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Electric Carpet Cleaners – Are They Any Good?

Wednesday, March 4th, 2009

A recent questioner on Yahoo Answers asked for opinions about electric carpet cleaners, as he had seen some by Bex Bissell and Vax costing around £60-£80 and wanted to know if they are any good.

There were mixed responses to this answer, with proponents for both brands giving their opinions – veronica m and glenys prefer Bissell while Blackgrumpycat says about his Vax: “I bought a Vax upright one for £59 and it works fine.” He does point out that he “can’t do the stairs with it as it has no hose attachment but for all the rest it seem so get the stains out.”

This should always be a consideration when you’re deciding which model of upright carpet washer to buy – If you want it to also clean stairs, or upholstery, make sure it comes bundled with the appropriate tools. However, if you do find that you don’t have the tools you need after you’ve bought the machine it’s well worth contacting the manufacturer to find out if you can buy these separately to upgrade your machine.

The ‘Best Answer’ to the question, as chosen by the forum’s voters, is given by Tony M who argues that the model you should choose “depends what you need to use it for. In my experience the lower price models are fine for general carpet washing, but if you’ve got really tough stains to get out or also want to be able to wash dirty sofa cushions, valet your car etc, it might be worth spending a bit more.” He goes on to recommend the Vax Dual V with heated cleaning, which has won a Which? magazine ‘Best Buy’ award and says there are some good deals around on this model at the moment. He comments: “It’s got amazingly powerful suction so gets your carpets clean and dry again really quickly, and has a powered scrub tool for doing upholstery etc. You won’t regret investing in one of these!”

For those on a tighter budget Tony M recommends the Vax Rapide Deluxe as an alternative, commenting that it is a “good, powerful all-rounder with a tool for doing stairs, upholstery, car seats etc.”

Posted in Carpet Washers, Carpet Washing, Reviews | No Comments »

Zimbio recommends Vax for Homes with Pets

Wednesday, February 18th, 2009

Do your pets play havoc with your carpets? Over on Zimbio.com Gadgetman bought a Vax V-026 Rapide Deluxe carpet washer to combat the mess left by his pet cat. “We bought this product after our cat developed a desire to be sick daily on our carpets. We wanted to clean up small patches quickly, with the intention of renting a professional cleaner when we needed “whole house” shampooing.”

As the Rapide Deluxe has an upholstery wash tool, it’s ideal for cleaning your car, upholstery, stairs and high traffic areas, as well as wider areas of carpet. It can also suck up liquid spills, should your pet have an accident.

“Having bought this unit, we are very pleased with it, and have no problem using it to shampoo one room at a time,” confirms Gadgetman. “It even finds cat hairs that our “Dyson Upright” leaves behind.”

Posted in Carpet Washers, Reviews | No Comments »

Vax V-125 All Terrain Carpet Washer Gets Top Marks on Carpet.Cleaner Blog

Tuesday, February 17th, 2009

“I bought a VAX V-125 Carpet Washer 2 weeks ago and cannot stop using it. It does exactly what it says and more!” says Ms. P. Laughton over on the Carpet.Cleaner blog. With a dog and two cats in her household her carpet is prone to stains, but the V-125 All Terrain brought up her carpet like new. She explains that they were dry again very quickly after washing and “smell lovely”. It also worked wonders on her composite kitchen floor, which says has been a nightmare until now. “The results are amazing!”

Mr.R.P Chauhan agrees the V-125 is a good product after using it to clean his very old and worn Wilton carpet: “I got my colours back, it gave it some lease of life and maybe after a few more washes I could get that brand new carpet look. VAX V-125 Carpet Washer makes you realise, carpets do need a wash and you need a machine like this to do it. Don’t delay!”

Graham Alsop is even more positive about the All Terrain, which he bought to clean a Flotex floor. Graham found it worked perfectly on the floor, bringing the Flotex back to its original colour. “Because it worked so well I am going to treat the rest of the house to an early spring clean!”

Posted in Carpet Washers, Reviews | No Comments »

National Carpet Cleaning Day – January 10th 2009

Monday, December 15th, 2008

10th January 2009 is National Carpet Cleaning Day in the UK.

A recent survey asking people about their carpet cleaning habits revealed some alarming results…

While most people (88%) vacuum their house at least once a week, almost a third have never washed their carpets.
Those that do wash their carpets, do so rarely, with half admitting to getting round to the job only once every 2-3 years or less.

