pallal's Full Review: Hoover F7411-900 SteamVac Upright Vacuum
I bought this carpet cleaner a few years ago when I had 2 toddlers, 2 dogs and 1 cat. After cleaning up many doggie accidents and spills from the children, I finally broke down and bought myself a carpet cleaner. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. I had to kick myself for not doing it sooner. I spent many precious minutes down on my hands and knees cleaning up carpet stains when I could have been playing with kids or reading a good book. Trying to wick up the liquid was always the hardest part. Finally I could just suck it up with this vacuum and be done with it in 5-10 minutes instead of wasting 30 or more minutes doing it by hand.
Now they call this vacuum as "steam vac" but there really is not steam. If you put boiling water in the water receptacle it might be steamy, but there is no heater in this vacuum. I'd call it more of a wet vac. It does have very good sucking power and gets my carpets pretty dry. The dirty water tank gets full of very dirty water, so I know the vacuum is doing a decent job.
As for the stain removing abilities, I think that depends more on the type of stain and the type of liquid cleanser that you are using. I didn't find the Hoover brand to be too great. It was fine for general carpet cleaning, but not so good on stains.
What's not good about this carpet vac is that if I leave the detergent in the receptacle when it's not in use, it leaks and makes a gummy mess. So, I have stopped adding any detergent to the machine unless I'm doing a whole room. I mostly use this machine for cleaning up after my dogs and kids. I first suck up the liquid that's in the stain and then I use a different brand of stain remover, like Kids N Pets or Woolite or Oxyclean on the stain. I let that sit for a while and then I suck it up with the vacuum and rinse it several times. It's just easier this way then filling up the detergent receptacle each time. The stains come out, but eventually some of them show up again. I repeat this process on my bad stains every few months when they make a reappearance.
I've had my carpets professionally cleaned as well and it never fails, those darn stains show up again after a few months.
All in all though, I'm pleased with this vacuum. Makes my life easier while I have these messy creatures living with me.
Measures approximately 20 by 12 by 44-inch; 1-year limited warranty. 8-Feet hose; removable tool caddy; powered handheld tool for upholstery and stair...More at Amazon
Features: Equipped with a powerful 12 amp motor this easy-to-use machine cleans carpets by applying scrubbing and removing hot tap water and cleani...More at Newegg.com
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