BISSELL® Big Green® PET PRO Carpet Cleaner, 3288

I purchased this for the sole purpose of cleaning my Karastan rugs. Somewhere on line there was a comment (might have been Bissells site) that said this machine was intended for carpet and not rugs. Whatever the case, the Green Machine did an outstanding job on my Karastans. Last year, I paid $750 to have my 4 rugs cleaned. This included me having to roll them up and bringing to the cleaner. That was a major pain AND expensive. This year, we had a sick dog who did some serious work on two of our rugs. It was gross so we took the rugs down to the garage and fired up the Green Machine. The first 9x12 Karastan used a complete tank of cleaner for two complete passes. We ended up cleaning the rug 5 times till the water ran clean. Next rug was 5x8 and it needed 6 passes. And to be clear, the first 5 passes produced waste water that was like mud. My wife and I couldnt believe it nor could she believe how clean the rugs were. I reread the manual and saw the instructions on running passes till the water runs clear. That sure was right. Couple of points: The clean water tank is a little less than 2 gallons. No where could I find that stated so I measured it. The cleaning solution that came with the machine ((3) 8oz bottles) stated 2.5 oz per gallon of solution. The smart filler cap is a measuring cup as well and the fill line is 2.5 oz. Filled to the top, it is 4oz. So, the manual says to use two capfuls which I assumed to be capfuls to the fill line which would be 5oz of cleaning solution. I actually used a filled to the top (4oz) capful and added about 1.5 gallons of hot water (about a 1/2 inch below the full line) and that worked beautifully. The machine is easy to move and is very smartly engineered. However, under power it is a beast. The brush system and the suction make it fairly difficult to move consistently. My wife and I got the hang of it after the first 10 minutes but the work wore my wife out after 10 minutes or so. She needed a break (or she just wanted me to do it!). Either way, be prepared to get a workout if youre going to use for an extended period. In all, we are very glad we purchased this machine as it paid for itself immediately. I was a little hesitant after reading Consumer Reports but one needs to read those reviews carefully. For actual cleaning, this machine was tops in their tests but they ended up rating it towards the middle of the pile because sound and dryness scores knocked it down. To us, it is not deafening and we expected the rugs to be damp (about a third to half of the cleaning solution was extracted). And frankly the most important thing we wanted, by far, was a clean rug. And thats what we got. Great machine.

Ive had these carpets for 17 years, but they are not in bad shape. Cats and children have taken their toll, but theyre still holding up. I have a Dyson Animal vacuum which removes large amounts of cat hair and my girls might lose more hair than the cats given how often I have to cut it out of the beater bar of the vacuum. A few points of note for this review. Ive only had the unit for one day and can not speak to the durability of the unit, but I can say that it feels solid and does a tremendous job cleaning carpets. Im also upgrading from a cheap carpet shampooer which now falls into the toy category. I started off by thoroughly vacuuming the carpets with the Dyson vacuum, removing bits of fuzz, cat hair, stuff like that. Then I loaded up the machine with hot water and the contents of one of the provided bottles, and went to town. It took me a few minutes to get the hang of maneuvering the machine, but I definitely got into a rhythm. It was hard to keep it slow as I wanted to see the results, but I was patient and kept going until the flow meter stopped spinning and I was out of water. I dumped the dirty water bin slowly into the toilet and I swear to God it looked like used motor oil coming out of there. These were carpets which were vacuumed weekly and shampooed a few times a year. Motor. Oil. Clumps of cat hair which must have been woven into the carpet fibers and held in too tightly for the Dyson poured out with the water. I ran out of time last night and was unable to test the hose attachment. This is needed for areas along the edges of the room since the shampooer cant reach that far. Pros: * Cleans very well * Its a good workout * The transformation is mesmerizing * Its heavy, so it is able to clean deeply by pressing on the carpet * Youll strike oil, right in your own living room! * Gave my carpets a few more years of life * The rooms smell better, but that might be the fragrance of the shampoo * It came with three small bottles of cleaner to get you started Cons: * $$$$, although cheaper than professional service in the long run * You will realize how disgusting carpet can be and consider replacing it with laminate, LVP, or hardwood * Its heavy, and cumbersome to carry up stairs * Supposedly the flow meters crack, but they are not expensive and are easy to replace * Why was there motor oil trapped in my carpet? * Its big and bulky, so storage can be tough even though the unit folds up