These facts might not seem too worrying, until you get down to the nitty gritty of what horrors could be lurking in an unwashed carpet – e.g. did you know that a typical carpet harbours millions of dust mites and a neglected carpet can contain up to 4x its own weight in dirt, dust mites and their waste!

As part of its research into carpets, the Institute of Total Carpet Hygiene (ITCH) took samples of carpet from living rooms after they had been dry vacuumed, and still found bacteria, dirt, pollen grains, skin cells, rodent hairs and insect fragments all buried among the fibres.

This highlights the fact that dry vacuuming only removes the surface layer of dirt and dust. To remove embedded grime and bacteria you need to deep clean them with a carpet washer. This is particularly important if you have babies or children who play on carpets.

Washing carpets will also help get rid of dust mites, pollen and other particles buried deep in the fibres that can trigger allergy symptoms such as sneezing and wheezing. Washing is also a good way to look after your carpets and save you money over the longer term. This is because regular washing removes the ground-in dirt that flattens and damages fibres, so you shouldn’t have to replace them so soon.

These days domestic carpet washers are designed for maximum ease of use and fall within a range of price prices, starting from as little as £99.99 up to around £330 for a top-of-the-range multifunction heated cleaner. Some models also clean hard floors and some have tools for removing stains or for cleaning stairs and upholstery.

Posted in Carpet Washers, Carpet Washing, Cleaning Facts | 1 Comment »

The Festive Season is Nearly Here… Are Your Carpets Ready

Thursday, December 4th, 2008

The turkey is ordered, the presents are wrapped and you’ve checked the Christmas tree lights are working. The next job is to make sure your home is clean, bright and suitably festive for your holiday guests. One area you certainly don’t want to fall down on is dull, lifeless carpets.

A thorough deep clean will bring them back to life by removing the trodden-in dirt that dry vacuuming can’t get to and that leaves them flat and lifeless. Washing carpets brightens the colour and pattern and revitalises the pile, making the carpet springy again. It also removes bacteria and other hidden nasties, like dust mites and pollen that can trigger allergies, so the room is hygienic for babies, children and the whole family. Odours are neutralised too, so your home will smell fresh and clean.

Hiring a professional cleaner to deep clean your carpets can be expensive and a hassle, plus it costs you every time you have them cleaned. However, with carpet washers ranging from under £100 there are quick and easy deep cleaning solutions available. In addition to washing your carpets, a carpet washer makes cleaning up spills quick and easy, and prevents staining – a certainty to happen when you entertain. Carpets typically get a lot of wear and tear during the festive season, so a carpet washer is invaluable for freshening them up again once the last guests have gone.

If storage space is at a premium, choose a compact carpet washer with a folding handle that is easy to store away. For homes with little or no storage space, you may prefer a lightweight, portable spot cleaner with a wash tool and flexible hose for cleaning your stairs, seats and upholstery and car interiors and problem areas on your carpet.

For busy homes with larger areas of carpet to wash, choose a carpet washer with large capacity tanks for clean and dirty water. For busy homes that need faster cleaning and drying times, a heated cleaning model is best, as your carpets will back in use within just a few hours.

For homes with a combination of floor types, you might want to consider a carept washer that can also wash hard floors.

Posted in Carpet Washers, Carpet Washing, Cleaning Tips | No Comments »

Washing Carpets is Easy and Affordable!

Tuesday, October 7th, 2008

Deep cleaning is an ideal way to freshen up a tired-looking carpet, brighten the colour and put a spring back into the pile. It also helps prolong the life of a carpet by removing the ground-in dirt that flattens and damages carpet fibres, which dry vacuuming alone can’t reach. All the family will feel the benefit too, as washing gets rid of unwelcome guests like pollen, bacteria and dust mites that thrive in warm, humid environments and can trigger allergies. As hiring a professional cleaner to deep clean your home can be costly – around £70-£100 for two average sized rooms – it makes more economic sense to invest in a carpet washer. With models available from under £100, upright carpet washers are as easy to use as a regular dry vacuum and provide an affordable way to wash carpets and suck up spills.

