[tim handley]

 Im after another toy!!    i was looking at getting a rotovac 360i, they looked brill, i love the idea of a rotary type agitator, connected up to the portable so its spraying solution down, agitating/scrubbing and extracting at the same time.... and the little clear section that shows the dirt going up looks brill for the client to see as well as to let you see whats occuring........
however, i was put off the 360 i by chatting two a couple of suppliers whos opinions/knowledge i trust and respect.! I gather there are reliability issues/build quality issues with the rotovac......  my question is,  does another machine exist similar to the 360i?
One that does a similar job but wont  need all the parts replacing on a regular basis???   does anybody have a 360i and has had no problems with it???

[Carpet Dawg]

That zipper wand from the states looks pretty good, also has a clear tube.

Other companies also make scrubbing type wands. There's Ashbys
http://www.carpet-cleaning-equipment.co.uk/carpet-wands-power-brushes-powered-carpet-cleaning-heads-c-5_21_211.html

And you might be able to pick up a second hand Extracta power brush. Here's one in action https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blixBc2HBqo

[tim handley]

thanks for that mr Dawg.............     

[Carpet Dawg]

Thing with these power brushes (and you'll have the same issue with the rotovac) is that you can't get right into the edges and corners, so you'll have to go over again with a hand tool or wand thus costing more time. You could charge for this extra restorative step though... Plus you'll need an extra plug socket which can sometimes be a pain.

Having said all that. Better to spend it on new toys than give it to the tax man eh!  

[tim handley]

dead right... or even worse, to the missus..............

[tim handley]

and i need an extra socket for my pro 35 and for my floor mac.... not a major problem. got a magma heater coming on monday/tues day, ill need another socket for that... no worries....

[Steve_Knight]

Who imports the Zipper in the UK?

[Ian Harper]

Tim

What value does this give your customers that they are not already getting? I would invest in something that does, like making your own spotters. Once you buy in bulk all the bottle and labels they can cost as low as £1 each a saving on having them done by others.   with a lifetime free refill they keep you in contact with old customer a win win for both of you. its a great excuse to call them up to find out if they need a refill.

[Buckland]

Steve - the zipper does not seem to have an importer as far as I can find out - I'd expect it to be close 800 to a grand when someone takes the plunge and imports a load.

As regards the OP and the comments about Rotovac - the one thing you can say about them is the build quality is superb or even outstanding and better than most companies in the EU for instance - I'm thinking here of a lot of the so-called pro (mostly yellow) stuff from chermany and stuff from Italy etc

On certain jobs you will really thank the day you bought a rotovac it just depends how many of that sort of job you get

I know after a long couple of days on this job I was glad of a bit of a rest at the controls of a rotovac!

https://youtu.be/o4HPEtNPEZw?t=1m45s

[*Hector*]

Yo Dave... After watching that, I need to pop down and show you how to work a rotary properly.. 

 

[tim handley]

Buckland  iwas under the impression the build quality was not so good and that parts needed replacing all the time??
The machine itself looks great, i like the concept.......... but i dont want to be ordering parts all the time.......

[Buckland]

Hector - you very fonny man (sometimes) no seriousl;y I don't think of the RV as a rosary or even rotary more of an extraction tool really! Actually I am doing a lot more proper muck spreading these days, sometimes I even feel happy about the jobs! But I never got that humongous hotel function rooms job I mentioned to you - they trashed perfectly good carpet and installed wooden floors which will probably cost them a lot more to renovate clean when it looks poop as it will - the wooden floor salesman did a better job than the carpet cleaning salesman.

No tim the two RVs I have are well made things with good mechanics and electrics - and spares are easy to get if you need them

[CleanerCarpets]

The Zipper wand looks a great bit of kit - back saving and no extra electric cable like the power wands

I enquired with them about getting one shipped in - they quote $400 (USD) for carriage - then there will be import duty on top

Works well though by the looks of it -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUzHV1-g6cQ

[tim handley]

zipper looks brilliat, but its expensive aint it??

[Mike Halliday]

From what I've seen the zipper is just a glorified wand, what's special about it? ........It just sprays and sucks

[Dave_Lee]

Yes Mike, it is little more than the first extraction tool that I had, 35 years ago,  the original Stimvac Drag Wand, with double vac slots. Heavy and all  it does is spray and suck, no agitation.
Dave

[Mark_Jubb]

A friend of mine has one and he thinks it's a great piece of kit.
He even keeps threatening to let me borrow it, but I'm still waiting on that.   

[Steve_Knight]

A friend of mine has one and he thinks it's a great piece of kit.
He even keeps threatening to let me borrow it, but I'm still waiting on that.   

Hi Mark

Can you let me know who it is as Im keen to get his views on it.

Cheers Steve