Bissell to the Rescue!

With 6 busy kids and the additional traffic from friends, our carpets (and everything else in the house) take more than their fair share of abuse. Until recently our carpet shampooing was done with a rental unit or a borrowed shampooer. For about the cost of two rentals, we were able to purchase our own basic Bissell shampooer. The Bissell 2080 Quicksteamer is an upright shampooer with vacuum. It comes with two liquid chambers...one for cleaning solution, the other for waste... a sample bottle of their concentrated carpet shampoo, onboard cord storage for the 20 foot cord, a 4 amp motor, and a 1 year manufacturers warranty.

The 2080 comes largely unassembled but goes together in a few minutes. Assembly involves installing the lower waste chamber, the upper reservoir, mounting the upright body, and the handle. There are a total of 3 screws that mount easily. The assembled unit weighs in at a manageable 18 pounds and has an 8.5" cleaning path.

It's very simple to use. Just vacuum the area to be cleaned, add cleaning solution to the upper tank, and clean according to the instructions. The upper tank removes and reinstalls easily, and holds ~ 1/2 gallon of diluted cleaning solution that is easily applied by way of a conveniently located trigger on the handle. Directions call for adding a concentrated cleaner diluted with hot water. A full reservoir of 1/2 gallon will cover a fairly large area....perhaps an average living room. I've read where others wished the upper chamber held more solution, but I found it to be more than adequate, plus the small size allows me to reheat the entire container in the microwave if the hot water has cooled....a very convenient characteristic for a basic model that does not include it's own heating unit. Once done, or once the waste tank is full, it removes, dumps, and reinstalls easily....this is where you realize just how much dirt is in your carpet! Heavily soilded areas may require 2 or 3 applications.

The 2080 is easy to use and the instructions are simple. It's light, maneuvers easily, the on/off switch is simple and well placed, the trigger spray works well, the capacities are adequate, the beater brush works well, and suction seems plentiful. The system basically works as well as the chemical solvents you choose, whether it's Bissell's brand or other. It did a very nice job on our well soiled den carpet. My only complaint is that you can't bypass the suction and allow the cleaning solution to soak in and apply extra aggitation before it gets vacuumed out of the rug. In a nutshell it does what it's supposed to do and does it for a reasonable price. Highly recommended for most household carpets.