The V-024 Rapide Classic is a lightweight, upright carpet washer with a static brushbar that gently loosens and lifts dirt from carpet pile. Easy to fill, empty, use and store, the Rapide’s handle lays flat to the floor so you can clean under and around furniture really easily. Also in this range are the V-025 Rapide and V-026 Rapide Deluxe, which both have a rotating brushbar that agitates carpet pile to lift and remove ground-in dirt and stains. The Deluxe has all the features of the Rapide, plus a wash tool and flexible hose for refreshing stairs, upholstery and car interiors. In addition to a wash tool, the V-028 Rapide PowerJet Pro has an extra wide cleaning path so it’s good for washing larger areas of carpet. It has a static brushbar that agitates pile to dislodge dirt and PowerJet technology that pumps jets of water deep into carpet fibres, and also a wash tool for cleaning stairs and upholstery. Topping the range is the V-027 Rapide XL, which features two contra-rotating brushbars to deep clean carpet fibres and groom pile, as well as extra large capacity clean and dirty water tanks. The V-033 Rapide Compact is the newest addition to the Rapide range. It’s a portable, lightweight spot cleaner with a hand tool and hose for washing stairs, upholstery and car interiors.

All Rapide carpet washers come with Vax carpet washing solutions that are specially formulated to hygienically clean deep into carpet, lifting dirt and stains, and preventing odours. Vax solutions dry leaving a fresh fragrance without any sticky residue, helping to prevent resoiling.

Posted in Carpet Washers, Carpet Washing, Cleaning Tips | 1 Comment »

Great Results From New Generation ‘Heated Cleaning’ Carpet Washers

Tuesday, October 7th, 2008

Gone are the days when deep cleaning your carpets was a job you had to put aside a whole day for, thanks to a new generation of carpet washers featuring technology designed to reduce washing and drying times. With some heated cleaning carpet washers, for exmple the premimum range from Vax, heat generated by the machine is directed onto the floor, assisting both the cleaning and drying process. This means that carpets are ready to use again in just a few hours. Regular washing helps prolong carpet life by removing the ground-in dirt that can damage and flatten carpet fibres. It is also recommended for homes with allergy sufferers, as it also removes pollen, bacteria and dust mites, which live and breed deep in carpets and are common triggers of allergies such as asthma and hayfever. All three models in the Vax heated cleaning range have rotating SpinScrub^TM brushes on the floor head that clean deep into the carpet on all sides of the fibres to loosen and lift embedded dirt, leaving carpet pile looking springy and renewed. They each have a handtool with the same SpinScrub^TMtechnology that fits to a flexible hose, for removing spots and stains, cleaning stairs and upholstery. In addition to washing carpets and upholstery they are also great for sucking up any accidental spills. The Vax V-123 Agility is a compact and manoeuvrable upright carpet washer, with a foldaway handle to make storage easy. It has CleanSurge^TM technology to release extra cleaning solution at the push of a button, for spot treating high traffic areas. Revolutionary Dual V^TM Air Path technology on the Vax V-124 Dual V delivers consistent suction across the width of the floor nozzle to reduce drying time. The Automix system mixes the cleaning solution and water for optimum cleaning results. The Dual V was awarded ‘Best Buy’ status in the September 2008 issue of Which? magazine.

The Vax V-125 All Terrain offers the same great carpet cleaning performance as the Dual V but can also wash sealed hard floors. The hard floor mode offers a more hygienic method of washing hard floors than a traditional mop and bucket, leaving floors dry and your room ready to use again immediately. Its extra wide cleaning path makes it ideal for washing larger areas while the Auto-rinse button provides fast and easy rinsing.

Posted in Carpet Washers, Carpet Washing | No Comments »

Mach 7 with WindTunnel tops No Loss of Suction range

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

The latest addition to the Mach range of vacuum cleaners from Vax, the Mach 7 comes in at the very top of the range and is the first to feature patented WindTunnel technology. WindTunnel is designed to trap dust more effectively, so that you don’t have to go over the same patch of carpet as many times and don’t have to spend as long cleaning.

What’s different about the Mach range from Vax?

All the models in the Mach range, including both uprights and cylinders, are bagless and have market-leading no loss of suction technology at very affordable prices, plus a 6-year guarantee. This combination of high quality and great value is making them a popular choice with shoppers.

No loss of suction technology works by utilising multiple cyclones to separate large and fine dust particles from the airflow, which prevents the filters from clogging. As long as the machine is maintained as instructed in the manual, then it will clean floors as good as the first time, every time, without a drop in performance. You won’t have to buy replacement filters, as they have lifetime washable filters with HEPA filtration, so are ideal for homes with allergy sufferers.

Machs are very easy to use and store, with quick release bins that let you dispose of collected dirt easily and hygienically. Some models have tools designed to pick up pet hair, clean hard floors, or clean stairs and upholstery too.

