The machine features a rotating and vibrating brush system powered by a powerful motor that’s very successful in getting rid of very deep stains that smaller and less powerful models fail to clean.
The Rug Doctor Deep Carpet Cleaner is an extremely well-built and sturdy machine that feels like a commercial-grade product. It’s a more massive and more rigid unit than ordinary consumer-grade carpet cleaners. The plastic parts and the connection joints are very solid and durable.
Unlike most consumer-grade carpet cleaners, where you push forward and pull backward to clean, this one requires you to clean only by pulling backwards. After each backward pass, you will need to tilt the machine and push it back to the front. This takes some time to get used to. On the other hand, if you have used professional-grade machines before, then this method is very similar and you will learn it quickly.
The clean water tank and the dirty water tank don’t sync up very well, so you have to check the levels and add extra clean water before the dirty tank is full if you want to empty and fill the tanks simultaneously.
The cleaner comes with a variety of pads and cleaning solutions each with their unique purpose. Certain pads and solutions can be used for carpets or for hardwood floors. There’s also a pad for deep stain removal from carpets, but you’ll need to pretreat the stain with the included activating solution. There’s also a hard wood polish and a polishing pad. All of this with the combination of great maneuverability allows the unit to be used throughout the house to keep your floors fresh and clean no matter the flooring type.
This cleaner is easy to assemble and use. You just have to fasten the handle into the top of the cleaner, attach the pad, attach the cleaning solution bottle and go to work. There’s no need to fill water tanks or mix detergents.
The main purpose of this cleaner is to freshen up carpets and polish hardwood floor. It doesn’t have a vacuum for cleaning loose dirt or removing excess cleaning solution.
The machine comes with a pet-related stain remover tool with rubber needles that applies detergent to the bottom of carpets to target the root of the stain, while scrub brushes help break up dirt and debris. The built-in collection basket filters pet hair from the water it sucks in to keep the machine from clogging. For really bad stains like pet urine, you can shoot detergent and water directly at the stain for more effective spot cleaning.
Unlike other carpet cleaners where the water cools off over time, this unit has a heating element to keep your water warm. Warm water fights odor and deep stains better than just cold water. Keep in mind that this isn’t a fully functional water heater, so you still have to fill it up with hot water.
Unlike some carpet cleaners, it doesn’t have separate tanks for clean water and extracted dirty water. Rather, it stores the clean water inside a very durable bag that shrinks as the clean water is used up. The pouch is surrounded by the dirty water while you're cleaning. This system eliminates the need for two tanks, but if you dump out the waste water in the tank, you lose some of your clean water.