Art Kelley said:
[quote="Steven Hoodlebrink":250w2912]There's only so much solid particulate a prespray can suspend and emulsify to be extracted.
Christ even a Rug Doctor recommends vacuuming the area throughly before cleaning.
Jesus, (Merry Christmas), we're not talking about a steam cleaner with a pathetic little vacuum motor. Two or three passes with a
Vortex wand with 18 flow should be sufficient for any of that loose stuff in the carpet. We can guess all we want but if we measured it (in real world situations) we would find no difference in the completed jobs.[/quote:250w2912]
This is what so many cleaners have been saying for years. And its bunk. You could have twice the truck of a V, you ain't getting that soil out wet! Some of that soil is SO fine, that the least bit of moisture will make it muddy and sticky. If you're going to flush that crap you better be prepared for 50 flow and a slow wand stroke, and even then I know you won't get it all.
Dry soil comes out much easier dry than wet! It just makes sense. And loose hairs! Get them wet and you can forget about high flow, wet hairs and lint is so damn sticky it takes multiple passes just to get it off the fibres. The only reason cleaners don't want to vacuum is that it takes extra time.
What I find so great about this thread is that its not just me saying this now. I started telling cleaners back in 95 to vacuum, they just looked at me like I was so FOS.
You can make the carpet LOOK just as clean, but it won't BE as clean.