BISSELL® Big Green® PET PRO Carpet Cleaner, 3288

Hi, If you are in a big hurry, skip this review, it is long and involved, written by a guy who has cleaned carpets in many houses (mine and as a landlord) for many years - and is a retired engineer. Spoiler Summary - Super sturdy, heavy and semi-hard to pull because it is sucking down so hard pulling up dirty water and dampness. I like it. Introduction - I have owned a half dozen or more carpet cleaners for 20+ years, mostly lower priced Hoovers. This is a review after buying this Bissell and using it for 3000 square feet and two sets of carpeted stairs.I chose it after reviewing many alternatives focusing on the suction capability. Many shampooers leave the carpet pretty wet, even after secondary dry passes that dont pull much of the water out. This not only leaves dampness, but dirty water you are trying to remove. First Blush - Sturdy delivery box, and sturdier machine. This machine looks more industrial than many lower priced ones - more like something you would rent at a grocery or rental place.No assembly required - nice long cord, large tanks to allow you to keep going. Set up - As I dragged this upstairs, I realized this is significantly heavier than others I have owned. But do-able (I am 140 pounds, 60+ years old now). You have to mix the solution into the water. Usage - The instructions say to push away and pull back a strip while releasing solution, then repeat the push/pull without solution (dry mode). I repeated these steps in really black or high traffic areas. Doing so with my carpets, which looked okay, yielded almost coal black return tank water with dirt in the bottom of the tank. I did this washing, then, per room, I repeated the same steps as above with clear water for a complete rinse cycle. The water looked less dirty, but I called that good enough. Result - These carpets look better than they have in a long time. I am impressed. Pluses - (1) The machine is very heavy duty, so are the tanks. It sucks very well. Once I didnt seat the receiving tank well so suction was compromised, I pulled back 3 feet and thought wow, this thing has just gotten way easier to pull. Then I reseated the tank and felt again the strong resistance to pulling return. (2) I am an anal engineer. On one rinse cycle, after the carpet was damp from washing, I measured the amount of water I spit out and the amount that was sucked back in. The machine pulled back around 75% of what it laid out. You may think, wow, I would have guessed that you would get back all you lay down. No, you do not, with any cleaner, as it seeps into the carpet. But this 75% was way more than I have seen in the past. Plus, my carpets dried in 1/2 the time. Minuses - This thing is pretty heavy and pulls hard. I dont think my 105 pound 60+ year old wife could lug it up the steps, or use it for long. Other - It would be nice if the soap was separate, so you could toggle between wash and rinse. It is not, you put two tank capfulls of solution in the tank. I got around this by working with the solution, then, as mentioned above, repeated with plain water.It would be nice if you could turn the beater brush on and off, to give the carpet a break when you are just trying to suck up the solution. Oh well. You do have to keep an eye on this spinning disc on the top that indicates solution flow, to tell when you are out of solution, as the tank is so heavy duty, you cant easily see the level as you use it. No big deal, as this spinning beanie disk is in your line of sight as you work. Overall - I like this unit and am glad I bought it, and it works better than the last 5 - 10 units I have purchased.

