Sub par results with HWE

Discussion in 'Interior Car Care' started by sikedsyko, Mar 26, 2012.

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  1. sikedsyko

    sikedsyko DB Forum Supporter

    Got my Durrmaid 1500 last week and got the first chance to use it today. First I tried spraying Adam's Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner (Full Strength) onto the carpets, agitating with a brush, and then running the hot water extractor over them, but this was taking out almost no staining. So I stepped it up to Chemical Guys Stain Extractor diluted at 5:1. Agitated it with the brush, then ran the extractor over it.

    Results I got were 'meh'. Sure it sucked a ton of nasty crap out of the carpet, but it was very hard to get the carpet even and it didn't take out as much staining as I had hoped for.

    I guess I'm just dissapointed because it was alot of work and the results were not as good as I had expected. Anyone got any tips or pointers for better results?

    Some before and afters.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  2. mike aesthetica

    mike aesthetica Jedi Nuba

    The hot water extractor is not there to take out staining, its there to provide elimination(and rinsing with hot water) of the cleaning solution that is in the carpet taking the cleaner of solution and dirt with it. Stain removal and cleaning is going to come from your chemical selection(for each type of stain), your agitation and your patience with working the stains. Keep in mind you're not going to get heel marks out as the carpet is basically ground down and some stains will permanently re-dye lighter carpets. The mats look great to me.

    Grab some Folex as well, it eats through alot of stains like they are nothing,
     
  3. DirtyWeRX

    DirtyWeRX DB Forum Supporter

    I agree with mike, a HWE is meant to soak up nearly all the water and chemicals put in to the carpet, the machine won't be a miracle worker by itself.

    They carpets look pretty good and I wouldn't beat yourself up about... The guy who invented light grey carpet was a true a$$ hole LOL
     
  4. mrgolfrider

    mrgolfrider DB Forum Supporter

    I am not a pro detailer but I have read many threads about carpet stains. How long did you allow your product to sit on the carpet? How well was your preparation of the carpet? Just like with a wax, the prep of the paint is a big factor in the outcome. Do you have a nice brush for the carpets and a vacuum with a whole lot of suction? Please do not feel like I am talking down to you, you obviously care about detailing having spent large amounts of money on a hot water extractor.
     
  5. P1et

    P1et Official DB Moderator

    Looks pretty damn fine to me. And I'm with Mike: check out Folex. Pretty amazing product, and no chemical smell.
     
  6. nyrep1

    nyrep1 Obsessive Detailer

    folex and zep high traffic ......high traffic is amazing the only reason i dont use it is because it is impossible to remove the residue without lots of water . on extreme cases i use it on floor mats and pressure rinse them out...i wish i had an extractor so i could use it inside the car
     
  7. sikedsyko

    sikedsyko DB Forum Supporter

    Thanks for the compliments guys, I guess I was just expecting more out of this machine than it is capable of. But none the less, I guess I'll pick up some Folex and Zep High Traffic and spend more time working them into the stains before extracting.

    I also need to get better at how much hot water I'm using. The car had a hint of mildew today
     
  8. mrgolfrider

    mrgolfrider DB Forum Supporter

    Did you make a couple passes without the water engaged? Having used an extractor a few times it is important to really draw as much water out of the padding. Sometimes we had to use fans in the car with the windows down for 12 hours.

    Sent from my HTC Sensation using Tapatalk
     
  9. sikedsyko

    sikedsyko DB Forum Supporter

    Yeah I went over the carpets with just the vacuum, probably 3-4 passes, my extractor has a clear vacuum tip, so I went over the carpet until it was pulling out little to no water. Left the windows cracked overnight and it was dry and had stopped smelling by this morning.

    That works for my moms car, but I just worry about doing that to a customers car. I don't ever want a customers car to start smelling 3-4 hours after I leave.
     
  10. HighOctaneShine

    HighOctaneShine Virgin Detailer

    With Adam's C&UC you spray on, let dwell, agitate, remove with clean MF towel. C&UC is some of the best stuff I've seen for carpets. The pics of
    the carpets look good to me.
     
  11. Stokdgs

    Stokdgs Detail Master

    Houston --

    You did great !
    What you have read above is also spot on accurate.

    What you will learn how to do better is first - apply a cleaner, brush in, let it dwell, observe it as you re-brush it, Is it lightening the dark spots, etc.,?, has nothing changed?, then apply the hot water first, to agitate and help loosen the dirt and soap at the bottom of the carpets, and extract, extract, and extract, until it feels just slightly damp but not wet.
    You will learn just how much water you can inject into the carpets to rinse and remove but not soak too much that the pad underneath is soaked through.
    You might need to now invest in the small adjustable fans that Stanley sells that are just the right size to set on top of a seat and blow air down onto the carpets. These fans also have a couple of outlets on them, so you can plug more fans into each other and have only one cord coming out of the car to be plugged into the electrical outlet.

    Up here where I have hardly any sun and heat like you do, I sometimes have to let these fans run in a vehicle all night after cleaning and extracting that day. Remember, that things dry better and faster with air blowing across them or through them..

