BISSELL® Big Green® PET PRO Carpet Cleaner, 3288

I just got this last night and tried out a small high traffic area on my floor, we bought the house in June and was thinking about replacing the carpets. after just one pass, Im not sure if they look new but they look, feel and smell clean.!!!! good -This machine weights 50 lbs or so, you might think this is bad but it is very good, you dont have to push or pull up for the machine to clean or suck up the water, in short - no extra effort on your part. -it is very easy to push and pull, the large tires in the back really help with this - my wife is able to use it, and she has back issues - filling and emptying the water is very easy - floor is very dry even after 2 passes - attachment is easy to attach and use. - pulled up lot of hair out of the carpet, did leave strings on the floor but it sucked them up just fine - chocolate stain that was dried in for 3 months cam up in 2 passes could be better (nit picking here) - the trigger for the water is only on the right side of the handle I wish it was on both - some kind of laser grid to project on the floor, if carpets are dirty its easy if they are not so dirty you may have trouble seeing where you have cleaned already - wider clean path seems to only clean between the back wheels , the right side seem to clean closer to the edge then the left side - in a high traffic area where the padding has wore down, it will miss spots so you may have to go over this area at many different angles what to watch for make sure to follow the directions for cleaning, specially for your first time on your carpets to get them nice and clean pull in trigger and push, then still holding trigger pull back on the same path, then release trigger and push on the same path again, then pull on the same path. (that 4 pass on one path 2 with trigger and 2 without) When i read this i thought it would take forever, but it does no take that long and in heavy soiled area it does work much better, also the 2 passes with no trigger are the suction and drying passes they also do some cleaning too. I tried one pass of and it did not clean as well, for light areas or touch up one pass would be fine, the machine seems to do the most cleaning when you push with the trigger pulled. so if you just need to touch up i would say push with trigger in then push without the trigger to get the best results. if you need it to dry faster make an extra push or 2 with the dry pass Im very happy with this machine thus far and will update this if i find anything else out. the above is from only about one day of use. UPDATE: MAY2013 I have used this many times, in the high traffic areas its about 1 time every 3 weeks, then rest of the time is justs catch up before company comes over to knock out the pet dander in the house we have about 2500 sq feet of carpet and i can do all of it in about 1.5-2 hours, I have found if you just hold the trigger in a push down a path then pull back the same path, its still cleans 80% of what the above does, and you can get 100% if you just move slower. this floor is still very dry as long as you finish a path with a pull pass. It take 1.5-2 hours to dry and not get wet socks and 2.5-3.5 to dry where you feel with your hand its dry. IF you want an area to dry faster i just make one pass over the carpet to suck up more water (usually do this when it run out of clean water) if you put a fan on the damp area it will dry amazing fast. good luck and happy cleaning :P

I have previously owned a Bissell but it wasnt a deep cleaner. After reading the reviews and Amazon running this on a lightning deal, I purchased it. After vacuuming all the carpets, I started this machine up. I have used a Rug Doctor and thought that it did a fair job. This machine BLOWS a Rug Doctor out of the water. It came already assembled, all I had to do was remove all of the packing material and lift the handle. My first impression: 1. While heavy, it maneuvers very easily. Much easier than the Rug Doctor. I attribute this to the fact that the handle pivots forward and back like a vacuum cleaner does rather than being stationary. 2. I liked that you didnt have to fill a bucket or other tank to fill the clean reservoir. The clean tank comes out of the machine to be filled. 3. This thing SUCKS! I mean that in a good way. When using the RD (rug doctor) the carpet always stayed wet for hours. With this machine, even with spraying in a forward motion and then again when pulling backwards (so 2 applications of solution with only one removal), on a second pass to remove the water, there was very little left in the carpet. 4. I LOVE that I can see the water that has been pulled out of the carpet. It lets me know just how much water is being put down and how much is being pulled back out. 5. The machine does tell you when you are out of solution and its easy to see the level by looking at the tank. Its similar to knowing how much milk is left in the carton thru a frosted surface. 6. Dumping the waste water is fairly easy. The only downside is that once you remove the top portion (where you see the water being sucked into the waste tank) there is nothing really to hold onto when dumping the tank since the handle is on the top part. 7. Even after thoroughly vacuuming the carpet, this machine found hair that my commercial vacuum did not get out of the carpet. 8. We do have a cat and dog. The dog is very stubborn and if anything hits the floor, she either will try to eat it or cover it up by peeing on it. There was a single spot that after treating with an enzyme solution and cleaning with the RD, there was still an odor. After a single pass with this machine, the odor was gone and there was no longer a strange feeling to that part of the carpet. 9. When using the RD, I felt that I had to go over the carpet several times, keeping in mind that all of our carpet is under 3 years old. With this machine, I could tell with my bare feet that there was a definite difference to how the carpet felt after just one pass. 10. The carpet was dry within 3 hours even in the areas that I had made a forward and backwards pass. Our carpet has a pretty deep pile as well. About 3/4 of an inch in length to give you an idea of what type it was used on. 11. The only problem that I had was operator error. When I filled the tank the second time, I did not get them lined up exactly right and it would put water down but nothing was being pulled back up. I unhooked the latch, reseated the top tank and viola! Back in business. So far I have not found any downsides to this machine but I will check back in after the next time I use it.