I would buy this product all over again. It is excellent on my carpets. I use it all the time with two large older dogs. Even the foot traffic makes the carpet dirty. PROS: ~This machine seems to put less water into the carpet than other machines Ive rented. ~The suction takes more water out of the carpet so the carpet dries faster ---even when I run over the same area time and time again to clean up a doggie accident. ~The machine works better than other carpet cleaners Ive rented/borrowed from family. I went over stains that Id previously cleaned with a rented Rug Doctor and it didnt get rid of them completely as they were old, but theyre quite noticeably better. ~The moving handle makes this comfortable for people of different heights to operate this. Other machines Ive used arent very comfortable. ~Filling the tank with water/solution is a lot less mess than other machines Ive used as the fill tank is removable. Machines Ive previously used you have to fill a bucket and then pour it into the machine and the suction fittings always got in the way which meant spilling (and solution is expensive!) ~The spinning dial makes it easy to see when youre out of water as it stops spinning. Yes, the sound the machine makes changes also, but if youre listening to music, or in the zone cleaning you may not notice that. The dial frequently catches my eye when it runs out as it is a spinning circle cut into quarters that are black/white/black/white. ~The clear tanks make it easy to see about how much of the cleaning solution tank youve used and how close to full the dirty tank is. ~I use my machine at least twice a week for spot cleaning. I clean my entire house, rotating rooms over a couple of days about every 3 weeks. The carpets do not appear to have any damage or wear from the machine. ~Dog hair is easy to remove from the bottom of the machine after using, and its easy to get out of the two parts to the dirty tank. Some of it also clumps on the floor when doing the cleaning so its easy to pick up while going. (Yes, I vacuum before, but even my Dyson doesnt get it all. We have large dogs who shed a lot year round.) ~The handle folding down makes it easy to store under shelves or hanging clothing in a garage/closet. ~It came assembled, well packed, and with a small bottle of original solution. Ready to go after removing a few cardboard inserts! Cons: ~Weight of machine is higher than that of the machines Ive rented in the past. HOWEVER, the tanks can be removed to transport it and its manageable. ~The dirty water tank can be a mess to empty. If you dont wait a few minutes for the water to settle when you lift it off it will drip dirty, water on you or your carpet/floor If you dont tilt it just right when dumping it, youll again have a bit of a mess on the bathroom floor and possibly yourself.. (I think Rug Doctors tanks from the machines Ive rented are easier to empty with less mess and theyre not in two pieces. The top piece here also drips when you remove it to dump the other tank, which means having to sit it in the tub or on the floor.) After cleaning the carpet I always clean the bathroom floor and tub as the dirty water gets on them. ~The dirty water tank, if not set just right, will not collect water. Once youve used the machine a few times its pretty easy to tell when you have it on right, but twice I emptied an entire tank without realizing it wasnt sucking up the water. (The dirty water tank handle when left up blocks part of my view at my height and I cant see if its sucking up the water.) This machine is well worth the price. I checked a LOT of sites and stores where it was available (including the Bissell site). Other than a no longer active Black Friday sale it was cheapest to purchase here on Amazon. I was very hesitant to spend this much money on a carpet shampooer. Its a LOT of money, but having used it a lot (two large elderly dogs create a lot of messes, not to mention foot traffic from humans and dogs alike.) I promise it is well worth the money. I would buy it even if it was $100 more knowing what I know now. I use it with the 2x Pet Stain & Odor Formula. Other people have said it was odorous or blue in color. It is clear and it does not smell at all. The only smell I ever have is when I go over a fresh urine/vomit spot and it only lasts a few seconds when you first go over it, and when you empty the dirty water tank. This cleaning solution works excellent. I have a small bottle of original formula that came with the machine, but I purchased the pet formula when I got the machine so I have not used it and compared. Id rather stick with what I know works. (The cleaning solution I found for the best price on Bissells site. Buy 1 solution get a second for 20% off, they frequently have % off codes which also give free shipping, and you get a 10% discount with a members points account, which is free. The discounts stack. I got 2 60oz bottles for $32 and some change today after tax and free shipping. Last time I bought them I had a slightly lower discount and paid $34.)