This is a well made machine with no bells and whistles. There is no rinse option, the Bissell stair attachment apparently does not fit the Big Green, but it comes with an upholstery attachment . The brush is a simple vacuum cleaner type brush. A nuisance is that you cant see the fluid level in the solution reservoir so there is no warning when you run out of solution. And it goes through a lot more solution than my previous uprights, the greater suction leaves it about equally as dry/wet, but it appears to do a better job cleaning, possibly getting deeper. . The machine is built like its intended to be a rental and Im convinced it will hold up; Im tired of my fairly expensive uprights busting apart if just banged against a stair. I dont know if the absence of a rinse option is a significant disadvantage, but my prior machines have had an auto-rinse feature.

This device is awesome, runs rings around everything else Ive ever used before. Only one flaw ive found...dont try to ease this thing down stairs by the handle; the handle latch is not strong so when it bumps the step coming down the handle opens, the motor unit flops, and all the tanks and such go tumbling down the stairs. theyre built tough, didnt seem to break anything and luckily the dirty water tank was empty. I know this unit has handles for picking it up, I have a bad back and lifting 50 lbs down the steps wasnt an option. Next time ill just remove the tanks a make a couple of trips. Buy this thing but just be wary of the handle latch.

Sure, it’s loud, it’s bulky, it’s annoying to have to stop and empty the bucket of nasty water/refill the clean water, it’s kind of a pain in the butt to get up and down the stairs. And yet, this carpet cleaner works SO much better than the cheap ones you can buy at Target/Walmart! I got tired of renting Rug Doctors and getting charged way too much because I kept it two or three hours past my return time and decided it was much more economical to buy my own (and less of a hassle). I initially planned on getting the rug doctor but decided to do a little research and ended up buying this one because it was about $100 cheaper and as far as I could tell they were really similar in function and results. I ended up being much happier with the Bissell when comparing both brands. Bissell vs. Rug Doctor: 1. The Bissell fits under the outer rim of my pool table (standard 9’ table), which the rug doctor did not. Believe it or not, this makes a huge difference in a room with a pool table! 2. The Bissell is easier to deal with the water containers - both the clean and the dirty buckets. 3. The attachment is easier to attach to the Bissell than the RD (granted, neither machine makes this task hard). 4. As loud as the Bissell is, it still seems a lot quieter than the RD. The rug doctor did a weird rumble when releasing the solution that made the entire room feel like it was vibrating - It felt like a loud bass on the first floor when the RD was being used upstairs! 5. Bissell will clean going both forward and backward. RD will not. This seems like a no-brainer, tbh. 6. This last one is a bit subjective, but it seems to me that the Bissell simply does a better job overall and gets the carpet cleaner than the RD. 7. Bissell feels lighter (I don’t remember the actual weight of either machine). Honestly the only advantage I can think of for the rug doctor would be a slightly larger water/waste tanks, meaning you have to refill and dump the tanks less often. However, I somehow seem to get more area cleaned with the Bissell amount of water than I did with RD. At the very least, I would say they are near even as far as area coverage per tank water refill. In conclusion, both products are far superior to the other options (non-commercial) on the market, but this one is the best of the two. TLDR: The Bissell is cheaper and (imo) works better in many ways than it’s main Rival, Rug Doctor. I highly recommend this product. *Pro Tip: DON’T pour your dirty waste water out into your bathtub! Especially if you live with pets. If you do dump it in the tub, you’ll be digging out the clumps of mystery hair gunk that stopped up your drain with a coat hanger shortly afterwards.* Your welcome. :)

