Bissell ProHeat 2X Carpet Cleaner - A Review

The Bissell Proheat Cleaner is lightweight, easy to use, and gets all of the dirt out of your carpets, rugs and furniture's upholstery.

Cleaning your carpet may come to mind one of those large, red carpet cleaners that can be rented at most grocery stores. I’ve rented many of these over the years, and while they are quite effective at cleaning carpets, they can be difficult to use. For one, they are heavy and cumbersome. In addition, they seldom have separate spot-treater tools, and the suction can come and go.

The best carpet cleaners, I have found, are the ones that are designed like upright vacuum cleaners, are lightweight, and have separate chambers for the soap and rinse water. They should have ample suction, and the unit needs to be easy to clean.

I have recently used the perfect carpet cleaner, and here’s my review:

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The Bissell Upright Carpet Cleaner

My sister offered to loan me her carpet cleaner, as my carpet hadn't been cleaned in several years. It is a Bissell ProHeat 2X Upright rug cleaner. It had been some time since I used a rug cleaner of any kind, but my initial thought upon seeing this one was that it would be easy to use. And it is!

It works much like an upright vacuum cleaner, in that you push the machine forward, and pull it back. A trigger on the handle shoots out the cleaner. When you release the trigger, the carpet cleaner uses suction to remove the water, dirt and other gunk in your carpet.

To use, simply remove the water tank, fill it with hot tap water, then replace the tank in the machine. Fill the formula tank with cleaning solution & water (the formula tank has lines to show the proper mix), and re-insert it in its slot in the back of the machine.

Choose your cleaning setting; the options are heavy traffic, normal cleaning, light cleaning, and rinse. Plug in the machine, and you’re ready to clean!

Pros - What I Like About The Bissell Carpet Cleaner:

It is easy to use - As I described above, just fill up the water tank & formula tank, and you're ready to clean!
It gets out all the dirt. I was amazed at just how much dirt and grime the cleaner removed! Although I vacuumed the carpet before using the rug cleaner, the water it removed was almost black!
The spot cleaner. If you have a spot that needs extra cleaning, the Bissell Cleaner has a separate spray feature that attacks a single spot with a more concentrated solution than the normal cleaning option.
The upholstery tool. I normally don't clean my furniture, but tried out the upholstery tool on my recliners. It works just the same as the machine: spray the solution, then suck it back up. I was amazed at not only how easy it was to use this tool, but how clean the recliners were afterwards.
The roller brushes. The Bissell ProHeat has two roller brushes on the bottom, rather than the one roller that most upright cleaners have. It seems to take much less effort to clean the carpets, as the rollers do double duty.
Hot-air drying system. I've never seen this option on a carpet cleaner, yet it seems to be a no-brainer to include. After cleaning the carpet, you can dry it with hot air. A great time-saver, as you don't have to wait for the carpet to dry on it's own before replacing your furniture!
Easy to clean. I really hate having to clean these machines, but this one was quite simple. Just remove the water tank, and dump out the dirty water. Rinse it under the faucet, and it's clean!It's also best to run the rinse-only cycle, as it will clean out some of the interior parts of the cleaner.

Cons - The Few Things I Do Not Like

Heavy Traffic Option. When selecting the heavy traffic option, more soap is added to the mix. This results in going through a lot of soap, plus having to rinse the carpet multiple times.
Fur & Lint Balls. Regardless of how well you've vacuumed ahead of time, you'll find hair, fur and lint balls deposited on your clean carpet! The suction is so great that it draws dirt from deep inside your carpet fibers. A bit disgusting to deal with, but you'll find your carpet to be a great deal cleaner.
Weight. While I have no issue with the weight of the machine, you may have a bit of trouble lifting this carpet cleaner if you don't have much strength. It weighs around 35 pounds before adding water to the tanks.

Cleaning Formulas for Your Bissell Carpet Cleaner

There are a number of cleaning solutions available for Bissell Carpet Cleaners. While you may be tempted to skimp a bit in order to save money, it’s best to use those that are formulated for this particular carpet machine. Off-brands and cheaper solutions may actually harm your machine, which in turn, will void your warranty.

BISSELL 2X Professional Deep Cleaning Formula, 48 ounces

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Although my sister loaned me the carpet cleaner, she did not provide me with any cleaning formula. Luckily, there is a vacuum repair business close to my home, so I stopped in there to get their recommendations. I purchased the Bissell Deep Cleaning formula from them, and it does the job!

What I particularly like about this product is that it has no dyes, and contains biodegradable detergents. Plus, it has a nice scent that is not overpowering.

I also picked up a smaller bottle of Pet Stain & Odor cleaner, as I have two cats & two dogs. Needless to say, they’ve made a few messes over the years, and I needed something to remove the stains, and counter the odor. I found that by using a small amount of this cleaner, instead of the other, the stains were removed. I then went back over them with the deep cleaning formula, so the carpets would smell the same throughout.

Like the deep cleaning formula, the pet formula is also made with biodegradable detergents, and contains no dyes. Both of these also contain Scotchguard, which helps prevent future stains.

My Recommendation

I’m really pleased with the results that I received by using the Bissell ProHeat 2X Carpet Cleaner. It did exactly what it was supposed to do: clean my carpets & furniture. It was easy to use and easy to clean. In my opinion, this is a best buy!