During the market fall of 2008 I decided to buy a house in Tampa, Florida. The house was in pretty good condition with the exception of the carpets. Before we moved in we had the whole house carpeted areas professionally cleaned but after we moved in the light cream carpets started looking grey. I have hired various pros the last 5 years only to be told that the carpets could never be cleaned completely and having to live with this or just change them. In between professional clean ups I have been using my Hoover Professional carpet cleaner I bought about 10 years ago (I do not remember the model but it was a SIX brush unit). It did a decent job cleaning but heavy traffic areas always looked greyer than the rest and so we decided to buy some rugs to cover them up. Nothing I would do or anyone else made those areas look better. Lately I started thinking seriously changing the carpets for good, a job easier said than done in my house if you could see the stuff I have collected over the years. Desperate for a solution I came across ads and started researching various carpet cleaners from 150 bucks all the way to several thousand (our of curiosity of course!). I saw the Bissell Big Green and read as many reviews as I could at amazon and other sites. Even saw videos in youtube. Half convinced I finally decided to take the plunge thinking that if this would not work I could send the machine back to amazon. The unit came and I was surprised by its size and heft. My Hoover was supposed to be a pro model and did cost me around 350 bucks 10 years ago if I remember well. Still, the Bissell is bigger and heavier by close to 20 lbs. Anyway, I prepared the machine and started working on the worst areas in the house. After working for about 15 minutes I was astonished to see that those got cleaned up like never before since I moved in this house. I had used my Hoover last weekend but the Bissell was cleaning areas that the Hoover could not even touch cleaning. The water extracted after clean up was black and filthy looking like I had never cleaned out these areas before. Even areas that looked clean now looked like new with my new machine. Another surprise was just how effective and superior the cleaning solution 2X Ultra that came with the machine is compared to competitive products. I run out of the Bissell cleaning solution and had to use some of the stuff I had on hand (two different brands). The difference was huge and the effort to get the same results was by far bigger. Go figure! I ordered a big bottle of the 2X Ultra which I received today. The carpet areas I have cleaned so far look like new and the carpet feels like it is rejuvenated somehow. All in all here are some observations and myth basters: 1. The Big Green is big and heavy. You will feel it in your arms and back after prolonged usage. Take your time and be careful. 2. The clean water and dirty water tanks are HUGE. This speeds up cleaning time by avoiding frequent stops for replenishing and clean up. 3. Clean up of the Big Green is a dream! The Hoover could never be cleaned completely due to its design. The Big Greens dirty water container comes in two pieces very easy to clean with tap water. Just do the clean up as soon as you get done using the unit. 4. Some people claim the machine to be made cheap! Nothing is further from the truth. The plastic used in this unit is heavy and the machine looks like it will last for a very long time. 5. This is not an easy unit to use in hard to reach areas. Open areas are best for this. I had to move many furniture for effective cleaning. 6. Use the Bissell 2X Ultra liquid for best results. My comparisons with two different and very well known brands were very educating. 7. The unit creates a lot of the fur balls digging lint form the carpet. You will have to pick those up by your hand. Also the brushes in the bottom get clogged after heavy use. Make sure you turn the machine over (after removing the liquid containers) and clean them regularly. This shows just how well the machine cleans your carpet. 8. I have used several brands of commercial rental cleaners. Also I have seen many other so called professional machines used in this house the last 5 years. The Bissell BEATS them ALL and by a long shot. I really works. 9. NO! I never managed to clean a heavily soiled area by one or two passes like in some videos. You have to work the machine to get results and this is what I did. Multiple passes and plenty of liquid. Dry thoroughly afterwards! Try the unit and you will see by yourself. Just follow the instructions and be amazed. If for any reason you do not like it then just send it back to amazon and get done with it. I am keeping this baby for good! My carpets never looked better. This has really saved me thousands in new carpet for the time being. Cheers

