I live in a townhouse with older rugs, and have a Siberian Husky subject to occasional “accidents.” I decided to buy this unit based on its excellent reviews. I couldn’t be happier. The results have been excellent. There are excellent reviews here, and I’m not going to repeat everything. I would like to make a few points, however:
1. Just like with vacuuming, speed does make a difference. Take your time. In addition to more “brushing” time, the amount of water picked up goes way up if you don’t rush. The suction is powerful, but it can’t make up for excessive speed. I have finished cleaning as late as 11 PM, and found the carpets to be dry next morning.
2. The Hoover brand cleaning solution that I use, the Platinum, is expensive, and the unit does go through it. I will continue to use it, though, because I don’t do carpets every day, and the cleaning quality is just excellent. I’m sure that other solutions would also work fine, but I don’t plan on switching because I’m satisfied. Read the reviews for recommendations.
3. The unit is fairly heavy, and your back will be tired when you finish.
4. You do have to empty the dirty container, and refill the clean container, fairly often. It’s not hard, just takes a bit of time.
5. I don’t know where ’steam’ came from in the name. There is none. However, I don’t see a need for steam. Nor any more professional cleaning.