BISSELL SpotBot Pet Hands-Free Compact Deep Cleaner, Blue Illusion, 1200A
by Bissell
|
List Price: Category: Home See more product details |
|---|
(Click here)
Tools and Hardware Reviews of BISSELL SpotBot Pet Hands-Free Compact Deep Cleaner, Blue Illusion, 1200A
Customer Review: Great Spot Cleaner
Summary: 5 Stars
We purchased this machine 4 days ago and WOW. It works wonderfully. We were concerned that it would be another "gadget" that took too long to pull out, put together and then clean afterwards. This was the main reasons some spots would have to multiple before we broke out the full size carpet cleaner. (For those of you with pets or children, you know what I mean.)
Using it is almost too easy. You add water to the correct line, pour in the solution to the correct line and then you are done. Put the machine on the spot you want it to eradicate and push the appropiate automatic button. It is very fast and does a awesome job. It is much better than trying to sop up the mess with paper towels or rags. Once done, it will beep until you finally press the stop button. You then take out the dirty water tank, dump and rinse it out. That's it.
Granted we have only used it 4 times, but it has removed cat and dog vomit and a oil stain. The machine is a little loud and does leave the carpet damp but nothing out of the ordinary. We wish we had purchased this machine years ago.
This is a great spot cleaner and a life saver for people with pets or children. It is fast, easy and it works well. It seems sturdy and doesn't feel like it will break if you hold it wrong. It even has parts that you can purchase online as they wear out and seem affordable. I will update this post if we find the durability to be lacking or if we run into major problems. All in all, it is worth EVERY penny.
9/22/09 Update - After using this product, we still like it but have noticed some areas for improvement. The machine doesn't rinse the soap out of the carpet so the cleaner will attract dirt. A week after using the product, it was very easy to see where we had used it to clean up cat barf. Another problem we found is it doesn't do so well with dog marking. (Yes, we think it is beyond gross.. where is the Dog whisper when you really need him???) We used the pet formula 3 times on one spot and the yellow stain was still there. We did a test and the oxy formula did better but the stain was still visable. We had to break out our hoover and it pulled up the stain and leftover smell in one pass.
I have to agree with what other reviews have said that it does leave the carpet damp. Using the handheld suction does fix it up but you would think it could do a little better.
This product is great to do the initial cleanup but it isn't the automatic solution we are all dreaming of. It goes through solution very quickly and I would only suggest the Oxy formula after you have tried everything else.
Here are some design flaws we noticed. When the dirty water tank is full, the spotbot doesn't stop it cycle. You will hear a change in the noise but it isn't sucking any water up. It will complete the full cycle which is unfortunate. Also, the beeping... MAKE IT STOP BEEPING. I am; like everyone else, multitasking when using this product and I don't stand there waiting for it to complete. After it completes it cycle, it will beep every 5 seconds till ETERNITY! Sure we need to know that it is done, couldn't they have just made it beep for 30 seconds or something less obnoxious?
All in all, GREAT for cat stains, doesn't work on our dog markings. If you are willing to put up with the little things that can be annoying, then this machine is for you.
Customer Review: Common sense + SpotBot = Clean carpet
Summary: 5 Stars
I received my SpotBot Pet as a Christmas gift in 2007. Due to skepticism, I hadn't used it whatsoever. I, like many other reviewers, was trying the bottle cleaner and wash cloth routine.
I have two cats--one has a sensitive stomach and vomits a lot; the other thinks she is a princess who despises being in a multi-cat household, causing her to not use the litterbox like she should (i.e. she pees everywhere).
While we were out of town, Puke Cat vomited a few times on the carpet. Because we were gone, it dried. I decided to try the "surface stain" setting first, just to see how effective it was. I put the SpotBot on the stain (after picking up the solid parts and vaccuuming first), pushed the button, and watched it go. When it was done, I was highly impressed. You'd never know there was ever puke on the carpet. Yes, it left a "crop circle" pattern on the carpet, but every carpet cleaner leaves some kind of tracking similar to a vaccuum. Run your hand over it a few times or just leave it to the natural traffic of the room, and it disappears.
So it works wonders on dried, set-in cat puke. What about urine?
For those who have had problems with the SpotBot getting out urine stains, I can only assume they didn't get to the spot soon enough. Pee Cat urinated on the carpet last night. I blotted up the excess liquid with paper towel and put the SpotBot on the area, using the "set-in stain" cycle just to be sure it cleaned deep enough into the carpet. Worked like a charm, yet again. However, I then discovered an older spot (no way of knowing how old) hidden behind the couch. Again, I used the "set-in" cycle. It got out 85-90% of the stain (and completely got rid of the smell), but because it was so old, it didn't get all of it.
