6.3.2019

As a “modern” couple, we try to share the housework,so this is a dual review so apologies for the length of it!Over the years we have tried many methods of carpet cleaning ranging from straight vacuum to dry powders to wet cleaners. We still have an original VAX wet cleaner ( orange , tublike , more than 15 years old – an original version of the newer 6131T) ) but used to find it somewhat messy and difficult to dry the carpets after cleaning. Dry cleaning was excellent – until the Dyson upright system came alongWe are revisiting carpet cleaning with this new upright VAX system. We live in a bungalow in a red clay soil area so the potential for carpet soiling simply from the outside is high.We have no pets however although we did test with friends carpets who had a dog. We have a range of carpet colours ranging from russet red to green to pink to a gold. All carpets could do with a good deep clean after some 12years in the bungalow. Normal dry cleaning is via an upright Dyson DC01 and a Shark Poer Red. These do not remove the deep dirt from the local clay.This unit weighs similar to the DC01 ( somewhat heavy) but wheels around easily – albeit in straight linesThe particular areas selected for the wet cleaning tests wereA) In front of chairs / settees , at the side of bedsB) Walkway areas ( halls)C) (Stairs – not available in this house ( bungalow)) – units are available and were tested on areas of carpetThese were to be compared with original carpet ( under beds or settees) for colour and texture ( softness) .The dirt removed could be assessed by the colour of the cleaning solutions to be disposed of. You add the water preheated to 40C . A drying cycle is mentioned but we could not detect any additional heater for drying .Cleaning fluids used – the unit comes with 1 x 250ml Platinum cleaning solution – The solution bottles suggest a dilution of 40ml in 1L warm water ca 40C or below BUT the machine actually mixes it for you – concentrate put in one tank , clean water at ca 40C in the other.(Other compatible recommended solutions are 1.5lUltra+ cleaning solution ; Ultra + 1.5l Pet carpet cleaning 1.5l ; Ultra + refresh and revitalise ; Ultra+ Allergen 1.5l ; Ultra+ sanitise 1.5L – all available from VAX online or from Amazon )Her comments:-Having had an earlier version of a Vax Vacuum and washer as a 2 in 1, some 20 years ago, when my Husband showed me this on the Vine programme, I said yes let’s give it a try, as I was keen to see how the technology had changed over the years.When the unit arrived it was in a large box so expected it to be bigger than my Dyson Vacuum. In fact it is only about 2 inches wider at the front end and not much heavier, without the solution and water in it.It took 2 of us to get it out of the box, (for ease) and we found it easy to put together.We then waited for a relatively dry warm day to tackle a stain on the living room carpet as our trial, before moving on to the rest of the Home.This was a trial on a 100% woollen carpet, and I had previously done a patch test for colour run, which was fine.Before filling any tanks, I took a few minutes, to familiarise myself on how to take off both the water tank and the solution tank so as not to have any spills when full and found it relatively easy to and replaced them.The instructions were a little misleading as to how much cleaner to put in to the solution tank against water in the water tank, on the bottle of cleaning solution as it said on the bottle to add 40ml of it and in the instruction booklet it suggested all of it. I decided to go with what the bottle said at around 40ml, with a full tank of clean warm water.I had earlier vacuumed the carpet so all was free of debris. I then wheeled the cleaner into the living room and plugged it in. I made sure the machine was on wash and pressed the release pedal to tilt the cleaner and the then on/off pedal and off I went. It was easy to push and the solution flowed equally across the carpet on the passes and then suction was good on the return. After a few passes in either direction, I turned the machine off and turned the switch to rinse, then went over the same section again. On finishing, the carpet was warm to the touch, which I expected would help with the drying.I was gobsmacked by the amount of dirty water from the cleaning of such a small part of the carpet and it had got up most of the ingrained dirt from a nasty stain.Cleaning the machine is relatively easy as most parts of the washer come off for rinsing out and there was still some cleaning fluid in the container which has gone back into the bottle for the next use.We also removed some carpet fibres from the brush barAs the carpet cooled down I noticed is was a little damper than expected, but this maybe because it is a natural 100% wool carpet and not a synthetic or wool mix type, which may have dried quicker.Overall I am very impressed with this machine even on a small test and will wait until the warmer months before carrying on the good work it does.It is a 5 out of 5 for me!

