What is the best carpet cleaning machine to buy?

You might be considering buying a carpet cleaning machine, before you decide on what the best carpet cleaning machine to buy or rent is there are a good number of factors or conditions that you need to take into consideration.

Let us first understand what we would like the carpet cleaning machine to combat and what health risks the carpet cleaning machine needs to eliminate for us in our homes and offices.

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, we might have neglected to clean our carpets regularly because we were too busy to do anything about it. Covid-19 caused us to become more alert about the general cleanliness of our direct environment and dirty carpets can have a direct impact on your family’s or co-worker’s health that needs to be addressed on a regular basis.

There are many health reasons why it is important to have your carpets cleaned regularly with a proper carpet cleaning machine.

Some of the reasons why you would want to clean your carpets regularly with a carpet cleaning machine are as follows:

1. Carpets act as filters that capture greasy residue and dirt particles that can change the colour of your carpet if left unattended.
2. Dirty carpets are known to provide the perfect environment for many germs and insects that can make you ill. Carpet’s filter pollens, fungi, and chemicals from the air in your home or office.
3. Carpets get infested with dust mites whose droppings can lead to asthma attracts and allergies.
4. Carpets can hold as much as 4 times their weight in dirt. Carpets act as filters and capture pet hair, dead skin cells, bacteria, insect faeces and dust mites.

Now that we understand the factors surrounding dirty carpets it would be safe to assume that you would like a carpet cleaning machine that can conduct the following 3 tasks:

1. The carpet cleaning machine needs to have the ability to sterilize carpets so that we can kill all the germs, bacteria and insects living in your carpets.
2. The carpet cleaning machine needs to be able to break down all greasy residue and dirt captured within your carpets.
3. The carpet cleaning machine would lastly be able to remove all the dirt, grease, bacteria, and germs from your carpets once the cleaning process has been completed.

Let us now start looking at the technical features you would like your carpet cleaning machine to have and why.

1. To achieve proper sterilization the carpet cleaning machine needs to be able to heat water to extremely high temperatures so that the “steam” of the water becomes an effective killing agent for all the unwanted germs, bacteria and insects captured within your carpet.
2. The carpet cleaning machine needs to be able to have high-pressure water pumps so that you can inject high-temperature water into your carpets. Hot Water mixed with cleaning chemicals can break down greasy stains and dirt particles.
3. Lastly, the carpet cleaning machine needs to be fitted with strong vacuum/extraction pumps so that you can remove all the dirt particles, water, and moisture from the carpets once the cleaning process has been completed. Leaving your carpets moist or wet for extended periods of time can cause mould growth to start and a foul odour will settle in rather quickly.

Is it better to shampoo or steam clean carpets? and Do carpet cleaners really work?

It is important to understand the difference between shampoo cleaning and steam cleaning (Hot Water Extraction Cleaning) when purchasing your carpet cleaning machine.

Shampoo carpet cleaning has been around since the 1900s and is considered the oldest carpet cleaning technology around. The distinct disadvantage of shampoo carpet cleaning is they do not heat the water during the cleaning process, nor do they have any extraction pumps that can remove the moisture or water from carpets after the cleaning process has been completed. Shampoo carpet cleaning also relies on the presence of high amounts of foam that gets scrubbed into the carpet during the cleaning process. Foam becomes a sticky substance during the drying process and can leave your carpets feeling sticky after the cleaning process has been completed. In summary, shampoo carpet cleaning machines do not offer the ability to sterilize your carpets, nor do they are they able to extract the moisture and water out of your carpets resulting in longer drying times.

Steam cleaning machines or otherwise known as Hot Water Extraction cleaning machines was introduced to the market in the ’70s. Over the past 40 years or so the technology has been drastically improved and gained a lot of popularity. Steam cleaning machines are the go-to carpet cleaning technology and enjoy the luxury of being endorsed as the only approved carpet cleaning method by carpet manufactures.  Hot Water Extraction carpet cleaning machines can heat the water to high enough temperatures so that steam sterilization in your carpets can take place, they are also typically fitted with high extraction vacuum motors capable of removing most of the moisture and water in your carpets. Ideally, you want your carpet to be damp after the cleaning process has been completed. Carpets should be dry one to two hours after cleaning.

Carpet cleaners do really work and are a great addition to keeping your home and office carpets clean. The effectiveness of the carpet cleaning machine does however greatly depend on how warm it can heat the water temperature as well as how strong the vacuum motors are that is fitter on the carpet cleaning machine.  The ability of the operator to use the carpet cleaning machine would also contribute to how effective the carpet cleaner is and it is also worth noting that Professional carpet cleaners would typically get better results because they have the stronger (industrial) type of carpet cleaning machines and are trained in stain removal techniques.

Where to buy a carpet cleaning machine?

Residential carpet cleaning machines can be purchased from most of the major retail stores within Southern Africa. Online retailers can also be a great source to purchase a carpet cleaning machine.

Pricing for residential carpet cleaning machine would vary from R 2 500 to R 30 000. Pricing greatly varies between well-known brand names and is influenced by the water capacity that the machine can carry as well as the power of the extraction or vacuum motors of the machine. Shampoo carpet cleaning machines tend to be cheaper as they are not fitted with extraction/vacuum motors.

Some of the most used Google searches to source a residential carpet cleaning machine are as follows: carpet cleaning machine at game, carpet cleaner machine for sale, carpet cleaning machines south Africa, carpet cleaner machine takealot, carpet cleaning machine prices and carpet shampooer makro.

How much is an industrial carpet cleaner?

Industrial carpet cleaning machines are much more expensive than residential carpet cleaning machines as they are fitted with bigger water tanks and industrial-grade extraction, vacuum pumps.

The more water the machine can carry and the stronger the extraction, vacuums pumps are on the machine the faster you can clean bigger areas. Industrial machines are typically also fitted with better water heating elements, this gives industrial machines the advantage of getting better cleaning results while cleaning carpets.

Industrial carpet cleaners are spoiled with choice when it comes to purchasing a carpet cleaning machine as there are a good number of manufactures producing industrial-grade machines which are then offered for sale in South Africa and managed by agents.

The major considerations to consider when purchasing an industrial machine is maintenance cost and after-sales support. Keep in mind that you will most likely be relying on the fact that the carpet cleaning machine would need to work for long periods at a time and on a regular basis.

Some industrial carpet cleaning machine manufactures, or agents do not always have stock of spare parts which can result in long waiting or downtime while your carpet cleaning machine is being repaired.

The size of your commercial carpet cleaning machine would also determine how much work you will be able to commit to at a time.