Great machine for untrained pets. Watch out for crop circles, though. Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum
Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum Product MPNMPN:1200B Key FeatureDesign:HandheldDirt Capture:Steam MotorVoltage:110 - 120 V AC ...
Even after a year, still love it Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum I have a dog who frequently had accidents and I was looking for a quick, easy solution rather than letting the sta...
What I use my SpotBot for:
I needed this spot lifter because of my adorable, sweet, cute little Chihuahua is a lean, mean, 6 pound peeing machine who can’t understand the concept of not peeing on the carpet.
Trial and Error with other machines:
My mother bought this for me for Christmas. More specifically, she bought me 2 others first to try out with the agreement that I’d try them out, keep the best one and she’d keep the other. The first 2 handheld spot lifters were pretty bad (I have reviews written on both of those, too) and didn’t really pick up the liquids they sprayed down, let alone the liquid I wanted it to get up and one of them, in particular, made such a high-pitched and LOUD noise that I was sure the neighbors would beat my door down.
So, my mother returned those back to the store and tried this one, the Bissell SpotBot Pet 1200, which was more than twice as expensive as the others (she said this cost her $160 at Best Buy, but that probably included tax). I was still skeptical, because in my searching at stores, I’d seen big upright steam cleaners in this price range that I figured would do a lot better. But, this Bissell had the word “pet” on it, so I thought it might work for my purposes. I don’t drink wine, so I don’t have to worry about wine stains and I don’t have kids, so I don’t have to worry about drink spills, but my little dog makes up for those extra spills that I might be “missing out on.”
The carpet’s condition:
Since my puppy firmly believes that the outdoors are for sniffing and our carpeted hall is for peeing on, I have quite the hallway to test this on. Every time the dog had an accident, I’d sop up the wet spot and then scrub the area by hand with special carpet cleaners and brushes, making it smell okay, but the carpet was left discolored and “icky” to step on, so I actually avoided that hallway. The “icky” actually seemed to start after I tried the other wet vacs, so I think they made it worse.
About the cleaner:
At first, I just tried the automatic settings on her pee spots. I loved the idea of ‘One touch and walk away’, like the commercial said. The cleaner has 2 automatic settings; one for set-in stains and one for surface stains. I use the surface stains for wet spots that she’s just made and the set-in button for ones that have been there a while (obviously). The large, round bottom part of the machine has rows of bristles and alternating rows of narrow plastic things that suck up the water. I’ve watched the machine work and it does “scrub” the area. The big, round plastic shield is clear so you can watch it work without getting wet and it also keeps the cleaning solution from going beyond the area it is cleaning. So, while it spins the brushes and the water-suckers in a circle, the machine moves the brushes in toward the middle of the cleaning area and outward to the plastic shield, so it isn’t like spinning a brush in circles. It scrubs up and down while moving in a circle, but it will get any spot it misses within a rotation or two, so every spot is scrubbed over and over again. In fact, when I lift up the machine when it is done, I sometimes find some of my hair in a little ball at the center of the circle that I just pick up and throw away. I imagine that would work on pet hairs, too. My little puppy doesn’t shed much since she’s a short-haired Chihuahua.
Noise:
I feel the noise of a cleaner is a very important factor, so I’m including a section here. Some of us live in apartments (like me) and some just don’t want their eardrums shattered. This machine is loud, so you won’t be able to hear the TV unless this machine is in another room. At the same time, though, neighbors shouldn’t bang down your door. Comparing to a standard vacuum cleaner, this machine is probably a bit louder, but within reason.
Time and Money:
When you use the “surface” stain button, the cleaning cycle takes about 3 minutes and you can use that setting about 6 times before refilling the tank with new cleaning solution and emptying the full tank. When using the “Set-in” stain button, the cleaning cycle lasts about 6 minutes and can be used 3 times before having to refill the solution tank and dumping the dirty tank. I feel this part is important because you can use this info to get an idea of how much cleaning solution you should buy when you get this machine. Using the manual hose is different. I have been able to do my whole hallway (about 10 feet long) side to side in less than a tank, so manual used much less solution, but I suppose that depends on how much you spray down and how much you’re picking up, of course. I’d sprayed up and down each foot or so for about 4 seconds, which made it very wet to the touch without soaking it.