    You can find those fans I believe at Home Depot, and at Amazon here - http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-High-Velocity-Blower-Fan-655702/dp/B0001BJDUQ/ref=pd_bxgy_hg_img_b

    You are doing great - practice some more and you will be fine.
    Dan F
     
  12. Darkstar752

    Darkstar752 Horizon Detailing

    Is this your first carpet extractor or were you using a Bissel Little Green Machine prior to this? If so, how do they compare?
     
  13. mike aesthetica

    mike aesthetica Jedi Nuba

    For customer cars, once you extract, leave them outside to dry while you finish the rest of the car. Also if you are able to, when doing the flooring carpets, do them first, then finish your interior after your extract, the worst thing is that smell a day later, think of the sauna effect after a week if a customer parks at work.

    Even though its gonna be hot for you in Houston, you might want to grab an air mover to get them completely dry.
     
  14. Auto Concierge

    Auto Concierge DB Pro Supporter

    This is where a good steamer works wonders, I have tackled stuff like this before with the aforememtioned "Folex" and a stiff brush/steam. The steam leaves the carpets/seats etc. disinfected and will also dry much faster.

    Here is how I do it..


    1. Vaccum thoroughly
    2. Spray Folex(Not too much) and agitate with force
    3. Wipe area with seperate towel thoroughly
    4. Use steamer with upholstery attachment and steam affected area
    5. Wipe area again with dry towel back and forth
    6. Let dry, then wipe area one more time and use stiff briistle brush to brush nap in one direction



    :graduation:
     
  15. sikedsyko

    sikedsyko DB Forum Supporter

    Thanks for the responses guys!

    I had a Bissel Little Green a few years ago and there is a complete night and day difference between the two. The main being the difference in water lift. The Bissel is fine for small spots, but I wouldn't trust it to cover large areas. It just doesn't get enough water out of the carpet. That said, there's also a night and day difference in price. The Bissel goes for like $60-70, and I paid almost 10x that for this unit. I wanted to get a Mytee Lite, but ended up going with this unit because of how incredibly compact it is.
     
  16. Darkstar752

    Darkstar752 Horizon Detailing

    Thanks Bob! Do you typically reach from the steamer rather than the extractor for carpets? I'm thinking I should drop $800 on a steamer rather than an extractor.

    Thanks, I was wondering that. The bissel+air mover is enough to almost completely dry cars in about 2-3 hours or so, so I'm just trying to decide if the $800(+100 shipping) price point is worth it if all it does is remove more water.
     
  17. vtec92civic

    vtec92civic Nuba Guru

    how do you like that extractor otherwise? I have been wanting to get a small extractor like that myself but have heard that the Duramaids are problematic or perhaps it was some of the older ones. I have been using the Little Green Machine and it works alright for what it is but no where near a professional extractor.

    What made you choose one of those vs a mytee carpet extractor?
     
  18. vtec92civic

    vtec92civic Nuba Guru

    I would imagine that by using 200 degree water that it provides some form of disinfecting the area. I think there is a time and a place for either units. Steamers can be used on a variety of surfaces but it all depends on what type of detail work you do. If you encounter more cars with soiled interiors then a steamer may take a while to use in cleaning all the upholstery. If you encounter soiled rims or plastic and leather type stuff more then a steamer may prove to be more beneficial.

    I'm stuck in the same boat right now where i am tossing up between getting a steamer or a extractor.
     
  19. sikedsyko

    sikedsyko DB Forum Supporter

    Well I can't comment on durability yet, as I've only used it once. It feels pretty solid, heats water up quick, and does a pretty great job of extracting water (its rated at 102" of water lift.) Honestly the only reason I went with it over the Mytee is size. I've been thinking of getting into a Mazda3 lately, so space would be at a premium, although I think it could fit a Mytee, I didn't want to risk it or run into trouble down the road if I started hauling more gear. And this thing is SMALL.

    Give me a year and several dozen interiors and I'll tell you how durable this thing is :p But on a side note, I've looked it over, and its a pretty simple design. If something does go wrong, I'm confident I could fix it my self.
     
  20. Stokdgs

    Stokdgs Detail Master

    vtec92civic --

    Here is how I look at it, your view may be entirely different --

    I like the idea of using really hot water to shoot down into carpeting to helpl disloge all the dirt, etc, soap, from the carpets, and it also works great on cloth upholstery.
    I also really like to sometimes use my VX5000 to steam the Meguiars APC+ I just brushed into the very dirty carpets, and then, while its all still damp, Extract the crap out of the carpets and it really gets better quicker with a lot less water involved on the carpet since I dont need to hit the hot water trigger as much.

    As has been so aptly said above, what kind of detailing are you promising to your Clients? Clean, or Clean, sanitized to a degree, and hardly any dirt left in the carpeting and mats (because you extracted it all out), or something in between ?

    I know its a big expense to have all these tools, but I find they give my Clients the most satisfaction, when they come get their vehicles and see and smell how nice it is inside their "baby"
    Dan F
     

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