Aside from the odor and carpet stains, her puppy had also pretty much ruined a microfiber sofa and chair in the living room (she hasn't yet learned that wise pet owners are better off with leather upholstery and hardwood/tile floors).
When I got this pet vac, I knew immediately where to try it out -we set it up at her apartment and let it rip. First we pre-treated some areas (using the pre-treat product included in the package), then we steam cleaned all the carpet. This machine is AMAZING. The amount of steam and circulation that happens is incredible. The carpet was steaming hot to the touch after the cleaner passed over it. On some tougher spots (like a plant which had a pretty serious pee ring all around it), we did a couple passes. Bottom line, the carpets were cleaned, the apartment smelled better. Amazing!
Next we did the upholstery. Getting the spot cleaner hose to work was a little tricky, so I suggest you read the instructions first, because we definitely should have. However, we were also able to seriously reduce the pee smell on the microfiber upholstery, and also remove the stains. Unfortunately, since pee stains on cushions go way deeper than the surface upholstery, the smell came back (a little bit) over the next couple days, but it's very slight and we may try to re-clean and see if that makes it even better.
I guess the one 'con' to this unit is tied to a pro -the one about how much steam it puts out. While it feels POWERFUL and leaves carpets steaming hot and smelling/looking super fresh, it also goes through the water reservoir pretty quickly. For her small 2-bedroom apartment (and we only did one of the bedrooms), we had to refill several times. I think this is a minor annoyance, though, given the fact that this machine will save your carpet and upholstery from even stubborn, ingrained pet stains (and other stains as well).
Those of you with a single stain, or with a very limited amount of carpeting, might be better off just renting a cleaner or hiring someone... but those of you with lots of carpet and young pets will probably benefit from this unit. It's good to use even if you don't have pet stains, but if you DO have them -I've never seen another retail unit perform like this. It blows the rental ones from home improvement stores out of the water. A worthy investment if you anticipate putting much time into maintaining the cleanliness of your carpets and cloth upholstery in the years to come.
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(2008 HOLIDAY TEAM) Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program First, a small rant: I am always stunned when high-end products make it to sale with basic design flaws. When you take this "Bissell Lift-Off Deluxe Pet Upright Deep Cleaner" out of the box, it comes in two parts; the lower functioning unit and the upper handle. You have to screw on the handle, but for reasons I can't understand Bissell thought it was a good idea to have the screws mount in behind the support handle. They forget the fundamental mechanics of a screwdriver--they don't work so well around corners.In order to assemble, you need to get down under the support handle and angle up your screwdriver from the bottom. And because the screw wells are so deep, you need a Phillips screwdriver with at least a six-inch shaft that is thin enough to fit under the support handle and into the deep wells.
All of my screwdrivers were either too thick or too short, so I ended up having to buy a special screwdriver just to put this together. Not a big deal if you already own one, but I am still astounded that Bissell thought that behind the support handle was a logical place to put screw mounts. Apparently, this is pretty standard with Bissell deep cleaners, but you have to wonder why.
So! Rant aside, once it is all together, what do you have? Something pretty darn nice.
This is the first carpet cleaner I have ever owned. In the past, I have always rented the clumsy Rug Doctor from the local grocery store, and then only when I was moving apartments so I could get my deposit back. But I am older now and have allergy issues, and so I am happy to make carpet cleaning more of a regular activity.
The Bissell is smaller and more compact than the rentals. It is more like a bulked-up vacuum cleaner, allowing for easy storage and maneuverability. When you are an apartment dweller like myself, that storage part is a necessity. This deep cleaner fits in our hall closet without too much difficulty. Bonus points right there. But "smaller and more compact" also means less water capacity, obviously. The tank doesn't hold nearly the same amount of water as the rental cleaners. I live in a fairly large three-bedroom apartment (actually the bottom-half of a 100-year old house) and I could generally get half of one room out of the tank before I needed a refill. This wasn't too much of a problem, but I could see it getting annoying if you have a large house.