Manual mode:
My husband once caught my puppy peeing on the carpet and yelled “no!”, which scared her, so she ended up dragging her pee from the hallway to about 20 feet away. Needless to say the automatic mode won’t work for this, so this was the first time I used the manual hose. Since then, I’ve come to like manual mode for my hallway now and then even though I love the convenience of the one-button automatic cycle. It takes a few seconds to get the hose ready and the trigger for the solution is right there on the nozzle, which is great. I push the one button that says “manual hose” and then spray and go. There is even a brush right there on the manual hose. I can get a much bigger area done with the manual hose and I can do it with much less cleaner, which saves money. Every now and then, the hallway looks dirty again (probably spots I never knew about) and I just go over the whole 10 feet of hall with the manual hose and even after many cleanings, I still get dirty water filling the dirty tank, so I know it is working. Sometimes, I use the manual hose option to work out the crop circles that the automatic function leaves behind. Manual mode leaves nice little lines in the carpet like the ones professionals leave (but these are smaller, of course).
Reasons why I like it:
1) Ease of use! The number one reason has to be because I can put the machine on the spot, plug it in, push one button and walk away.
2) It cleans and scrubs well.
3) It picks up what it puts down, which is rare with these cleaners! The solution runs out at the same time as the tank is full every time!
4) It is very easy to pick up the dirty and tank and dump out the water and put it back. The clean tank isn’t so bad, either.
5) Manual mode works very well, too.
Ways it could be better:
1) I wish it was quieter. Sure, you can walk away, but not to the TV and not to talk to someone. Walk away to do dishes or something.
2) The beep that sounds when the machine is done is pretty annoying. It doesn’t just shut itself off when done and sit quietly. No, no. You have to go almost immediately to hit the “stop” button or you’re forced to hear that piercing BEEP every minute or so.
3) It makes “crop circles” in your carpet. Because of the circular scrubbing action, when you use the automatic cycles, you get circles in your carpet. I tried to use a regular vacuum to get them out, but no such luck. I was able to kind of rub them out with my hand, mostly.
4) I think the clean and dirty tanks should be able to hold more, but if they did, it would be a much heavier machine, so maybe not.
Summary:
I really like this machine. I would recommend it to anyone with a puppy who isn’t house-trained, yet. If you hate getting on your hands and knees and scrubbing, then consider this machine. It does a good job cleaning and even picking up hair out of the carpet. It does leave “crop circles” behind in the carpet that are hard to get out without maybe using a brush to make the carpet look like its surroundings (when using the automatic settings only). It is louder than I’d like, but others I’ve tried are even louder, so this isn’t that bad.
not as good as expected or hoped for Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum A little pricey so I borrowed my mother in laws to see if it was something we really wanted, glad I didn't spend t...
Okay product with plusses and minuses Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum I bought my Bissell steam vacuum about 2 months ago to help clean up pet messes on my carpet. It has some great f...
Love my little SpotBot! Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum I have two cats that love to spit up so I went searching on epinions for a small carpet cleaner. I had tried just...
The Spot Killer! Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum My wife and I bought the Bissell SpotBot over a year ago and has it ever lived up to its name! If you have ever w...
unbelievably great machine Bissell 1200B Handheld Steam Vacuum One of the few machines I've ever seen that can outperform elbow grease and woman power. I actually bought this ma...
Conair SC20 Handheld Steam Vacuum Product MPNMPN:SC20 Key FeatureDesign:HandheldDirt Capture:Steam MotorConsumed Power:1500 Watt ...
Conair SC10 Handheld Steam Vacuum
Tags: apartment, best, best buy, bissell, carpet, commercial, hair, handheld, lw, machine, outdoor, quiet, reviews, small, wine
Leave a Reply