Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links and I may earn a small commission if you purchase through these links.
I am sure, you are proud of your house. Keeping it clean is not easy. You are to wash and vacuum your floor, clean sinks in your bathroom and kitchen… and sometimes it’s not enough. Every room requires deep cleaning once in a while and a carpet extractor often comes in handy. So the question is, how to use a carpet extractor?
Many tasks would be unsolvable without heavy-duty appliances. They help us to clean windows, countertops, and the tile floor in the kitchen. Washing dishes and bedding accessories are intuitive with modern appliances. Carpets and rugs should not be any different. Stubborn stains are difficult to remove. Let me remind you about the ways to do it faster and easier.
What is a Carpet Extractor Used for?
How often do you vacuum carpets in your house? Do it once a week or more often. The carpets are warm and beautiful. They insulate your rooms, making them comfortable and quiet. They cushion your floors, preventing slip-and-fall accidents. But carpets and rugs collect dust. They trap pollutants and small particles of toxic substances.
How to get rid of them? Commonly, vacuuming is enough. Although in specific situations, you should use one of the Best hot water extractor to get the job done. Their applications include:
- car detailing;
- professional cleaning services;
- commercial and industrial facilities;
- large, high-traffic carpeted areas;
- leakages elimination;
- heavy-duty task solving.
Using the best commercial carpet extractor is essential in apartment complexes and offices. These large machines clean carpeted areas in health care and educational institutions. Public facilities might require special sanitizing, cleaning and disinfecting measures. Extractors eliminate debris, dirt and oil-based grime in a matter of minutes. They are powerful and heavy-duty, but a bit bulky. Will you need such a monster of a device at home? Let’s dig deeper into it.
What’s the Difference Between a Carpet Cleaner and a Carpet Extractor?
According to the CDC, pure water with detergent does the job. It cleans all objects and surfaces. Multiple appliances use cleaning solutions. Both carpet cleaner and extractor removes stains, dirt and odors. Any of these devices deep-cleans your carpets. Comparing them, we realize their benefits.
| Performance | Cleaner | Extractor |
| Weight, lbs. | 12-40 | 100-200 |
| Water Tank Capacity | 1-2 | 10-15 |
| Water Temperature, °F | 32-104 | 150-210 |
| Drying time, hours | 36-48 | 12-24 |
| Application | household | commercial |
Have you got a comparatively small rug? If it lies in the center of your room, cleaning is much easier. You can lift it, flip outdoors and vacuum from the bottom side. A wet/dry vacuum removes small, fresh stains from textiles. It washes your floors, eliminating the need to mop them.
What equipment do professional carpet cleaners use? You could call these machines portable but not compact. They feature large, heavy-duty casters and wide carrying handles. You can move an extractor by yourself. It’s powerful, durable, but not very compact. An industrial machine could be also a bit noisy, exceeding the 80 dB limit.
What is a Carpet and Tile Extractor?
A carpet cleaner could be pretty compact and lightweight. Upright, canister and cordless devices exist. Household appliances are handy to solve your daily cleaning tasks. If you’ve got a small house or apartment, your wet/dry vacuum has you covered. A compact device helps you to clean several rugs or carpets easily.
An extractor is:
- large;
- powerful;
- fast;
- versatile;
- efficient at removing stubborn stains.
A hot water extractor is a versatile device. It suits cleaning delicate upholstery, tiles, linoleum and, in general, all types of surfaces. It usually comes with multiple brushes and attachments. An extractor uses water, suction and heat to clean heavily soiled areas. It’s able to revive very old rugs and upholstery, prolonging their lifespans. A machine heats water up to boiling temperatures.
Some manufacturers may call these appliances steamers, although that would be a bit of a misnomer. These machines use hot water, but no steam and that’s one of their core advantages. Using detergents, they extract dirt from the fibers. Hot water kills bacteria and germs. They disinfect, sanitize, and clean your rugs.
How Do You Use a Carpet Extractor with a Heater?
The hot water extraction method is beneficial in many cases. If you use no detergents, it’s completely safe to breathe. No chemical residue remains after the treatment. It’s possible to apply a chemical on the stains. The appliance degreases them and extracts dirty liquid back to the machine.
Although the hot water is safe to use with delicate fabrics, it should not touch your skin. The main four parts of a carpet extractor are:
- motor;
- heating element;
- high-pressure pump;
- two water tanks: for clean and dirty water.
An advanced device may include a third tank that holds the special detergent. It should be safe-to-touch. Anyway, make sure both water tanks are attached and sealed properly. It’s important to enhance your security while the extractor is in operation.
Finally, there are 2 types of heaters: external and onboard. External heating elements are detachable. They make hot water extractors more powerful. On the other hand, on-board devices are much safer. The heater remains inside the case, eliminating scald burn risks.
How Do You Extract a Carpet?
At home, you don’t need an extractor very often. After a flood, water spill or leak, it sucks water in a trace. Stubborn stains in high-traffic areas could require heavy-duty cleaning. You easily solve your daily and weekly tasks with small, lightweight devices. It’s only once or twice a year your house interior requires detailing.
Have you got a rented or your own extractor? If so, get ready to clean your room. Buy a suitable cleaning solution and defoaming agent. Remove chairs and lightweight furniture. How to use a carpet extractor? Read the manual, as every machine is different. Commonly, you need to:
- Make sure the dirty water (recovery) tank is empty.
- Fill the tank with warm tap water.
- Add some detergent.
- Select and attach the necessary brush.
- Checks the tanks position and their lids installation.
- Plug the extractor into the socket.
- Turn the switches on.
- Clean your beautiful carpet.
Your extractor might include several switches. One of them turns motor on, the other makes the pump operate. Additionally, you are to press a button to inject clean water. Then turn on extraction function and move backward. As a result, the machine will start collecting dirty liquid.
Final Words
When the recovery tank is full, empty it. Don’t forget to unplug the machine before you do, though. Is the job complete? Allow the textiles to dry. Don’t walk on it. Avoid moving your furniture during 12-24 hours. Hot water extractors still leave carpets pretty damp. But it’s the only downside. These machines are powerful and fast. They lift hidden dirt from the deep carpet areas. Detail your house with an extractor 2-3 times a year. It will keep your environment clean and healthy.
Further Reading
