One mistake I made when I was a new carpet cleaner owner was not cleaning the machine enough. I had a fairly decent Hoover steam cleaner as my first model, and it had these brushes called “SpinScrub” brushes.

They are pretty neat in that they have a spinning action that does a really nice job of scrubbing the carpets when the machine is at work. I like it a lot better than the way Bissell machines work. Many Bissel machines I have seen just have a big spinning bar with brush bristles, sort of like what most vacuums have.

The Hoover brushes I think do a little better job of scrubbing the carpet from many different angles, breaking loose all sorts of stuff from the fibers. I could be wrong as a don’t have scientific evidence to back this up, but I just get the feeling that these SpinScrub brushes scrub very thoroughly.

Don't let this happen to yours! It's pretty easy to take this apart and clean these brushes up.

Well, anyways, I should get back to my main point. I didn’t do a good job of regularly cleaning my SpinScrub brushes at first, and the first time I did actually try to clean them, after months of use, it was a really big pain in the rear.

I had to use a metal brush to clean most of the junk out of the brushes, and that was something that I only figured out after experimenting with a few different methods of scraping the junk out of the brushes on the steam cleaner.

How I cleaned my SpinScrub brushes

Taking the carpet cleaner apart to access the brushes wasn’t too bad. I was able to take it apart without having to really read any instructions on how to do it. So for that reason I would consider it pretty user-friendly from a maintenance standpoint.

Once I had taken my machine apart enough to get the individual brushes out of the unit, I started running some really hot water in the bath tub. I basically sat on the edge of the tub, running the brushes under hot water, using a metal brush to scrape the junk out of the brushes. It didn’t take too long once I got a groove down and figured out the best approach.

The stuff I scraped out of the brushes was remains of detergent, carpet fibers and other stuff, so it was like trying to get condensed lint or something out of a really tight brush. It wasn’t too hard, but it wasn’t really very easy either. I’d put it in the moderately difficult and frustrating category.

I’d imagine this experience is about the same for any type of carpet cleaner. They all have brushes of some sort that will get dirty from heavy use.

My recommendation for cleaning carpet cleaner brushes

I would recommend that if you have a carpet cleaner that you use regularly, that you clean the brushes on a regular basis. It’s an easy thing to forget. But it’s easier to do if you don’t let it go for too long. I ran into trouble because I put it off for months. But then I learned. So just keep up on this sort of stuff and maintenance will generally be a lot easier. This applies to many things, really.

A carpet steam cleaner is your tool to keep your carpet in good condition at all times. But just like any other types of machine, a carpet steam cleaner should also require some maintenance to keep it quality in tip top condition and for you to have it for as long as you like.  In this article, we will give you the best tips on how to clean a carpet steam cleaner after every use. It is important to store it clean so it will not develop any kind of moisture inside that may be a breeding ground for harmful bacteria.

You should know how to clean a carpet steam cleaner so that aside from the risk of having bacteria buildup, you can also avoid the risk of developing unwanted clogs inside the machine’s mechanism that may result into damage. Also, make it a habit to empty the water container of the carpet steam cleaner where moisture can start to build up. Anyway, when you purchase your own carpet steam cleaner, on your user’s manual guide, you will find a list of how to clean a carpet steam cleaner. Although they may vary from one brand to another, always think that every instruction list given by different manufacturers follow a general guideline on how to clean a carpet cleaner.

A general guideline on how to clean and maintain a carpet steam cleaner:

1. Make sure to tie or wrap all of the cords of the carpet steam cleaner. This will prevent the cords to be damaged. Damaged cords are unsafe! The exposed wires may harm the one who is using the steam cleaner. Also, you may want to be reminded that water and electricity should not be together in most of the time. You will surely damage your carpet steam cleaner when water hits the open wire on your steam cleaner’s cord and worst – this may also cause untoward situations like electric shortage which may cause fire.
2. Empty the tank of your carpet steam cleaner after every use. You can run hot water in it to get out hard to remove debris inside.
3. When you are using the carpet steam cleaner, make sure that the water level is still sufficient. Refill the container when needed.
4. After using the carpet steam cleaner, make sure to wipe everything dry(the body, cords, tanks, containers – everything!) this will avoid any kind of untoward buildup like rust and bacteria which may definitely damage the machine and your family’s health as well.
5. Place the machine in a storage where it can be safe standing. If your carpet steam cleaner comes with a body cover, make sure to use it so that it won’t accumulate dust in time.
6. Always use the right kind of cleaning agent for a carpet steam cleaner. There is a purpose why a specific cleaner was invented for this use. So try not to invent your own which might be too harmful for your carpet and your cleaner.
7. It is understandable not to use your carpet steam cleaner for a long period of time. But at least make it a point to turn on the engine every now and then, just to see if your machine is still working. It is very possible for any kind of mechanism to experience stuck up especially if it was not used for a long period of time.
8. Don’t over use your carpet steam cleaner. Using it for more that the recommended hours of use may damage your machine. You can always check your user’s manual guide to see the number of recommended hours of use.

So these are the guidelines on how to maintain and keep your carpet cleaning machine clean to make it last for a long time.