I used this product to shampoo my carpets which are a lower loft high traffic carpet made by Shaw with a pad with a waterproof barrier. I shampooed several smaller rooms, a large family room and set up stairs. I was very pleased with the ease of use of the product. It was easy to figure out. I like the separate clean water and dirty water tanks. It really did get the carpets clean and does have good suction to bring water back out of the carpet. It is rather heavy so maneuvering on a full flight of stairs was challenges. It is slightly wider that a standard stair width so if you dont have a landing mid way down it may be challenging to use this on stairs. The only other items I would change is the clarity of the viewing window that shows the water as its being sucked back into the machine. The plastic is more milky versus clear making it hard to see at times how much moisture and how clean the moisture is coming back into the machine. Overall I would recommend this product if you are looking for something that is better than your standard consumer grade carpet shampooer but not so burdensome as a shampooer you might rent from home store.

Did a great job. Will try again next week with the pretreat. Even alone, worked great!

Let me start by saying I have never written a customer review before but feel compelled to take the time to write one now for this product. I made the mistake of purchasing very expensive wall to wall carpet in an off white color for my large family room. This room is used by my family of 2 small children as well as a family daycare. Need I say more, big mistake. I have owned the carpet for just over a year and was at the point of having it professionally cleaned every month for the price of $75 each time. The rug would look great when my professional left but by the time the rug dried most of the stains would resurface. Professional kept saying there really wasnt anything he could do about that. I was on the verge of ripping up the carpet and installing hardwood when I researched carpet cleaners for myself and after reading dozens of reviews decided I had nothing to loose by trying the Bissell Big Green. The first thing I was thrilled about was that it came fully assembled and I was shampooing carpet 15 minutes after the Fed Ex driver dropped it off. I started with a small area rug I have by the front door. There were no major stains on the carpet but thought if things didnt go well with the shampooer it would be a small loss to throw the rug away. I only wish I had taken before and half way through photos because I couldnt believe the difference. I thought the rug was only marginally dirty but in truth it was filthy. On to the family room. I used the Bissell Pre-treat, waited a few minutes and dug in. The machine is easy to use, very similar to a vacuum cleaner. I went over areas without stains one time and any area that had big stains I went over twice. The rug looks absolutely brand new. Even the stains that the professional said would never come up have disappeared. There were even three stains of cranberry juice which I believed would never come up. The room was dry enough to walk on with a few hours. After the family room I was so thrilled that I kept going, cleaning all my area rugs that are on all my hardwood floors throughout the house and everything came out perfectly. Next, I did my upholstered sofas and chairs. You have to believe with a house full of small children and their friends that keeping all these surfaces clean is next to impossible. However, at this point I feel this is easy enough to do every month if need be. I am now going to friends houses to clean their carpet. (Truthfully, they have asked to borrow it but it is now my absolute favorite appliance and I dont want to take the chance that anything will happen to it.) People in other reviews commented on the heaviness of it making it difficult to carry up stairs, etc. but I took off the two water tanks and carried them separately and didnt find it heavy to move at all. Also, the entire basement of my home is covered in berber carpet where the main daycare area is and it cleaned all the carpet beautifully without causing any damage or fussiness as was mentioned in other reviews. The one thing I wish it had was an indicator to let you know when the clean water/shampoo runs out. I made several passes when the tank was empty now I just keep an eye on the return water tube. This was a big financial investment for me but I feel it will pay for itself in a matter of months.

