[lhayes]

Hi there,
I am looking for some advice. I have been in the cleaning business since 2007 and am now adding carpet cleaning. I need advice on choosing equipment. Should I go with a wand type machine, which requires more manual effort,  or a machine with rotating brushes underneath, which should cover a lot more area than a wand . Thanks

[Robin Ray]

You will find a wand type machine will be more versatile and actually less effort in most cases. The best thing to do is get on a course. It may seem unnecessary however there are many pitfalls which are not obvious at the outset. Most manufactures do courses as well as organisations such as the Nacca. I would advise going with Prochem initially as the courses are not that expensive but are good and they will teach you  a broad range of techniques. They also sell all the different types of machines so will advice what is best for your individual needs.

[Kev Loomes]

If your talking about a Rug Doctor or similar i.e. Truvox Hydromist Light/Compact etc etc (with brushes underneath) then forget it. Sorry to be blunt but thats how it is. If your considering a decent porty though as opposed to something like a Karcher etc then definitely go for that. Basically the more you invest in more powerful equipment - the better your cleaning will be, which will give you more chance of having repeat work and recommendations - the lifeblood of any business.

Depends what you want I guess, but what I would say is, start as you mean to go on.

[maxcampbell]

A "wand type machine" does not require more effort than a machine with rotating brushes underneath. The latter are either DIY crap, or huge machines to cover vast areas.