When I first bought my home, there were some pet stains that the owners could not remove. I did not have time to clean it myself, so I hired a professional cleaning company. Needless to say, I was not impressed. So I rented the Rug Doctor and after several passes, I was able to remove the stain. I continued to rent the Rug Doctor over the years for my carpet cleanings and had been pleased. The last time I used one, I did notice the carpets were somewhat stiff. I am going to attribute this to the fact that I may have used too much cleaning solution. Then spring came around again and I wanted to clean the carpets again. I had stains from drinks, heavy traffic areas and again some pet stains. I own two lovable cats, who sometimes like to leave love spots. I went to my local grocery store to rent the Rug Doctor and they did not have any machines available. I went to several other stores and could not find one. Someone told me to try the Home Depot or Lowes. I went to Lowes and they had the Bissell instead of the Rug Doctor (RD). Never having used one and very unsure that it would perform as well as the RD, I decided to give it a try. First off, I noticed the rental rate was higher due to the deposit required. I loaded it into my car and home I went to give it a try. I am not sure if it is lighter or easier to maneuver than the RD when removing from my car. I followed the simple instructions and off I went cleaning the carpets. One of the things I noticed was the cleaning solution is applied in both the forward and backwards movements. Cleaning was pretty straight forward and exactly as I expected. First mistake I made was dumping the dirty water. I slipped and dropped the dirty water all over the floor. Quick fix, use the vacuum aspect and suck up the water. Another positive I noticed was the filling of the water. No more filling a large bucket and dumping it into a smaller fill slot. You fill the bucket, which removes and add solution, tighten the cap and place it back on the Big Green. No more water saturated lines on the carpet when I pour too fast. Place the empty container that will collect the dirty water on top, secure the latch and off you go. I have read that people are experiencing clumps of dirty hair, etc when using the Big Green. The ONLY times I notice this is when I fail to vacuum my carpets thoroughly first. I also noticed that the suction is somewhat better than my vacuum, so it is picking up cat and human hairs (that vacuum cleaners can and do miss) and depositing them on the carpet. No Problem, just pick them up. As a note I noticed this as well with the RD, so it is NOT a specific problem to the Big Green. You must vacuum before using the cleaner. The other major positive was the drying time using the Big Green. It is MUCH less than the RD. So I purchased this on 6/22/12 and opted for next day delivery. I ordered this mid-morning to mid-afternoon I believe and by 9am the next morning I had my Big Green. Less than 24 hours for shipping! I opened the box, removed a few cardboard packing materials, removed the bottle of solution from the tank, filled it with water and off I went. No more than 15 minutes total from unpacking to cleaning. No assembly required!!!! I am happy with my purchase. If you are familiar with using a RD, the Big Green is similar in size and maneuverability. This is not a small upright vacuum size. For me it seemed to maneuver easier than the RD. It removes stains, leaves your carpets feeling great and dries faster than any other cleaner I am aware of. The Bissell cleaning solutions smell nice and are not over powering. Pros: cleaning capabilities Less drying time Carpets feel soft ease of use Cons: cost, rather expensive but worth the cost for thorough deep cleanings

No issues

I have previously owned a Bissell but it wasnt a deep cleaner. After reading the reviews and Amazon running this on a lightning deal, I purchased it. After vacuuming all the carpets, I started this machine up. I have used a Rug Doctor and thought that it did a fair job. This machine BLOWS a Rug Doctor out of the water. It came already assembled, all I had to do was remove all of the packing material and lift the handle. My first impression: 1. While heavy, it maneuvers very easily. Much easier than the Rug Doctor. I attribute this to the fact that the handle pivots forward and back like a vacuum cleaner does rather than being stationary. 2. I liked that you didnt have to fill a bucket or other tank to fill the clean reservoir. The clean tank comes out of the machine to be filled. 3. This thing SUCKS! I mean that in a good way. When using the RD (rug doctor) the carpet always stayed wet for hours. With this machine, even with spraying in a forward motion and then again when pulling backwards (so 2 applications of solution with only one removal), on a second pass to remove the water, there was very little left in the carpet. 4. I LOVE that I can see the water that has been pulled out of the carpet. It lets me know just how much water is being put down and how much is being pulled back out. 5. The machine does tell you when you are out of solution and its easy to see the level by looking at the tank. Its similar to knowing how much milk is left in the carton thru a frosted surface. 6. Dumping the waste water is fairly easy. The only downside is that once you remove the top portion (where you see the water being sucked into the waste tank) there is nothing really to hold onto when dumping the tank since the handle is on the top part. 7. Even after thoroughly vacuuming the carpet, this machine found hair that my commercial vacuum did not get out of the carpet. 8. We do have a cat and dog. The dog is very stubborn and if anything hits the floor, she either will try to eat it or cover it up by peeing on it. There was a single spot that after treating with an enzyme solution and cleaning with the RD, there was still an odor. After a single pass with this machine, the odor was gone and there was no longer a strange feeling to that part of the carpet. 9. When using the RD, I felt that I had to go over the carpet several times, keeping in mind that all of our carpet is under 3 years old. With this machine, I could tell with my bare feet that there was a definite difference to how the carpet felt after just one pass. 10. The carpet was dry within 3 hours even in the areas that I had made a forward and backwards pass. Our carpet has a pretty deep pile as well. About 3/4 of an inch in length to give you an idea of what type it was used on. 11. The only problem that I had was operator error. When I filled the tank the second time, I did not get them lined up exactly right and it would put water down but nothing was being pulled back up. I unhooked the latch, reseated the top tank and viola! Back in business. So far I have not found any downsides to this machine but I will check back in after the next time I use it.