So if you're using the SpotBot on urine, I advise cleaning ASAP. This is common sense. I don't know of any carpet cleaners (save for professional ones) that will completely get out set-in, old urine. Plus, the longer it stagnates, the more likely your padding and wood will become permeated with the urine, making it extremely difficult to get out.
I allowed the older urine spot to dry a bit after cleaning and then tried using the bottle cleaner method except, instead of a wash cloth, I used the SpotBot on the "manual" setting with only water in the cleaner compartment. If you have a light stain and shudder at the cost of the SpotBot cleaning agents, I recommend this method of cleaning. I sprayed the bottle cleaner on, waited 5 minutes or so, then used the hose to rinse AND dry the area. While it did get out a bit more of the stain, the stain still isn't completely gone, and I blame myself for not finding it sooner.
So, all in all, this handy little machine is a wonderful investment for those plagued by small messes. I have yet to be disappointed, and, provided you clean ASAP, I doubt you will be either. It beats cleaning stains the old fashioned (by hand) way hands down (no pun intended). And for someone like me living in an apartment and without a need for a big, cumbersome steam cleaner, it's the optimal solution. I can't imagine life without it.
Customer Review: Love This Product, Treat It Well, It's Just Plastic
Summary: 5 Stars
I received a Bissell SpotBot for my birthday. I've lived in rental for 5 years, and I'm embarrassed to say, I've not shampooed the carpets before this. When we arrived here the carpets had been cleaned, albeit very poorly. Add our lives in rainy (and therefore muddy) Oregon, along with a child, and a little dog, and we have some definite stains.
Many people have said to me "Oh you just need a brush and a spot treater to clean up carpet stains", and I'm here to say that after YEARS of just using a brush and a spot treater I am glad to be done with it. The Bissell Spot Bot has removed all the myriad stains that the brush couldn't.
The reviews here at the site that explain how to properly care for the SpotBot as well as the true limitations of the product have all been very helpful.
1. Vacuum your carpet first
2. Clean the filter in the dirty water tank regularly
3. Empty both containers prior to storage
4. Let the containers *dry* prior to storage
5. Clean out the hose after every use session
6. Do not use heated water as this may make the plastic brittle and susceptible to breakage
7. Gently blot with a towel after use to pick up excess water if you are concerned about it
If you don't follow these steps every time, it's quite possible that you may dramatically shorten the life of your SpotBot and/or cause leakage.
Some things to realize:
1. It's not meant to clean a full carpet
2. It cleans 6 inch diameter areas at a time
3. Yes, it's like a vacuum, it makes noise
4. The shampoo products are expensive and while I have safely substituted other things (Simple Green, Mrs. Meyers general cleaning solution--ALWAYS mix at a lower ratio than the Bissel products because the non-Bissel products will foam like mad!), the Bissel products produce the best results on the most difficult to clean areas
5. Yes, it cleans with water, therefore your carpet might be damp, even a little wet after you use it. If this is somehow a suprise to you that a spot treatment machine that uses water might leave a carpet damp, I'm not sure what to say. I use old cloth diapers or rag towels to blot a bit and move on. I throw them on the floor and stand on them, that's it. Pretty effortless.
For my purposes it has removed 5 year old stains that were here when we got here. It's great on animal accidents (our dog is housebroken, but accidents happen). The "set stain" and "normal stain" cleaning options are great, as this can help control how much cleaning solution you use, as well as the duration of the cleaning. I absolutely love that I can be cleaning in another area of this house, and just set this up to do its thing while I do something else.
I would most definitely purchase this again. If you don't think you can take care of the machine as recommended, then perhaps consider a different model or professional cleaning services.Bissell 1200A SpotBot Pet Hands-Free Compact Deep Cleaner, Blue Illusion
Customer Review: The one thing everyone should know about carpet cleaners
Summary: 5 Stars
Though I don't own a Spotbot (yet), I am in the market for a new carpet cleaner. As a pet owner, I have owned several carpet cleaners of all different types ranging from the compact Little Green, to large, cumbersome upright units. The reason I end up replacing units is because after time and use they simply stop dispensing fluids. While it may be feesable to have them repaired once or twice, at some point there comes a time when it no longer makes sense to have them repaired because the accumulated repair costs will eventually exceed the purchase price of a new unit.