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

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.

Let me begin by saying that I am no expert when it comes to cleaning, but when my carpets reached a point of no return, I knew I needed a miracle. Enter the Bissell Big Green Professional Carpet Cleaner, a heavy-duty machine that promised to transform my dingy floors into a pristine oasis. Little did I know that this experience would turn into a comedy of errors that left me both astonished and laughing uncontrollably. Gather around, my friends, as I recount the tale of The Great Carpet Catastrophe. The Decision: It all started on a gloomy Saturday morning. With a mug of coffee in hand and determination in my heart, I made the bold decision to conquer the daunting task of carpet cleaning. The Bissell Big Green Professional Carpet Cleaner had caught my eye with its stellar reputation and rave reviews, making my choice clear. I headed to the store, feeling like a fearless warrior ready to battle the dust and grime lurking beneath my feet. The Assembly Fiasco: Unpacking the Bissell Big Green was like deciphering an ancient artifact. Every piece seemed to have its own mysterious purpose, and I found myself scratching my head in confusion. As I meticulously followed the instructions, I couldnt help but chuckle at my lack of mechanical prowess. Eventually, after some trial and error (and maybe a few swear words), I managed to assemble the machine. The Battle Begins: Armed with the Bissell Big Green, I approached my carpets with newfound confidence. I pressed the power button, and the machine roared to life. The suction was intense, and I felt like I was wielding a mighty vacuum sword. As I moved across the room, I reveled in the satisfaction of seeing dirt disappear before my eyes. It was a victorious moment, and I couldnt help but let out a triumphant laugh. The Soap Spill Spectacle: Just when I thought I had mastered the art of carpet cleaning, disaster struck. In my enthusiasm, I accidentally knocked over the bottle of soap, causing it to spill across the freshly cleaned carpet. Panic set in as I watched the soapy mess spread like a wildfire. I quickly switched off the machine, but the damage was done. Now I had a clean but incredibly foamy carpet, resembling a giant bubble bath. It was both frustrating and absurdly comical. I couldnt help but burst into laughter, accepting my fate as the clumsy carpet cleaner. The Epic Cleanup: With bubbles covering the carpet, I knew I had to act swiftly. Armed with a bucket and a mop, I dove headfirst into the sea of suds. As I battled the soapy tidal wave, my neighbors must have thought I had lost my mind. But amidst the chaos, a surprising realization hit me - the Bissell Big Green had not only deep-cleaned my carpet but also provided an excellent workout. Scrubbing vigorously, I discovered muscles I never knew existed. I chuckled at the unexpected silver lining while working tirelessly to restore my carpet to its former glory. The Happy Ending: After what felt like an eternity, I finally managed to clean up the soap spill fiasco. The carpet was pristine, the bubbles were gone, and I couldnt help but marvel at the power of the Bissell Big Green. It had transformed my carpets into soft, fresh havens. With a newfound appreciation for the machines capabilities and a heart full of laughter, I declared victory over the great carpet catastrophe. Conclusion: In the end, my experience with the Bissell Big Green Professional Carpet Cleaner was an adventure filled with unexpected twists and turns. From the initial assembly confusion to the soapy spill debacle, it was a journey that kept me on my toes and left me in stitches. Through it all, the Bissell Big Green proved to be a reliable and effective carpet cleaning companion, redeeming itself even after the hilarious mishaps. If youre looking for a machine that can tackle the toughest carpet challenges and provide some comic relief along the way, the Bissell Big Green Professional Carpet Cleaner is undoubtedly the one to choose.

