What are the best commercial carpet cleaners on the market this year? What are the pros and cons of each carpet shampooer, and where do they differ from each other?
Carpet Cleaning Machines for Commercial Use
1. BISSELL Big Green 86T3/86T3Q
In general, the Big Green professional model is cheaper than the Big Green commercial model. Attachments of other Bissell carpet cleaners like the BG10 work with it, though Bissell sells them separately for the Big Green.
It is heavy with or without water in the tanks, but it cleans just as well forward and backward.
Bissell’s Big Green commercial carpet cleaners have a one year standard warranty. This commercial carpet cleaner has a longer five year warranty when the carpet shampooer is used in a residence instead of a business, which the BG10 does not.
This Big Green model and the BG10 both have large, separate clean and dirty water tanks. The 86T3 has a sprayer that you can use to apply soap to a specific area in addition to what the carpet shampooer would apply as part of its regular operations.
It cleans carpets well, but it doesn’t thoroughly scrub short carpets. It does a better job of cleaning along the edges of the unit’s vacuum head than the Rug Doctor.
These units sometimes leak from the flow indicator, and when you need a replacement part for this, Bissell takes a long time to send you a replacement part. On the upside, Bissell units rarely need repairs. This is why the repair rate for Bissell’s carpet cleaners is around 9%, while the repair rate is higher for several competing models.
It removes some of the water from the carpet but expect to take a few hours for carpets to dry. The upholstery tools, when used, remove far less water and those surfaces may take a day or two to dry.
2. Rug Doctor Mighty Pro X3 Pet
This carpet cleaner is probably the heaviest on this list when water has been added to the tanks. It has a large 3.1 gallon waste water tank and 2.6 gallon tank for the clean water.
The unit weighs fifty pounds before you add any water, while the Bissell units weigh around forty pounds. Its dark blue body isn’t as well known as the “Big Green” by Bissell, but its performance is comparable.
The biggest point in favor of the Mighty Pro by Rug Doctor is the fact that it was designed for pet owners. It thoroughly scrubs out pet stains whether you use Rug Doctor’s branded pet stain carpet shampoo or not. It has a small handheld vacuum head that doesn’t clog on dog poop or pet hair. It works as well removing pet stains from upholstery as it does carpet. Rug Doctor provides a bottle of its carpet shampoo and pet specific stain remover as part of its Pet Pack.
The cleaners are the only real differentiator of this commercial carpet cleaner and the other common Rug Doctor commercial grade carpet shampooer. Both units, though, handle pet hair better than some other carpet cleaners, not clogging on pet hair. But if you want to use this to clean a whole room before company comes, vacuum with a standard vacuum cleaner first before breaking out the Rug Doctor.
This unit requires no assembly. You may need to adjust the handle to be able to use it comfortably. The unit is about three feet tall, so some people have issues moving it due to the size and bulk.
Relative to the Bissell carpet cleaners, this model never leaks. However, it doesn’t remove as much water from the carpets as the Bissell models, so it takes much longer for your floors to dry after using this machine. The clean water tank cannot be removed from the machine, so you need to pour clean water into it via a bucket. The dirty water tank is large and heavy, about four gallons, but it can be removed and emptied into a sink.
Rug Doctor’s commercial carpet cleaners have a five year limited warranty; it is limited to manufacturing defects and doesn’t cover items broken as part of normal wear and tear.
3. Bissell BigGreen Commercial BG10
You have to pay extra for the car detailing and upholstery detailing tools that fit the BG10. The biggest difference between the Big Green model BG10 is their price and tool suite. Otherwise, the difference between the “commercial” Bissell Big Green and “professional” Big Green is the name and the warranty.
The Big Green Bissell carpet cleaner commercial model BG10 has a standard one year basic warranty, and unlike the “professional” version, the warranty isn’t extended if it is exclusively used in one’s home.
The Big Green model BG10 has a yellow detachable cord, while the Big Green professional one has a dark cord.
4. Mytee Mytee Lite II
This is the most expensive commercial carpet cleaner on this list. What do you get for the money? First and foremost is a three gallon tank you can fill either via a faucet or bucket. You get a very long hose that can reach any niche anywhere within fifteen feet of the unit. This commercial carpet cleaner is specially designed for detailing cars and cleaning upholstery.
It has very strong suction that pulls the water out of the materials you’ve cleaned, so you won’t have to wait hours for the couch or car seat to dry before you can use it. It can be used on stairs as long as you don’t have to maneuver it up the stairs, though it has wheels and a handle that makes this possible.
The long hoses and flexible attachments mean that its roughly fifty pound weight don’t affect your ability to use it. The manufacturer offers a separate carpet wand.
The unit is sold as a carpet cleaner, but the vacuum head that comes with it is more appropriate to spot cleaning than trying to clean an entire room.
Another point in favor of this carpet cleaner is the built in hot water heater. This isn’t like the Bissell carpet cleaners with Heat Wave technology that merely keeps hot tap water warm longer; this is an actual water heater that can keep the carpet shampooer hot and warm up cold tap water to the high temperatures that sterilize surfaces as you clean them.
5. Aqua Power C4
The Aqua Power C4 Quick Dry Hot Water Carpet Extractor is a commercial grade carpet cleaner that is manufactured to the highest standards. It’s both extremely powerful and highly durable.
This industrial quality carpet cleaner has been awarded a platinum rating from the Carpet and Rug Institute and was developed by a former co-founder of the Rug Doctor. This is the same grade carpet extractor that’s used by the professionals. It includes a mighty 4-gallon recovery tank and 4-gallon solution tank.
A powerful pump provides the suction power that’s needed to deep clean any carpet or upholstery with results that you’d get from a professional carpet cleaning company.
Designed and built for ultimate durability, the brush housing and vacuum nozzle are manufactured from heavy-duty cast aluminum and use stainless steel bearings. Along with the industrial quality of this carpet cleaner, you get full factory backup and support.