The suction power and cleaning was fantastic. Even though I didn't think my carpets were that dirty, one look at the tanks showed I was wrong. Cat and dog hair, dirt and grime, it all got washed out and sucked up into the Bissell. Its kind if disgusting to think we were living with all that dirt for as long as we did. The cleaner is self-heating, and we used the solution that came with the deep cleaner which worked fine. We had a few (more than a few) stains in the carpet that came right out, and I was most impressed with the entryway. We live in Seattle, and several years of wet and muddy boots have permanently changed the carpet color there. Now it is back and matches the rest of the house! Just like the Rug Doctor, it took a few passes to get everything perfectly clean, and then it took awhile to dry out the carpet completely, but all in all the Bissell did a great job.
And aside from the looking better, the carpets and the whole house smell better. This is the "Pet" version of the cleaner, which means it comes with a "Pet Stain Eraser Tool" and the 8 oz. Pet 2X chemical and the Pet Stain & Odor 22 oz. I saw some longtime pet stains and smells disappear, which I am very pleased about.
This Lift-Off attachment was surprisingly easy to use. You just push a button to disconnect the hand-held unit, and you are off cleaning sofas, chairs, and anything else that needs a deep cleaning. This part is surprisingly handy, including for heading outside of the house. We cleaned the carpets and mats in our car, which worked great and is the cleanest they have been for years.
So the verdict for this is; aside from the birthing pains of putting it together, this is a great machine. It does everything it promises, and I am amazed at how beautiful our old apartment looks and smells.
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I've had two carpet cleaners before this one, and all I can say is WOW! I ordered the pet model because I have a sheltie, and that means a lot of hair.I was amazed the first time I used this in the living room. Even though I cleaned it not long ago with my old carpet cleaner, the amount of dirt and hair I was able to get out with this new one was amazing. It didn't leave long strands of hair all over the room like my old Bissell did.
The best part is that it's a portable cleaner too. You simply step on a pedal and the center part lifts right up, along with the hose and the power cord.
I waited a month to review it. I wanted to try several areas of the house, and I can honestly say I love everything about the Bissell Lift-Off Deluxe Pet Upright Deep Cleaner.
Honest reviews on BISSELL Lift-Off Deluxe Pet Upright Deep Cleaner, Titanium, 73H5
When this machine works, it does a fantastic job of general cleaning as well as spot removal. The spinning brushes really get deep into the carpet and take out a lot of old stains. Unlike other reviewers, I find that the size is quite adequate. Since I move slowly over the carpet to disburse a lot of solution, my 16 x 16 living room might take 3 tanks to complete, but it's a simple process.I typically use the machine once every 3 months or so. After about a year, it completely stopped releasing solution into the carpet and the spinner nozzle that is supposed to indicate an empty tank stopped spinning even on a full tank. I took it to a repair shop and had the belts replaced for about $30, and it worked again for a couple of uses, but the problem eventually happened again. When I searched for tips online, I found out that this is a common problem with these machines. The suction still works well and the spinning brushes are very effective, so I resorted to buying a cheap machine to distribute the solution and then switch to this one for the suction.
I regret having to leave a negative review because when it works, it really does a great job. However, I can't see spending $200 every 1-2 years to replace a unit that fizzles after about 4 uses.
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program While we try to take utmost care of our carpets, it is just impossible to keep is spotless clean with a 3-yr old running around. For immediate carpet cleaning, our ready answer is always a handheld wet-dry portable vacuum which takes care of it immediately.But to really achieve spotless cleaning an hygiene we needed something more powerful and detailed thats when we got the Bissell 73H5.
The cleaner is very easy to use and self heating watch out : some of the carpet cleaners, yes even the ones costing $100+ require you to put hot water in the cleaner.
I never used the lift off unit so I cannot comment it but I did try to lift it it is easy to lift off with the push of a button.
What is good:
* Very effective cleaner
* Built in Water heater
* Portable cleaner
* Hose Pipe to reach out to reach out to spots, edges, stairs and upholstry
What is not good:
* Water tank requires multiple refills a 15x20 room requires as much as 5 tank refills
* A bit heavy to move back and forth
Comparison between bissell 94Y2 and 73H5 : The 73H5 comes with a Pet Strain eraser tool, if you do not need this you can the 94Y2 is exactly the same cleaner minus the tool.
Here is an amazon link to 94Y2:
Bissell Lift-Off Deep Cleaner, 94Y2
~ Update May 14 2012
I find that I am using the portable spot cleaner more than the full unit. I have detached the portable unit and kept it in close proximity to living room, always ready with water and cleaning fluid the moment there is a spill/cleanup of any liquid I just use it to clean up the mess.