99% of the time my carpet cleaners are used to clean up pet vomit or urine and the one thing I have learned about carpet cleaners, and this applies to each and every one of them regardless of brand or type, is that they work best when used this way:
Step 1. You obviously want to clean up any solid pieces with paper towels so all you'll be using the carpet cleaner to clean up is liquid of some form. You don't want to be sucking up any solid pieces into your carpet cleaner.
Step 2. Use the hand attachment first WITHOUT applying any type of cleaning solution to get as much of the undesired liquid picked up. Applying cleaning solution to an area that's already saturated with urine only serves to create a diluted solution of urine.
Step 3. Once you've removed as much of the undesire liquid as possible, then apply your favorite carpet cleaning solution to the soiled area. DO NOT USE A CARPET CLEANING SOLUTION IN THE CARPET CLEANER ITSELF UNLESS IT HAS TWO SEPARATE SUPPLY TANKS, ONE FOR CLEANING SOLUTION, AND ONE FOR JUST PLAIN WATER. I know the instructions tell you to add cleaning solutions to the unit, but unless the unit has two separate tanks, applying cleaning solution to carpeting without rinsing it out ends up being a dirt magnet. If your carpet cleaner only has a supply tank and a pickup tank, then the only liquid you should be putting in the unit is plain, clean, HOT water.
Step 4. Now it's time to use whatever brushes are available on the unit (either on the unit itself, or on the hand-held attachment) to agitate the cleaning solution into the carpet. Make sure to vacuum up as much of the solution as you can get.
Step 5. Now you apply the plain, clean water you filled the unit with to rinse the cleaning solution from the carpet. Remember, if you only use cleaning solution and you don't rinse it out, the cleaning solution left in your carpet will actually ATTRACT dirt.
I know this is more work than simply following the instructions provided with the carpet cleaners, but I see so many people who aren't happy with the performance of their units, but it really isn't because the units themselves are poor performers. It all comes down to bad procedures. Then again, I'm the type of person who always says "if you're going to bother doing it in the first place, you might as well do it the right way". That certainly applies to carpet cleaning.
Customer Review: Automatically saves your sanity - one 8" circle at a time! Tips for use...,
Summary: 5 Stars
Summary: A real time saver for cleaning the numerous spills stains and messes from kids and pets. Semi-Automatically (see details) cleans vomit and other unpleasant messes.
We have 3 kids (ages 2, 4 and 7) and 2 cats. One of our cats (Pukey cat, AKA Natasha) is a Siamese and vomits regularly. Our youngest is potty trained but still doesn't fully comprehend the concept of wiping one's behind on toilet paper. Need I say more? We're using this thing perhaps three times a week.
This device is a bit larger than you'd expect. At approx 8"x16"x16 it's about as big as a small canister vacuum. The one we have is the more recent "Titanium" update with Microban plastic (prevents mold and mildew) and a different control layout, but otherwise basically identical
It cleans an 8" circle with each cycle. This is typically good enough, when a mess is just larger, I find that it's easier to use the hand attachment (which also has a sprayer) to clean the "outlier" than to run another cycle. With a fresh pot of cleaning solution and an empty collector, it will run 4 cycles. Although it has a "Surface stain" and a "Set-in Stain" cycles, I have yet to find an organic stain (Vomit and stuff from the other end) that needed the "Set-in stain" cycle (which scrubs for six minutes instead of three.) We're pretty good at keeping food on the tile and hardwood floors so far.
The carpet we've used it on are the very short berber (Basement) ~3/8" and 1/" nylon carpet, all light colored / off white. One is a "twist" carpet, the other a pretty standard style
Here are some tips for using it:
1) Use warm water to help soften dried on stains. This one doesn't have an automatic heater (there is a model that does)
2) Don't feel like you need a lot of cleaning solution. The warm water gets out most organic stains on the first try.
3) After each cycle the circle is pretty wet. Use the hand hose to suck out the excess water.
4) Rotate the upper cord stowage hook to quickly remove the cord all at once.
5) Don't leave water in it overnight - it will leak out slowly. I left about 1/4 tank of cleaning solution and in the morning perhaps 2 tablespoons had leaked out.
A couple of minor complaints:
1) The hand attachment isn't the easiest to remove and re-attach. It would be nicer if the button was larger.
2) The cleaning solution tank is no terribly stable. Be careful not to tip it over before putting the cap on - Don't ask me how I know this.
3) The unit is pretty big and storage is always tight
I received this through the Amazon Vine program, if you found this review helpful or have questions or comments, please let me know!