Vacuuming

[alison]

Hey gang! I know that we've talked about vacuum cleaners ad nauseum, BUT I've never lived in an apartment that has thick a** wall-to-wall carpeting, and our new place for fellowship has the thickest, plushest, awful awful carpeting. It's like an animal.

So, how do you keep a beast of a carpet like that clean? We can't afford a Miele at this point, but I am willing to invest a decent vacuum cleaner to keep our floors clean. Is there anything other than a Dyson out there that can handle thick carpeting? Vishenka's Dyson horror story makes me a little nervous about getting one...

[poky]

Hmm....we don't have thick-ass carpet, but you also don't have pets, right?

We absolutely love our roomba, now that we finally broke down and got one; I'd think about one of those, you could send it around every day or two; it should be able to keep it clean, and without as much effort from you as actually using a "real" vacuum.

[alison]

Hmm....we don't have thick-ass carpet, but you also don't have pets, right?

We absolutely love our roomba, now that we finally broke down and got one; I'd think about one of those, you could send it around every day or two; it should be able to keep it clean, and without as much effort from you as actually using a "real" vacuum.

Nope, no pets. We're shoes-off people, but the carpet is off white, so we're going to have a hard time keeping the thing white... I'll look into the roomba, but my dh actually likes to vacuum, and he's the type to obsess over even vacuum lines in the carpet.

if dh had his way, he'd steam clean it each week. I don't have that kind of patience, but he does...

[MrsK]

Wow! You could acutually rent out your dh for that. I hate vaccuming/mopping.

[alison]

Wow! You could acutually rent out your dh for that. I hate vaccuming/mopping.

I hit the jackpot with dh when it comes to keeping things clean. I'm a messy person.

[poky]

Oh, right. I'd forgotten your DH's neat-freak ways extended to floors. I've got nothing; only vacuum I've used in the last 12 years (other than the roomba) was one we got that had decent ratings on consumer reports and was relatively quiet. (It's a sharp, iirc). It wasn't bad, but I had to replace belts and even beater bars on it, and it often stank. I'd find a couple local vac+sew shops and talk to the guys who do all the repairs, and see what they recommend (ie the ones they don't see very often).

[alison]

Oh, right. I'd forgotten your DH's neat-freak ways extended to floors. I've got nothing; only vacuum I've used in the last 12 years (other than the roomba) was one we got that had decent ratings on consumer reports and was relatively quiet. (It's a sharp, iirc). It wasn't bad, but I had to replace belts and even beater bars on it, and it often stank. I'd find a couple local vac+sew shops and talk to the guys who do all the repairs, and see what they recommend (ie the ones they don't see very often).

That's a great idea. I think I'll call around. It'd be nice to have a quiet vacuum cleaner!

When we first saw the apartment that we ended up leasing, I couldn't tell if dh's eyes got big because he was worried about how to keep the carpet clean, or if it was actually that he was secretly excited about the challenge!

[HouseofWool]

When we first saw the apartment that we ended up leasing, I couldn't tell if dh's eyes got big because he was worried about how to keep the carpet clean, or if it was actually that he was secretly excited about the challenge!

[Vishenka69]

That's the same carpet we had in our last place and after 1.5 years it was gross. I vacuumed with Dyson (once it started working) at least once a week but there's crap that just won't come off. While we did take all our shoes off and asked our guests to do the same, it was hard to enforce the rule with deliveries and maintenance people. At least you won't have to worry about winter slush being dripped and dragged all over.

I was told that there's stuff you can spray foam and then rub with a mop and then vacuum up all the dirt with it but seriously, who beside your DH would actually bother.

I also second going to a local vac store and asking them for advice.

Your new place sounds like ours!! The worst part, as you will find out, is when baby starts throwing food around! I got cheap rugs from Ikea to do my best to cover the carpet in the dining area but it is still pretty bad.
No advice on vacuums, ours is a POS from Target, but we rent a Rug Doctor every couple of months. I am sure your DH will love the challenge

[HouseofWool]

Kirsty - if you are renting a rug doctor, you might want to consider getting a steam cleaner. We have one that cost about 200 buck and I use it every couple of months on our white carpet. (Who in their right mind puts cream carpet in a rental???) It works well enough. I think it is a hoover.

[MarissaNicole]

If you get a new vacuum make sure you get one that has a HEPA filter - they cut down on dust and help allergies.