10.4.2019

I have previously used the Vax Rapid Power Plus, which is exactly the same as this model save for a difference in the upholstery attachment. The Vax was pressed straight to work on arrival. Out of the box, you need a cross-head screwdriver to screw the handle onto the main unit, but these are easy drive screws and very simple to do. A small bottle of the platinum shampoo is included. It didn't look like it would be enough to do much, but actually went a surprisingly long way. Not easily available in Tescos though so will have to search more widely in supermarkets, or go online. A 1.5l bottle is about £22 which sounds pricey,but based on initial use will probably last some time.The machine is almost ready to go out of the box once the handle is on - only a bit of packing tape here and there and you are ready to go. There's a brilliant hanging bag for all the accessories and tools to keep things tidy in the cupboard. A quick fill of shampoo in its dedicated part of the water tank, and some warm water and all good to go. There are deep clean and quick clean modes. The "carpets dry in 45 minutes" claim relates to quick clean, although I must say I was impressed with how dry the carpet felt even after a deep clean. I commented that if I had a small spill and tried to clean by hand, there's no way I could get a carpet that dry using towels and dabbing etc if that helps as a useful comparison!It is quite a heavy unit, but I don't think there's any way it could be slimmed down. Because you're using it in a more considered way than whizzing backwards and forwards with a regular vacuum, this isn't really problematic. I say this because they suggest that you use deliberate long strokes shampooing on the way out and sucking up water on the way back (which is as easy as a trigger pull). It is amazing how much dirt this thing pulls out! It is also really easy to see if you are still extracting water due to the clear plastic of the head through which you can see any foam/water that is still coming out of the carpet. We found one wash stroke out, a return sucking and then going back and sucking a second time seemed to do it. Then a rinse stroke with just water (a simple turn of a knob to shut off the shampoo) on the same basis and the carpet looked and smelled amazing.The upholstery tool is simple to fit, but awkward to remove. You have to unflap a small plastic hatch on the head (it is a bit stiff at first but I think it will get easier with use), insert and line up the accessory tube, and turn a quarter turn to lock in in. The instructions say there is an arrow to line up, although it's a not very clear arrow of plastic. A small blob of paint would make it more obvious. The most awkward part of the accessory tube is the water feed. There is a small hatch that you have to lift and then snap a connector onto from the tube. It goes on very easily but is awful to pull off. there is no instruction in the book that tells you it's a simple pull job, so you're left unsure as to whether you should be just pulling HARD, or twisting to a certain position first to release it. Added to this, it's much more difficult to get hold of if you don't remove the large accessory pipe first as they're in close proximity. My advice; remove the large pipe then grab the small one and pull firmly upwards. It does come but you will feel like you might be about to break something! My mum couldn't do it. The upholstery wash tool is a simple spray/suck job. This is the main difference to the Rapid Power Plus which has a powered scrub tool. For light cleaning this model will be fine. If you are really worried about deep cleaning furniture, or have very high traffic stairs you may want to consider upgrading to that model.The dirty water tank fills about twice to each clean water tank, but is easy to remove and empty.There is an automatic shut off feature which stops the water suction if the head loses contact with the carpet or when the dirty tank fills up. The only way you know is that the pitch of the motor goes up slightly - my dad couldn't detect the noise due to his hearing range! Either switch off or wait a moment and a small float within the dirty water tank drops back down and you can keep going (unless it is because of a full tank in which case you HAVE to empty - of course!) We had a small spot in the hall (maybe a particularly big floorboard gap or something?) where every time we went over it it would shut off! Not a major problem but something to be aware of.All in all, an amazing bit of kit. Hall carpet and half of lounge done in a Victorian 3-bed terraced sized house and still some of the sample bottle left