No issues

We (wife & I) have owned this Big Green for a few weeks now, and I have used it three times. We owned Hoovers top of the line carpet cleaner for three years prior to this purchase. Here is a quick comparison of the Hoover to the Big Green: > The Hoover is less expen$ive. (You DO get what you pay for, though!) > The Hoover is lighter, making it easier for my wife to use. Its only good point. > Big Green picks up dirty water LOTS better than the Hoover. in a word, Big Green Sucks (in a GOOD way)! It was tedious to try and pick up all (er, most) of the water laid down for cleaning with the Hoover. This resulted in days of drying time. Not good. > The hoover has an independent cleaning solution tank (for a total of three tanks), which means you can lay down as much cleaner as you would like, and then use the clear, hot water to rinse. Big Green only has two tanks, the clean water tank (which you add cleaner to), and the dirty water tank which is where all the dirty water gets sucked into. > Big Green is much faster. Because the Hoover does not suck nearly as well as Big Green, you must go excruciatingly (painfully... agonizingly... I could go on...) slow with the Hoover to recover most of the dirty water. I can clean carpets in 1/4 the time with Big Green, compared to the Hoover, simply because it has better scrubbing action, and suction! > The reason we ended up buying a Big Green after only three years of Hoover ownership, was the roller brush drive belt was worn and about to break. I tried to buy the drive belt from Hoover, but they are out of stock. A Hoover Customer Service person told me I could not back-order the belt, and I should just try back in a month (unacceptable!). The local Hoover dealer told me the belt is no longer made (out of production), and suggested I file a warranty claim, and in his experience Hoover would simply replace the unit with a (similar) brand new one. So, lets sum up the Hoover problems: 1) Doesnt work too well in the first place (slow, and poor suction); 2) Cant order a simple replacement part; 3) Hoover lied to me about the availability / discontinued status of the drive belt. 4) We didnt feel good about contributing a perfectly functional carpet cleaner to the land-fill because of Hoovers big-corporation attitude towards streamlined profitability at the consumers expense (They dont stock parts). We donated the Hoover to Good Will. What I like about Big Green: It does a better job cleaning carpets. It is much faster at cleaning carpets. It leaves the carpet much drier, resulting in less than a day needed for the carpet to dry (typically dries in 12 hours). My tips for Big Green Users: 1) Carpet cleaning is a patience thing, and cannot be rushed. If your head is in rush mode, drop carpet cleaning and go do something else, until your head is in the game. 2) Go slow and steady. Avoid sloshing the dirty water in the dirty water tank. Bissels dirty water tank is a two-piece design, which does not seal as well as it should. If you jerk the machine around, while trying to go fast, or get around obstacles, it WILL leak out dirty water, leaving dirty water spots! Slow and steady wins the race. 3) I have been using Bissels Pet Pro Oxy Urine Eliminator formula. and it gives great results. With time, I will try other formulas, and report back. We have an older cat and white carpets (need I say more?), which is why we are big fans of any oxy type of cleaning formulas. 4) Bissell recommends two caps of formula added to a tank of hot water. I now use between a 1/2 - 1 cap of cleaner. It works just as well with less cleaner formula. I have found that too much formula leaves the carpet stiff. And... Too much cleaner left in the carpet makes it attract dirt faster. < Straight from the Hoover instruction manual. 5) I use hot tap water in the clean water tank (per Bissells instructions). We keep our hot water at 140°, at the tap. I have not experienced any problems (with Big Greens flow indicator) using 140° water. 5) I overlap my cleaning passes by 1/2 width. 6) Bissells instructions say to hold the spray trigger and go out and back (one wet pass), then release the trigger, and go out and back (one dry pass). I make one wet pass, and then two dry (vacuum only) passes. 7) Bissell instructs you to continue to make passes until the solution being pulled up appears clean. I cant tell the cleanliness of the water as it comes up, but I keep making passes (in the same area) until the carpet looks clean. 8) I now add a rinse pass. after completely cleaning the carpet, I now add clear hot water (NO cleaning solution added) to the clean water tank, and I make a rinse pass over the entire carpet The rinse pass has no (well... minimal) overlap, and I do one wet pass, followed by only one vacuum pass. The rinse goes pretty quick. If you think you did a good job cleaning the carpet with cleaning solution, wait until you see how dirty the water is from the rinse pass! Dirt never rests... Summary: Yes, Big Green is pricey, and heavy, and it has its little quirks (the dirty water tank can leak, IF you are not careful). So far, it cleans carpets better than the several carpet cleaners we have owned and rented. Would I buy it again? Yes. In a New York minute. Time is valuable to me. Even though it has its little idiosyncrasies, it is the fastest, best carpet cleaner I have ever used. Yes, you really do get what you pay for. Recommended!