How to use a carpet cleaner

If you've got light-coloured carpets, then sooner or later they'll get dirty with everyday wear and tear – especially if you've got little ones or pets.

You could call in a professional cleaner every time your carpets get dirty, but you may want to consider buying your own carpet cleaner instead.

See our carpet cleaner reviews to find the best models, or keep reading for our top tips on getting the best results.

How do I use a carpet cleaner?

• Empty the room of movable furniture and objects on the floor before you wash the carpet to ensure the whole floor is cleaned evenly.
• Vacuum the carpet to pick up any loose dirt, dust and fluff.
• Read the carpet cleaner instructions to find out how much detergent to use – most manufacturers recommend you use their own brand.

Need to remove tough stains from your carpet? Read our expert guide on the best carpet stain removers. 

Read the instructions

When using the carpet cleaner, follow the instructions on how to use the machine and how many times you need to go over each section of carpet – too much detergent in one spot could lead to an uneven finish.

How long will my carpet take to dry?

The best carpet cleaners generally leave carpets dry enough to walk on after about two hours. But a just-cleaned carpet will take around 24 hours to dry thoroughly.

In our tests we check for how wet carpets are left after they’ve been washed. If you want to make sure your carpets are not left soaked, look for a carpet cleaner with a high star rating for drying. The more stars, the drier your carpet is at the end of the cleaning process.

Will a carpet cleaner remove spills and stains?

Carpet cleaners are best for general carpet cleaning, the kind you might do once a year to freshen up the house, or maybe just one room, as part of a spring clean.

All carpet cleaners are able to suck up wet spills. Nozzle attachments for the hose are especially handy for this.

But for nasty marks, a spot cleaner carpet stain remover will be your best option. 

In our tests, we check how well each carpet cleaner removes dried-in red wine, coffee and mud stains. But be aware that, in general, carpet cleaners generally don't do a great job of tackling tough, dried stains.

Carpet cleaner jargon buster

Carpet cleaners, like any other appliance, come with a lot of jargon attached. To help you make sense of it all, we’ve compiled this glossary of terms you may come across when shopping for a carpet cleaner or reading our carpet cleaner reviews.

Auto-mix - Most carpet cleaners require you to create your own solution of water and detergent in the clean-water tank, but carpet cleaners with an auto-mix option will mix detergent and water for you, saving you the hassle of measuring it out yourself. Models that have an auto-mix option will have a separate tank just for detergent.

Brushes and brush bars - Underneath the floor head, you’ll find that almost all carpet cleaners have brushes or a brush bar. Both help the cleaner to push water and detergent deep into the pile of the carpet to give your floor a deep clean. Some models have static brushes, but if your budget allows for it, look for models with a motor-powered brush to help loosen ground-in dirt. Powered brushes either rotate (on a brush bar, like some vacuum cleaners have) or move from side to side. Our tests show they’re more effective at shifting grime out of the pile compared with static brushes.

Carpet washer - A carpet washer is the standard type of carpet cleaner. Its main job is to clean carpet, though if it comes with a handheld brush, it may also be suitable for cleaning upholstery. The alternative you have to a carpet cleaner is a multi-function cleaner, which is a vacuum cleaner and carpet cleaner rolled into one.

Clean-water tank - Most models have two separate removable water tanks: one for clean water and one for dirty water. The clean-water tank is the one you fill with lukewarm water before cleaning your home.

Cleaning area - The cleaning area is the width of carpet under the floor head that will be cleaned in one stroke. Just because a machine has a wide floor head doesn't mean all the carpet it touches will be cleaned. Some models have large gaps on one side of the floor head or the other where carpet won’t be washed – this means that, if you’re cleaning along a skirting board, there will be a strip of unwashed carpet along the wall. (One of the worst models we’ve seen leaves a 7.5cm margin of unwashed carpet on one side of the floor head.) We assess how closely carpet cleaners can clean along walls. We also measure the unwashed margin at the front of the floor head to see how far it can get into corners. If you want a carpet cleaner that leaves very little carpet unwashed, look for a model with four or more stars from us in the ‘walls and corners’ rating in our carpet cleaner reviews.

