Best carpet/upholstery cleaner?

[Just02896]

Folex. Best bang for your buck!

[Pureshine]

At the moment I only have the little Bissell shampoo cleaner. I also do scrubbing by hand.
I was told an extractor would work but I thought u have to have a generator to run it. Im just working out of my garage.

Xtreme Auto

In that pic I used a little green machine and folex and you don't dilute Folex.

[wrb_subie]

i just plug my extractor in, no generator needed. I have a mytee lite

[KBsToy]

Folex, it's really a spot cleaner but I use it to clean the entire interior.
Not many spots it can't remove.
$5.00 at Lowe's

Removes coffee stains, ink, wine , pretty much anything.
Another must have product.

[Christopher.Brown]

Research the new products recently released in the professional line from Meguiars:

D106 (Fiber Rinse & Tannin Stain Remover) &
D116 (Protein Stain Remover)

Similar to what the carpet care industry has been doing for years, these respective products are used based on the stain type needing removal.

This approach was developed because different stain substances have differing chemical compositions. For example, coffee stains are tannic in nature and whole different approach is needed than the procedure used to remove milk or organic matter (any liquid from the body or pet) because they are chemically different.

On top of that, MOST APC and all in one carpet cleaners leave the carpet in an alkaline state. An alkaline state is conducive to bacteria growth and also reactivation of any cleaning agents left in the surface, leading to it being more easily re-soiled.

Look into these for a more complete long term cleaning solution. IMO what good is a product that will get the stain out, yet will have the tendency to produce side effects of easier re-soiling and possible odor retention.

[Firehouse Mike]

I have only used a Bissell little green type machine ("Pro" Version) in all my interiors with Megs APC+ and ZEP High Traffic Shampoo. just picked up some Folex today to try out! The Bissell works great, just have to refill often. See pics at firehousedetail.com

[DaVinciAutoSpa]

Folex has had mixed results for me. Worked great,...then not so much.

I like Zep high Traffic, and Grand Slam by Matrix which is a legitimate carpet cleaner. Followed by steam and extraction. Takes time but is extremely effective.

[InTheBuff]

Does the Folex remove road salt stains? If not, is there a recommendation for a good cleaner to remove those nasty road salt stains from interior carpeting?

[HUMP DIESEL]

Another thing to note is that you should tell the client that some of the stains may not ever come out depending on what they are and how long they have been there.

HUMP

[statusdetailing]

Research the new products recently released in the professional line from Meguiars:

D106 (Fiber Rinse & Tannin Stain Remover) &
D116 (Protein Stain Remover)

Similar to what the carpet care industry has been doing for years, these respective products are used based on the stain type needing removal.

This approach was developed because different stain substances have differing chemical compositions. For example, coffee stains are tannic in nature and whole different approach is needed than the procedure used to remove milk or organic matter (any liquid from the body or pet) because they are chemically different.

On top of that, MOST APC and all in one carpet cleaners leave the carpet in an alkaline state. An alkaline state is conducive to bacteria growth and also reactivation of any cleaning agents left in the surface, leading to it being more easily re-soiled.

Look into these for a more complete long term cleaning solution. IMO what good is a product that will get the stain out, yet will have the tendency to produce side effects of easier re-soiling and possible odor retention.

This is an excellent and educated response. Too often, guys seek carpet cleaning advice from auto detailing forums, when, in most cases they should probably be going over to reputable carpet cleaning forums to learn the basics. That's not to say that there isn't good advice on AG.

APC's are the worst thing you can do for carpet.

As previously mentioned, chemistry is involved in reguards to cleaning carpet and especially when removing stains effectively.

APC's are generally a high PH product so there is a whole spectrum of stains that not only can't be removed, but that can also be permanently set by the high ph product.

Once you understand why tannin stains can more easily be removed by ph neutral or slightly acidic products, you'll be on your way to removing stains like a champ.

The same things goes and chemistry also applies to things like water rings, red stains, protein stains, dirt and grease stains.

Learn the chemistry first and then select product.

Generic, all purpose cleaners and spotters are not for the true enthusiast or professional detailer.

Next you have to move on to more advanced things like (previously mentioned) acid rinses, film forming and crystalizing encapsulation products, speciality product that are combined with heat etc. Good luck!