There is a 6-year parts and labour guarantee on all Mach vacuum cleaners, plus Vax operates a UK based helpline that’s open 7 days a week. It’s staffed by Customer Service Advisors who are trained to resolve issues over the telephone if possible, but if a problem cannot be resolved then Vax will collect the machine free of charge, as long as it’s still under guarantee. They will repair and return it free of charge or send a brand new replecement, if the machine cannot be repaired.

Posted in Uncategorized, Vacuum Cleaner Technology, Vacuum Cleaner Types | 2 Comments »

Which Carpet Washer?

Friday, September 5th, 2008

If you want trustworthy buying advice then a good place to look is Which? magazine, with its independent reviews of everything from ice-cream makers to burglar alarms. The September 2008 issue focuses on carpet cleaning products with in-depth tests of a number of carpet washers, including the new Vax V-124 Dual V. As one of the highest scoring washers in the tests, the Dual V is recommended as a Which? ‘Best Buy’.

The tests cover sixteen domestic carpet washers that are scored on criteria such as tools and accessories, as well as cleaning and drying performance. According to Which?, their ‘Best Buy’ carpet washers “wash brilliantly and suck up a lot of the water used for cleaning, so your carpets dry quickly.”

Washing carpets effectively then having them dry again within just a few hours is a major advantage of the Dual V, which is one of the first of a new generation of Vax carpet washers with the following technologies:

Dual V^TM Air Path

Delivers consistent suction across the width of the floor nozzle to suck up more dirty water.

Heated Cleaning

Heat generated by the machine assists the cleaning process and speeds up drying time.

SpinScrub^TM Brushes

Five rotating SpinScrub brushes on the floor head clean deep into the carpet pile to remove embedded dirt. A powered SpinScrub handtool attaches to the hose for the same great cleaning performance on stairs and upholstery.

The result is market leading cleaning and drying performance at a great price, making the Dual V a clear ‘Best Buy’.

Need To Wash Hard Floors Too?

Also in Vax’s new heated cleaning range, the V-125 All Terrain is scored highly in the Which? report, placed fourth out of sixteen. The All Terrain has the same features as the Dual V but also washes hard floors, so is ideal for households with a mixture of floor types.

Both the Dual V and All Terrain are supported by a 6-year parts and labour guarantee and a UK based helpline open 7 days a week. They are widely available through major retailers, but if you don’t want to spend time and money getting to the shops and back, you can buy your new washer online at the Vax website and have it delivered direct to your door.

Posted in Carpet Washers, Carpet Washing | 3 Comments »

HEPA Filtration Explained

Sunday, August 10th, 2008

What is HEPA Filtration?

HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Arrester) filters deliver a high level of filtration, which traps smaller dust and dirt particles, preventing contamination of the environment. This type of filtration is better for homes with allergy sufferers. All Vax dry vacuums are fitted with HEPA filters.

What is HEPA Anti-Microbial Filtration?
Anti-bacterial/anti-microbial filters have a treatment impregnated in the filter that is effective against bacteria that comes in contact with it. However, this treatment is not a pesticide so it does not kill dust mites. The treatment is impregnated in the media of the filter so it’s not lost when the filter is washed.

What is a Carbon Filtration additive?
A filtration system featuring a Carbon Filtration additive features an additional layer of filtration that helps to neutralize odours, so is great for homes with pets.

It’s easy to remove the HEPA filter for cleaning. Filters can just be gently tapped on edge of bin to loosen dust to clean. They’re also easy to re-install in the machine.

Some questions to ask yourself before deciding which dry vacuum to buy:

Does anyone in your home suffer from allergies?

Allergy sufferers in particular benefit from a vacuum fitted with a HEPA filter as they greatly reduce household dust and pollen that can trigger allergies.

Allergy sufferers should also consider getting a machine that can wash carpets in addition to just dry vacuum cleaning your home. This is because washing carpets is a more effective method of keeping them clean than just dry vacuuming, which only strips off the top layer of dirt and debris. Washing carpets helps remove the trodden-in dirt, allergens and dust mites that live and breed deep within carpet pile. Vax offers a range of dedicated carpet washers and multi-function machines at its website.

Do you have pets?

A vacuum with anti-microbial filtration that is effective against bacteria is ideal for homes with pets, and a filter with a Carbon Filtration additive would also help neutralize pet odours.

Tags: dry vacuums, hepa filtration
Posted in Dry Vacuum Cleaners, Vacuum Cleaner Types, Vacuum Cleaning Tips | No Comments »

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