With two dogs in the house 24/7, we NEED a powerful carpet cleaner more often than I’d like to admit!
I can’t tell you just how many times I’ve used our Bissell Pro Heat carpet cleaner to clean up even the toughest of pet stains.
If you’re wondering how it works and whether or not it’s worth the money, maybe my review as a pet owner will help you decide.
Bissell ProHeat Is Great For Dog Owners
I’ve used the Bissell Pro Heat steam cleaner to suck up lots and LOTS of “pet stains” including:
Not to mention how often I’ve used it to clean up “people stains” including:
The best part: Regardless of how long the stain has been there (…2 hours… 2 days… or 2 MONTHS!) the Bissell Proheat carpet shampooer cleans it up like a champ!
I can personally attest to this…
I’ve had mine for years! And I’ve used it on many MANY different stains.
How The Bissell Proheat Works
Here’s how this Bissell carpet cleaner works, in 3 simple steps:
#1 – Fill the soap container with detergent.
First, you fill up the liquid soap container…
My all-time favorite detergent for the Bissell Proheat carpet cleaner is ZEP Extractor Carpet Shampoo. (It’s what most professionals use.)
I like it because:
- It’s “low-foam” — so it doesn’t gunk up your carpet with soaps or sticky residue.
- It dries quickly — so you can walk on the carpet within a couple hours.
- It smells good — so it helps to deodorize your entire home.
#2 – Load the water bladder with HOT water.
Next, fill up the bladder with hot water.
After that, it’s just like a typical vacuum cleaner!
#3 – Start “vacuuming.”
You just PUSH the machine in a straight-ish line from one end of the room to the other (IF you’re cleaning the entire room, and not just spot cleaning).
Then PULL the machine back toward you — retracing the same straight-ish line you just cleaned.
TIPS:
- At the same time that while PUSHING the machine, depress the “soap trigger” on the handle of the Bissell Proheat a couple of times in a row (depending on how “wet” you want that spot to be. (More times in a row for stains. Fewer times in a row for routine carpet cleaning.) The trigger will spray the perfect combination of detergent and water onto your carpet.
- Never press the soap/water trigger when you’re PULLING the machine back over the path you’ve just “wetted”. Why not? Because whenever the Bissell Proheat is not dispensing liquid onto your carpet, it’s automatically sucking up the liquid from your carpet.
That’s it. That’s ALL there is to cleaning and deodorizing your carpets using the Bissell ProHeat carpet shampooer!
Check Out The Duo-Water Container
The coolest thing about the Bissell Pro-Heat is the fact that the clean water and the dirty water are stored in the same container — clean water remains in the bladder, dirty water surrounds the bladder.
To empty the water, you simply hold the duo water container upside down over the sink, bathtub, or toilet and both the clean and dirty water go right down the drain.
The best part is… regardless of what you’re cleaning up, your hands never touch the yucky water!
TIP: The amount of water you choose to start with largely affects the weight of the cleaning machine itself. Therefore, if you’ve just got a small job at hand, you could just fill the bladder partially full. (A great tip, if you plan to carry the Bissell shampooer up a flight of stairs or something.)
The photo on the right reveals the dirty water that resulted from this one small cleaning task (above).
The photo on the left shows the same spot moments after cleaning with the Bissell Proheat steam cleaner.
It’s a very powerful cleaner. And your reward is the volume of murky dirty water that results after even small cleaning jobs!
Tools Stay On-Board
While I typically use the entire vacuum cleaner-like machine itself for all stains (large and small), you can also use a number of onboard tools for cleaning smaller stains, carpeted stairs, etc.
The tools have their own small trigger which dispenses the proper amount of cleaning fluid and water, directly onto the spot.
Another great feature is the tiny red button on the back of the machine. It allows you to turn “ON” or “OFF” the internal heating element.
When it’s ON, you are using the hottest water possible to zap up stains. (Not sure why you’d ever want this to be “OFF”… it works amazingly well with super-hot water.)
It Is NOT A Vacuum Cleaner!
While the Bissell ProHeat carpet cleaner LOOKS like a normal vacuum cleaner, it is not anything like a vacuum cleaner. It cannot be used to sweep your carpet!
Despite its very powerful suction underneath, it can only suck up LIQUIDS and no solids can get through the tiny holes. (Which is a good thing, since solids would clog the inner workings of this liquid cleaning machine.)
On a related note, you must thoroughly vacuum the area FIRST before you steam clean your carpet. Otherwise, dog fur and other “carpet goodies” will gather underneath — and you’ll just have to manually wipe off the underside of the machine every few minutes.
It IS The Best Carpet Shampooer!
I’ve had my Bissell Pro Heat steam cleaner for over 5 years now, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything!
I probably use it for spot cleaning at least once a week (dogs!), and I give ALL of the carpet on the first floor a complete cleaning every 2-3 months.
There hasn’t been a stain that it couldn’t pick up yet… and with 3 dogs, you never know what you might need to clean up next.
No doubt about it, the Bissell Pro Heat carpet cleaner is dog-approved. It gets a 4-paw rating!
Bissell Handheld Steamer
If you have any non-carpeted areas that could use a little steam cleaning, then the Bissell Steam Shot OmniReach Handheld Steam Cleaner is what you’re looking for.
It’s great because it gets into all of the nooks & crannies inside your house — like your windowsills, the shower walls, and tiled floors.
It’s the safest, chemical-free option if you like to clean your house as “naturally” as possible.
More About Dogs & Cleaning Tips
- Home Remedies For Dog Diarrhea – things you can try at home for treating diarrhea in your dog.
- Dog Neuter Gone Wrong – when pet surgery results in a messy house.
- Parts & Repair Manuals Online – find free owners manuals online, plus my favorite place for ordering repair parts online.
- Dealing With Dog Smells – how to rid your life of dog odors that tend to linger.
