It'll take ages to dry" i replied. "Just take it to the carpet cleaner down the street" I said. "Knock yourself out" she said. So I tossed it in the car and dropped it off. 5 days later its back and spotless. Cost ... $30. !!

The moral ... call a pro ... and go do something you're good at !

 

[Ski 61701]

LOL....I just finished spot cleaning my 18 yr old off white carpet. I have a 110lb Akita who is clean , but oil from fur sets in on carpet.
So I buy ZEP high traffic carpet cleaner. Buy gal jug its cheaper and just pour into spray bottle.
vacuum first, then pretreat with cleaner and let set up for 15 -20 mins.
Now I borrowed an ancient Bissell carpet cleaner machine from my mom. Its a pull behind, but I use the hand held attachment and get on my knees so I can really maneuver the scrubbing part. Trick is to use really hot water, so you might wanna turn up hot water heater a bit. Spray some water down and let sit a little and then start cleaning. I try and vacuume up in a 90 degree fashion to really pull up the dirt. if you just go in 1 direction you wont get it really clean and the spots come back as you see them. Dont go crazy with water, but really try to suck up as much as you can so you don't get mold. Then put some box fans to dry up. Aside from dogs, bare feet are bad on carpet due to oils from feet.
I've had best luck with Zep cleaner, stay away from resolve and those types of cleaners... too soapy and once it dries it just attracts more dirt.

P.S. for those that have animals who have accidents..use Natures Miracle spot cleaner.. stuff is awesome, doesnt have that sickening smell. just soak spot, take damp rag blot it up and the smell goes away within 15 min or so

 

[Kern Dog]

A man will bust his balls and spend HOURS "trying" to clean a carpet. A woman will call a pro, get it done in a fraction of the time at a fraction of the cost

This cost me nothing but time.
I am going to replace the carpet but I wanted to have family over before then.
The stains got exponentially worse after cleaning. It was a kick to the groin....I cleaned and cleaned and they looked fantastic afterwards. It was a total shock to see them come back so bad.
Today, I could see a ton of suds coming up where the dark spots were so I just kept going over them until the water looked clear.
We'll see how they look in the morning.

 

[slepr1]

The more water you pour on the carpet the more it soaks into the underpad and the floor underneath. The underpad and floor will take so long to dry it will start stinking or have a musty smell. Any stains in the underpad will start smelling again with the added moisture. I see a new carpet in your near future.

 

[747mopar]

The more water you pour on the carpet the more it soaks into the underpad and the floor underneath. The underpad and floor will take so long to dry it will start stinking or have a musty smell. Any stains in the underpad will start smelling again with the added moisture. I see a new carpet in your near future.

Agreed.