Carpet Cleaning W/O Steam or Wet/Dry Vac

[gandblah]

Folks
Whats the most effective way of cleaning carpets WITHOUT a wet/dry vac or a steam vaccum at hand?

[budman3]

Folex states for you to spray the product on the carpet, agitate if necessary and blot dry using a terry towel. Granted this is on a clean carpet already vaccuumed. I haven`t used this method, but it is the companies instructions so I`m sure it`ll do. You can buy Folex at Wal Mart, Lowe`s, Target, etc.

[Poorboy]

I`ve done this when I had a wet/dry vac blow at the beginning of a job....
You should have a good size collection of junk cotton towels ...
I sprayed the carpet with APC, scrubed it with a wet nylon carpet brush and then blot and wipe residual up with the towels... I also tend to do this same procedure for spot cleaning....

[JaredPointer]

I`m sold on Folex after giving it a try. It has removed some stains on the Solara carpet that have been there for quite some time - after I had tried all sorts of other cleaners. I tend to follow the Folex directions on the bottle.

[Mr. Clean]

Agreed Folex is good as is Nature`s Miracle. Both products are relatively easy to use and perform as advertised.

The most important step in any carpet care is a thorough vacuuming. You definitely need a quality vac to achieve that.

Good matting goes a long way to keep your carpets (home and auto) in like new condition.

[MagicCity33]

Man have I been there. Get prepared to build some good shoulder and back muscles. I would spray your solution on the carpet let it sit for maybe 15-20 seconds depending on how soiled the carpet is then get a brush and massage the carpet in circular motions until it begins to lather up then after a few minutes of scrubbing get a damp cloth and rub it over the area. Do this until eveything looks good. Personally, I have a drill with a brush attachment on the end and use it to do most of the dirty work, then use my wet dry vac or little green mean to pick up the dirt and water. Then I towel dry and finally use a blower to finish the drying process. The main thing is never leave the carpets wet for the customer all they want is a clean ride.

[gandblah]

Thank you for the responses.

Folex seems to be the way to go. People who have used Folex - does it leave a residue on the carpet. Ive used the Woolite Foam spray can - sprayed - agitated with a brush - then blotted with wet towels but it seems to leave a residue and the carpet cakes/matts up after drying.

Does Folex do the same thing?

[Mr. Clean]

gandblah, Folex is a rinse free product. I would still recommend going back over the area with your vac after the carpet dries.

[CharlesW]

A pretty simple process that seems to work for me.
1. Vacuum thoroughly. If you have access to an air compressor, blow out as much of the dirt as you can. The air works great under the seats.
2. Treat any stains. I happen to use tar remover for any tar or road oil stains. A Product called Kids N Pets stain remover works for most others.
3. Apply some carpet cleaner, but don`t saturate the carpet. It just needs to be damp, not wet. I have used Folex, Prestone, Blue Coral and Meg`s APC+ and have had good luck with any/all of them.
4. Agitate. I use a medium bristle brush. If I can`t get into an area with the brush, I use a cotton terry towel.
5. Since I don`t get the carpet wet, I just let it air dry.
6. After it`s dry, vacuum thoroughly again to pick up the stuff the carpet shampoo has brought to the top of the fibers.
You really don`t need a wet vac, but you do need a good vacuum.
My "Dry" vac is the Metro Vac-N-Blo and it will pick carpeted mats up from the floor of the vehicle.

Charles

[gandblah]

Thanks a lot for the responses....Will give it a shot and let everybody know how it went....

[MYC5VERT]

I use megs carpet cleaner. It seems to work great, even on caked on coffee stains on light color carpets. just m $.02

[TrueDetailer]

Its called surface cleaning.

You`ll need a few cotten rags. You`ll want to spray a mist over the carpet, let it sit for a minute. Fold up the rag, spray a mist on it and proceed to gently wipe the top of the carpet. You don`t want to mash or apply to much force. Remember your cleaning the surface. You`ll notice the rag getting dirty so flip it to another side and repeat til the "surface" is clean.

Now, your carpets may look clean but they`re not. So i wouldn`t suggest doing this to a stinky car cause the smell will still be there.

[Bunta]

If you can remove the seats. You can clean between where the seat brackets are and the transmission tunnel so much eaiser.Also near the door sills


Hunter