Crevice tool - Like most vacuum cleaners, some carpet cleaners come with a supplied crevice tool. This is an angled nozzle, typically with a narrow opening, that you attach to the hose to clean in narrow spaces – such as gaps next to a wall, or the boundary between stairs.

Detergent tank - If your carpet cleaner has an auto-mix feature (see above), there will be a detergent tank you need to fill with detergent. Most carpet cleaners won't have this feature.

Detergent spray - Not to be confused with the detergent tank. A detergent spray sits above the floor head and, when activated, will spray detergent directly onto your floors. This is used to pre-treat tough stains before any attempt to wash the stain out with the carpet cleaner.

Dirty-water tank - Carpet cleaners don’t just charge your carpets with water and detergent, they also try to suck up dirty water, removing dirt and reducing the amount of time carpets need to dry. Some models are better than others at not leaving your carpets waterlogged. If you don't want squishy, wet carpets, look for a model with four stars or more in our ‘drying’ rating – the more stars, the less soaked the carpets are after cleaning.

Dry vacuuming - Multi-function cleaners combine the functionality of a vacuum cleaner and a carpet cleaner in one. Flicking a switch will turn the model from carpet-washing mode into ‘dry vacuuming’ mode – otherwise known simply as vacuuming. Regardless of which type of carpet cleaner you have, you should always vacuum your carpets before washing them. However, some multi-function devices we’ve tested are less than impressive, so always check our reviews before you discard your existing vacuum cleaner.

Floor head - The floor head is the part of the carpet cleaner that actually makes contact with the floor, where the carpet is being washed. It will house the brushes and brush bars, and the funnels/gaps where clean water and detergent are put into your carpet and dirty water sucked back out.

Handheld brush - Some carpet cleaners come with a handheld brush. When connected to the machine’s hose, this brush can be used to clean areas, such as stairs, upholstery and other carpeted parts, where the main floor head will not reach. It may also be useful for cleaning in corners and along walls.

Hard-floor cleaning - A couple of the multi-function machines we’ve tested have a hard-floor attachment, making them suitable for tile or lino floors.

Multi-function carpet cleaner - Multi-function cleaners are carpet cleaners and vacuum cleaners rolled into one. It's a good idea to give your carpets a vacuum before before washing them – so a multi-function device could save you a trip back to the cupboard to swap machines. However, some multi-function devices we’ve tested have not impressed our experts, so check our reviews before you discard your existing vacuum cleaner.

Nozzles - Nozzles are another name for the small tools, such as handheld brushes or crevice tools, that can be attached to the machine’s hose and used for cleaning areas that the main floor head will not reach.

On-board storage - Some carpet cleaners let store additional nozzles, such as crevice and turbo tools, on the appliance, while others will not. If a carpet cleaner comes with a small array of tools, it’s handy if they can be stored on-board, as it saves you going back to the cupboard whenever you need to change the attachment.

Turbo tool - A turbo tool is a handheld accessory with a rotating brush. The brush is not powered by a belt – as the large brushes in the floor head might be – but rather by the airflow generated by the suction of the carpet cleaner. Turbo tools are designed to give a good deep clean to carpeted areas you can’t reach with the main floor head, such as stairs. Turbo tools can also be particularly effective with pet hair, although you’ll need to make sure you clean the turbo tool when hair gets wrapped round it to keep it working effectively, which can be a bit of a pain.

Two-in-one water tank - Carpet cleaners with a two-in-one water tank have a single, removable tank that holds both the clean and dirty water, rather than two separate tanks for clean and dirty water. Two-in-one tanks sound more convenient, but our tests show they can be a little more difficult to clean than two separate tanks.

Water tank heater - Carpet cleaners should be filled with lukewarm water. Some models, typically the pricier ones, come with a heater in the water tank to keep water warm as you wash, in an effort to improve cleaning performance.

Weight - If you’ll be using your machine upstairs, you need to make sure it will be comfortable to carry. Carpet cleaners typically weigh between 8kg (the same as a normal vacuum cleaner) and 18kg – which is very heavy indeed. We always measure the weight with a full tank of water. But if you’re going to be lifting a carpet cleaner up stairs, it will be a good idea to empty the water tank first.

Looking for the best carpet cleaner for your home? Our reviews reveal the best carpet cleaners for washing tired and grimy carpets. We test for dried-on stain-removal, noise and ease of use.