4.3.2019

You need to be aware that, when assembled the machine takes up a considerable amount of space so you either have to assemble it and store it in your garage or shed (like I do) or you disassemble it after each use and reassemble it next time. This means you still have to have somewhere to store the large box the unit comes it.Either way you’ve got potential for a load of grief.To my mind it’s pretty noisy in use, both from the motor directly and from the rotary brushes. As for the claim that the carpets are dry within an hour – hmmmm. Certainly NOT if you use the deep clean mode they’re not. Using that cleaning method you need a hot house and you should clean the carpets during the late evening and leave them all night to dry.

10.2.2019

I'm very impressed by how well this cleans, which is what matters most. The high-traffic areas of my house I carpeted with a polypropylene berber knowing it would get filthy, but would stand up to robust cleaning.So it proved, after putting warm water into the tank plus the sample-size detergent, the waste water bottle was quickly filled with filthy-black water and the carpets were looking far better. The brushes on this unit have the additional benefit of raising the berber loops, so making the carpet look much fresher.I used deep-clean plus rinse as the carpets were so grubby, this meant they were really damp and it took more than 45 mins to dry.

18.2.2019

We tested the Vax Rapid Power "Revive" carpet washer on a 2m x 1m rug in our lounge. Over time, our rug picks up all sorts of small stains from tea, coffee and the occasional food spillage. We also have 3 dogs, meaning the floors in our house tend to collect dirt rather quickly.We liked the design of this cleaner - it screams "heavy duty". The chunky design and grey/orange colour scheme made us wonder if it's aimed at getting more men involved with household chores, something our Dyson vacuum cleaner has certainly achieved.We were pleased with the cleaning ability of this carpet washer. Don't expect miracles - it didn't remove the most stubborn of stains, but it did a great job of freshening up our rug.

21.3.2019

I've used a Vax carpet washer before so I knew what to expect with this Rapid Power Revive model. I've always liked the quality of instructions that come with Vax products and the small booklet supplied here was typically good, although you might need to wear your reading glasses as the typeface is a little bit on the small side.Rather sadly you just get a 250ml bottle of Vax carpet shampoo with this machine so if you're ordering one you would be well advised to order some shampoo to go with it. I usually order two 1.5 litre bottles of Vax Ultra Plus solution for a tenner each, and one of these is enough for me to do the whole house - but you should note that most of our downstairs is laminate flooring with a few rugs,

13.6.2019

I ummed and arrrred initially about this purchase, thinking that it would be more practical to go for the model that I was replacing, given that I liked it a lot and it appears to do a great job.So pleased I made the purchase, the special offer probably helped my decision, but having now seen the results it puts my previous model to shame and it was good.The rotating brushes make a significant contribution to ensuring the carpet is clean and seem to help lift the pile. The carpet I have just cleaned is approximately 20 years old and light in colour, usually cleaned annually. I had started cleaning the carpet with my previous model which was fortuatous, before it gave up the ghost.

8.2.2019

I wish that some form of handles were provided on the box; it is very slippery to hold whilst carrying.There are 2 aspects that I don't like: one is that the handle does not click into place like earlier incarnationsof this product do; that means that the purchaser has to find a philips head screw driver to fix the handle inplace and if, like me, wishes to remove the handle to ease storage in tight spots - the handle has to be unscrewedagain, u gh. The designer have done a very good job on other aspects regarding click-in components, one wonderswhy they did not carry that through to the handle design.Second dislike is where the electrical cord exits the bottom of the washer: if left slightly loose then it is easy to catchit with the foot when operating the foot located on/off switch.