Used for some pretty deep stains, unfortunately. Did a good job, not sure they could be fully removed, but it took 85% of it out. Ging to try again. Pretty easy design, and unlike a typical floor model, this one has CAPACITY. Large water tank is separate from waste tank, so you can go longer between changes. Recommended.

I really like this product. The one thing I wasn’t happy about. From the very first use the flow meter leaked and leaked enough to making a cleanup not 100%. Once i had to replace the flow meter it hasn’t leaked & has cleaned the carpets like I had hoped for

I started out using this machine because I was in a pinch when our carpet vendor had to cancel. My first experience was with a rental from a local hardware company, per the recommendation of our rep. The rental had clearly been used a lot, and not well cared for. I was skeptical. However, our $5000.00 commercial machine was heavy, hard to fill, rigorous to use, exhausting to use solo, and an inconvenience for those occupying apartments. With this machine, I was able to complete the job in a fraction of the time, had no interference with other occupants, had no fatigue, and the end result was a much cleaner and sanitary carpet. I was so pleased I bought 4. I have since bought nothing but this. The upholstery attachments work well for furniture and tight spaces. The stair tool sees no loss of suction. The machine is simple to use, can be used by a single person with ease. The suction is less than more expensive machines, but the scrubbing bristles penetrate deep into the carpet and in my opinion yield a better clean. The capacity is small, but that can be seen as a benefit. This is not a machine for water extraction, but for cleaning. The machine is easy to clean, and upon first use it will be evident how much this machine really pulls out of the carpet. There is a clear channel on the top of the collection bin and you will be able to see the hair, dirt, and grime as it is extracted. There is a multi color pinwheel on the top of the machine for flow, that will let you when when water is flowing or the tank is empty. For areas with pets, it does extremely well with hair and dander. Rather than flood and suck, this machine will excel with proper chemical treatment. Pre-treat stains properly ahead of time, and mix the proper fragrance and general carpet cleaning solution for your needs with the clean water tank for optimal performance. It’s a prefect option for single households. For commercial, I recently chose to use this product over a much more expensive machine. A larger complex with indoor, carpet hallways. Roughly 2 linear miles (4 buildings, 4 floors per building) and 6 foot wide. To make it work I prefilled a 30 gallon tote with water and treatment, and one empty tote. I was then able to fill the tank when needed, as well as empty the collection tank with ease. Pretreated the stains with a backpack sprayer, and the end result was great. My legs and back are still thankful. One caveat is that it is still pretty loud.

If youre like my husband and I, youve gone over and over buying this in your head. I get it, the price tag is a lot. But do it. We looked at so many reviews, so many shampooers, so many videos and everything led us back to this machine. We have a senior Great Dane and a senior Toy Fox Terrier, so accidents happen. After a single use, the difference in carpet feel and smell is phenomenal. Nothing humbles you quite like the first dirty water flush, Holy smokes. One or two passes has removed stains that we just became accustomed to, not even a professional cleaning crew could remove the stain, but this bad boy did. The three sample bottles of solution was super helpful and each one is the equivalent of two tanks. It is heavy to lift and push so please take this into consideration. Its hefty but for a good reason and Ive worked up a good sweat each round. Do read the directions and be prepared to do two cleanings of each carpet. (Not because its ineffective, but because I feel the first go round gets the surface grit up and then really deep cleans on the second go.)

This is my second Bissel carpet cleaner-had a smaller machine that heated water. This one uses hot tap water and blows warm air out bottom of machine. Don’t see this as impacting performance. My initial reaction is holy cow, this thing is easy to use and works exceptionally well-exceeds expectations. Easy to load/unload water in kitchen sink. Handle pivots for comfortable cleaning use and folds for compact storage. I had the carpet cleaned when I moved into this house 2-3 years ago. I have a golden retriever and viszla, so muddy paw prints are common. I just hit those with vacuum(Dyson animal ) and seemed like that was good, but I now believe that just blends the dirt into carpet or I don’t vacuum often enough. I went over each strip twice forward and back holding water button, then a final slow forward and back without water button. Then I moved over half machine width and repeated across room. It should need only a single pass in future if I don’t wait 2-3 years. It got all the stains out too by going back and forth a few times without pretreating. One was even a human puke stain from like a year ago. Haven’t tried the upholstery/stair wand, but that looks good. I finished a tank of water last night and emptied machine today. I poured out the hot chocolate looking water slowly and there was a thin layer of MUD on bottom of tank!! This thing really sucks in a good way.