The Formula Factor: The Ultimate Guide
Buying a new carpet cleaner is a big deal. We know a lot goes into your decision to purchase a cleaning machine. The most important factor potential buyers tell us they contemplate is choosing between an upright carpet cleaner for cleaning whole rooms of carpet or a portable carpet cleaner for spot cleaning stains on carpet, rugs, upholstery, and other soft surfaces. Following the purchase of your new machine comes another choice: determining the type of carpet shampoo to use. That’s why we put this formula guide together, to help you find the best solution for your needs.
At BISSELL Headquarters, we have an entire team of chemists dedicated to learning about consumers' cleaning needs and formulating just the right chemistries to quickly and easily tackle even the toughest messes. We spoke with those in-house formula experts and rounded up a few of our favorite facts that will come in handy as you consider the best formula to pair with your upright or portable carpet cleaner.
1. Made with Your Machine in Mind
The most important factor to keep in mind when choosing a formula is to make sure you only use portable carpet cleaning formula in portable deep cleaning machines and upright formula in upright machines. If you don’t follow this rule, you run the risk of not achieving your best clean! But that’s not the only potential issue. Using formula intended for an upright carpet cleaner in a portable machine can also lead to excessive foaming and potential resoiling, also known as restaining.
So, how can you make sure you’re choosing the right formula? If you’re shopping online , we have our formulas separated by machine type. If you’re shopping at a store, you’ll notice the difference in a few ways. First, our upright formulas are offered in bigger bottles compared to our portable machine formulas. Second, you’ll see a sticker on the cap of our upright formulas that reads “formula made for upright carpet cleaners”. You’ll see that same type of treatment on our portable formula bottles, but instead of a sticker on the cap it’ll be a part of the bottle’s label.
2. Not All Stains Are the Same
We touched on this important topic when we explained how you can find the best formula for pet messes, but it’s important enough that we think it bears repeating. Just like the machine you’re using dictates the type of formula you need to use, the type of stain you’re cleaning is also a factor in the formula you choose.
Carpet Solution for Wine, Blood, and Coffee Stains
Let’s say you have a stain from something like fruit juice, red wine, blood, coffee, pop, soy sauce, or grape jelly. This type of stain would be considered an oxidizable stain, so you’ll want to use an OXY based stain remover. Some of our best OXY based formulas include PRO OXY Spot & Stain formula for portable carpet cleaners, PRO OXY Deep Clean formula for upright carpet cleaners or PET OXY Power Shot Formula for quick spot and stain removal without a machine.
Carpet Solution for Pet Urine Odor and Stains
Let’s say you have a stain that’s also producing an odor, like pet urine, vomit or similar messes. For these types of stains you should use an enzyme cleaner like Professional Pet Stain and Odor Removing formula for quick spot removal, PET PRO OXY Urine Eliminator formula for upright carpet cleaners or PET Spot & Stain formula for portable carpet cleaners.
3. All Stain Cleaning Machines Deserve a Little Boost Formula
In addition to upright and portable formulas, almost all of our portable and upright deep cleaning machines also work with our PET OXY Boost formula. (The exception being if you’re using a Pet Stain Eraser portable deep cleaner with a formula that already includes OXY. Adding PET OXY Boost to that formula could cause foaming in those machines.) As the Boost name suggests, this formula packs the power of an extra cleaning boost when cleaning odors and stubborn stains. If you have a portable machine, reference its user guide to see how much Boost formula you should add. If you’re using an upright carpet cleaner, the directions on the bottle will be most helpful. Just be sure to double check the label on whichever main formula you’re using to make sure it’s compatible with the Boost formula.
We are committed to helping you achieve the best clean for your carpets and upholstery, and a big part of that depends on the type of formula you use. You can count on our team of chemists to continue working hard to bring you a full selection of the best carpet cleaning solutions for whatever mess life throws your way!