11.2.2019

I found it easy to assemble the cleaner, although It may be helpful to have someone to assist in lifting the main part out of the box as it was so well packed. Once assembled, it takes only a little while to read through the instructions and get the machine ready. The water is heated in the machine itself, which I liked. The clean water and dirty water are kept separate, helping to leave the last area cleaned just as fresh and clean as the first area. There are different programmes to use, including a quick dry setting, which worked very well on my 80/20 wool/man-made carpet in the bedroom. When giving the granddaughter’s playroom carpet a good clean (also 80/20 wool) I was very pleased at how well it cleaned.

17.2.2020

This is a vast improvement on my old Vax with all the old faults ironed out! You put warm water and cleaning fluid in separate compartments in the top tank, and dirty water ends in the lower tank. You can switch off the cleaning fluid if you want water only to run. You'll get about 20 minutes before you need to flush the tank and refill with water, at which time you may or may not need more cleaning "solution" as they label it. It's quite heavy, best to leave to hubby, but the plastics and construction are all reasonably solid and well-fitting. Dismantling for cleaning is best left to someone in the house who is good at Meccano, or at least Lego, and it will need to be done quite often - but that is the same for all carpet washers,

9.9.2019

I read loads of reviews and “top 10” reports before plumping for this model. Glad I bought it. It’s great. I bought it when we got a new puppy and it has proved invaluable for those little accidents and giving our carpets a good general clean.I have previously rented one of the Rug Doctor commercial machines and this is lighter and just as effective. Really pleased with the results and would recommend to anyone.Only reasons for not giving it 5 stars are; as it says in some of the reviews, it does tend to leak a bit, so you get a bit of a puddle to clean up when you turn it off. Cleaning it after use is also a bit of a pain. The dirty water collector comes apart and isn’t too bad,

14.2.2019

when you use a product like this you can end up with real shame issues............ i had forgotten my carpets were a light beige and not the umm darker version they had become. the whole unit fit together well with good clear instructions for us which was great as we were up and ready to go in no time at all.once all set up with fluids etc we were off and it was so easy, i used one years and years ago which took forever to set up and fill and get working and even longer to drain and clean before putting away. this is really not much different to hoovering, just slower and a doddle.it cleans well and as suggested yes the high traffic areas did need more than one go but even then it wasnt much

5.5.2019

Pros* It is a good all round cleaner* The assembly didn't take too long, it was generally easy to put together* I was able to wash floors without leaking - first time been able to do that* The water tank is large and there's no need to constantly refill* The water residue is removed quite effectively* The water container are quite easy to clean* There is a long power cord to enable wide range of area* It has good good stair and upholstery / crevice cleaning tools* It features quick and deep cleaning modes. Both quite effective* It leave carpets looking bright and fresh, especially when using deep cleanCons* The unit can be quite heavy and bulky., it is difficult to haul up and down stairs* It is quite noisy,

1.3.2019

I have to say, I love this, so my review is going to be somewhat biased. So first, a couple of criticisms. I didn't find it that easy to assemble, the top part that sits on the tank was a bit difficult, it took a philips screwdriver to fix it... But that's probably me. Second niggle: it's a big, workmanlike unit, pushing it forward is good exercise! And storage... Well that had to be worked out as I live in a small cottage. Again, can't blame the machine for that. Anyway, finally got it together, btw, instruction booklet was very good. Filled it up, added carpet cleaner, away we went. I managed to clean all my carpeted areas in one tankful, in one go. The living room carpet was easy,

23.6.2019

Its perfect for a house with pets and or kids! I used the cleaner on carpets after a few paw prints ended up on the stairs and was really please with the results. It's quite a bulky device and so its worth making sure you have plenty of room to store it, as you can't really break it down and keep it in the box once you've assembled it. You could, but it would be very inconvenient. It's supplied with a bottle of cleaner solution, one bottle will do all the carpets in an average sized family home. The hand tool for cleaning stairs is ideal, and it also has a long enough handle that you need not lug the machine up and down the stairs as you go.

Vax Rapid Power Revive - Reviews

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