I bought this to replace my aging Rug Doctor Mighty Pro that was having performance issues due to its age (10 years old). I was hesitant because I did not have a high opinion of Bissell products because the few that I had in the past were small and cheap and did not perform very well. The Rug Doctor I had was a workhorse and I wanted something similar. The problem was the Rug Doctors pricing has gone up substantially, which caused me to look at different products. Im glad I did. I came across this product and the first thing I noticed was its appearance, which is very similar to my Rug Doctor. So I started looking into it and found a video where they did a side by side comparison with a Rug Doctor and this thing outperformed it slightly. Considering its price, I thought that was great and so I bought it. So far I have no regrets. The clean water container is smaller than the Rug Doctor (1.75 gal vs 2.5 gal) but it allows you to remove the container and fill it in the sink. This does save time from filling up one gallon containers and dumping the clean water into the Rug Doctor. Overall, the time saved by simply sitting the clean water container in the sink and letting it fill up on its own does offset the time spent filling up the clean water container more frequently due to its smaller size. As for suction, I was very impressed the first time I ran out of clean water and opened the dirty water tank to find it completely full, indicating it sucks up almost everything it injects into the carpet (this was the biggest issue I was having with my Rug Doctor as it got older). I also love the fact that it has a clean water flow indicator. This was one of the most frustrating things about the Rug Doctor because I would sometimes run out of clean water and not know it. This product has a flow spinner that lets you know when clean water is flowing. Once that stops spinning, you know youre out of water. Overall Im very happy with the product. Its had no trouble removing routine stains from pets and walking on my carpets. It allows you to go front and back while injecting the clean water and using the scrubbers (it only sucks up the water when you pull backwards, like the Rug Doctor) which is a nice added feature in case you want to have clean water injected twice before sucking it out. I havent tried the hand held spot cleaning device yet but so far everything else has worked perfectly and it only took a couple of minutes to set up once it arrived. For the price, I have no regrets whatsoever.

I started out using this machine because I was in a pinch when our carpet vendor had to cancel. My first experience was with a rental from a local hardware company, per the recommendation of our rep. The rental had clearly been used a lot, and not well cared for. I was skeptical. However, our $5000.00 commercial machine was heavy, hard to fill, rigorous to use, exhausting to use solo, and an inconvenience for those occupying apartments. With this machine, I was able to complete the job in a fraction of the time, had no interference with other occupants, had no fatigue, and the end result was a much cleaner and sanitary carpet. I was so pleased I bought 4. I have since bought nothing but this. The upholstery attachments work well for furniture and tight spaces. The stair tool sees no loss of suction. The machine is simple to use, can be used by a single person with ease. The suction is less than more expensive machines, but the scrubbing bristles penetrate deep into the carpet and in my opinion yield a better clean. The capacity is small, but that can be seen as a benefit. This is not a machine for water extraction, but for cleaning. The machine is easy to clean, and upon first use it will be evident how much this machine really pulls out of the carpet. There is a clear channel on the top of the collection bin and you will be able to see the hair, dirt, and grime as it is extracted. There is a multi color pinwheel on the top of the machine for flow, that will let you when when water is flowing or the tank is empty. For areas with pets, it does extremely well with hair and dander. Rather than flood and suck, this machine will excel with proper chemical treatment. Pre-treat stains properly ahead of time, and mix the proper fragrance and general carpet cleaning solution for your needs with the clean water tank for optimal performance. It’s a prefect option for single households. For commercial, I recently chose to use this product over a much more expensive machine. A larger complex with indoor, carpet hallways. Roughly 2 linear miles (4 buildings, 4 floors per building) and 6 foot wide. To make it work I prefilled a 30 gallon tote with water and treatment, and one empty tote. I was then able to fill the tank when needed, as well as empty the collection tank with ease. Pretreated the stains with a backpack sprayer, and the end result was great. My legs and back are still thankful. One caveat is that it is still pretty loud.

I just got this machine. Previously I had a blue rug doctor, with attachments. I had read the reviews on this machine, they were great, rightly so. The rug doctor with attachments was noisier an option and since this came with the attachments, was less $$, went forward and back, along with the reviews...why not? I am so lucky to have gotten this and not the rug doctor again. This is less cumbersome, does a better job and moves in both directions!!! Seriously, by pass the rug doctor and get this. Fyi I had my rug doctor 4 yrs, very happy to have this machine now!!!

****UPDATE***** I rarely write updates to products I review but for this item I felt I had to. We have two cats and a dog and one of our cats has been having intestinal issues and is pooping on our downstairs carpet and hairballs appear there as well. Our dog eats grass and once in a while leaves us a little pile of green goodness. Needless to say, our house can sometimes get spotty on the carpets. When these things happen I use the Bissell spot pet cleaner in the can and try to get the spots out the best I can, which doesnt quite do the job. Yesterday I took out the Big Green Machine and tackled the issue head on and our carpet looks new again. This thing takes out stains that have been there for six months. It is amazing. I didnt think the small attachment brush would do much because the bristles are stationary, they do not rotate, but damn if it didnt thoroughly clean the stains as well. It is a phenomenal machine. And even though I vacuumed the house with my Shark, the Big Green Machine still picked up a ton of hair when cleaning. The suction power is amazing. When you are done, the carpet is moist, but not wet, and it dries quickly. My niece brought over a rug she was using as a runner for her hallway. My sister and her did everything they could to clean the thing, but it was a white rug and there were spots all over it and it looked dingy. I used my cleaner on her rug and it came out looking new. This product gets rave reviews and there is a good reason for that. It is one of the best designed products for cleaning floors I have ever used. It works better than any machine I have rented. It is awesome! ****ORIGINAL REVIEW**** I received my Bissell Big Green Deep Cleaning machine yesterday. I opened up the box and was cleaning my carpets within 15 minutes. I was so excited about this product I had to write the review before I finished cleaning all my carpets. Before I purchased this product I did a ton of research. Amazon knows me so well it put this item on a blitz sale and I bought it immediately. Knowing what I know now I would have paid regular price for it, but I am very happy I got it on sale for cheaper than listed. It comes pre-assembled. The handle folds down so that is how it is in the box. You lift it out, it is about 45 lbs., put the handle in the up position, empty out the dirty water tank which contains a bottle of cleaner and some cardboard, and then read the directions. We have four animals. Two dogs, one is a senior, and two cats. There have been several accidents on the carpet in one are where we have neglected it. Since we are hosting Christmas this year I decided I needed to get a new cleaner. Our other carpet on the main level was simply dirty and there was a spot where the cats knocked over a Christmas tree and spilled old, stale dirty tree water on the carpet. I thought there was no hope for this stain since a cleaning company that used enhanced water tried to clean it and had zero success. I have enclosed before and after pictures of this stain. It 100% removed it and the carpet looks like new. I also read other reviews and I did two things for the main stain caused by the pets. First I vacuumed every inch where I was going to clean. Next, I went over the carpet one time with no solution in the machine just to get the carpet wet. I heard this helps with cleaning. Next, I put in the solution and cleaned parts of my carpet. The parts without pet stains looked fantastic and it pulled out a ton of dirt and even more pet hair. Since it worked so good I ran to the local big box store and bought the pet stain and odor removal formula, the oxy-booster, and a spot stain remover. I then attacked the stain with a vengeance. Next I doubled the amount of cleaner I put in for the pet stain. Someone else mentioned this and it did seem to do a better job. I was very impressed with many things about this machine. First, it really and truly cleans better than professional carpet cleaners. I would never go back. Next, the machine weighs 45 lbs. or so but it is easy to move back and forth. It cleans in both directions. I went real slow over the heavily soiled areas and made many passes over them (usually four). The work was slow and steady but the water I dumped out was extremely dirty. Also, I took out several huge handfuls of pet hair from the sink strainer and pieces that the machine kicked out. No matter how good you vacuum you will pick up more pet hair. The suction is tremendous. When you are not pushing in the button to dispense the soap then it acts like a wet/dry vac and it takes the excess water out of the carpet. The carpets dried very fast compared to professional machines. The fresh water container and the dirty water container are easy to remove and easy to replace. It is one of the best designed and best working machines for what it is designed for, than most any other product I have used. The only con I can think of is that I told my mom about this machine and now she wants me to come over and clean her carpets.