Spotting machines - how often do you use it?

Jim Pemberton

MB Exclusive.
Joined
Oct 7, 2006
Messages
12,092
Name
Jim Pemberton
Stain Magic and its close relatives are all hard on cellulose fibers and may cause the damage you are seeing.

Oxidizers take time to work and show their full effect and you'll rarely if ever see an immediate result, especially on old, overall staining such as you had on that mattress.

Call me if you want the long winded detailed answer Steve, I don't want to anesthetize the rest of the posters and lurkers here this early in the day :biggrin:
 

jcooper

Member
Joined
Oct 7, 2006
Messages
3,232
Location
IL
Name
Jerry Cooper
Stain Magic and its close relatives are all hard on cellulose fibers and may cause the damage you are seeing.

Unfortunately, I found out even 3% peroxide can weaken white cotton. Put some 3% on a blood stain, didn't change all of it. Went back to try more and it split as soon as I toweled the area.:hopeless:
 

Chet

Member
Joined
Oct 14, 2008
Messages
140
Location
Detroit Land
Name
Chet Sadowski
http://www.jondon.com/priority-manufacturing-ez-portable-spot-extractor-with-heat.html

I would only order one with heat, because they lack vacuum and pressure and heat helps if you're trying to remove a difficult stain. The vacuum isn't as bad as you would think because of the short vacuum hose. We have 2 of the above units with heat, 1 without heat, and a mighty without heat. I would have one on every truck but the technicians will use them when they should use the Truckmount. My only concern is when our techs use them on a paid service call when they should fire up the Truckmount and pull hoses. They are awesome for removing a wick back spot, or cleaning lightly soiled furniture. They are also very handy to take on commercial encap jobs just in case there's a stubborn spill or spot you want to extract.
They are easy to use but have had some loose fittings and other minor issues, we always put a double layer moving blanket under them because they seem to develop leaks at the most inopportune times. The mighty is more difficult to work on but it's smaller and more compact.
We don't usually make money with them, they are more for saving time, which ultimately saves us money. There are exceptions of making money with them. Yesterday we had some fabric panels over radiators under window sills in a high end office. Perfect for something like this, lightly soiled, a few scuff marks and it would have been a long difficult pull.

PS It would have been perfect tonight, I found some dried up vomit in the corner of the basement carpet from my dog. I had to use my shop vac, while they have very good vacuum, after the spot cleaning and extracting I had to use a spray bottle filled with hot water for my rinse. Then I had to clean the shop vac out completely so it wouldn't stink up the place. 10 minutes spot cleaning, 10 minutes shop vac cleaning, and now I have to let the shop vac dry out before I can put it together.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mikey P

Scott S.

Supportive Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2008
Messages
3,225
Location
PA
Name
Scott
You will find clean free to be awesome stuff when your cleaning places with residue issues, or some of the nasty apartments we all run into.
today i decided to clean my mattress with the spotter i bought. of course i get a sewer backup call too but i did the mattress first.
im one of those guys who turns a mattress yellow from sweat or whatever, my dad was the same way.
ive cleaned it several times, well quite a bit actually. i shouldnt go into details.
anyway, i started with clean free through the machine and nothing else. helped the yellow a little but not good enough. i then mixed up some OSR and pre sprayed with that. i let it dwell and scrubbed with a nylon brush. again, better but not good enough.
tried some brown out and it was a little better but not good enough.
i added some sodium metabisulfite i bought on amazon that i premixed and added to the clean free. getting better results now but still see the yellow.
i went ahead and cleaned the whole thing and sprayed some stain magic on it and wiped some solvent protector on it using a clean white towel.
stains were still visible but i went ahead and put a fan on it and went and cleaned the sewer back up.

got home and the mattress is cleaner than its ever been and nearly dry. i was only gone about an hour an a half or two.

it took me about an hour and a half or so to clean the mattress since i was experimenting but think i know what i will do in the future.
im loving this spotter! and the clean free. its my first experience with it.
just wanted to share this and was wondering how others would approach cleaning a mattress with this issue? not really dirty, no urine or anything, just a yellowing problem.
ill have to look later to see whos protector it was.
 

Mikey P

Administrator
Joined
Oct 6, 2006
Messages
112,715
Location
The High Chapperal
What do you think of this EDIC unit?


http://www.edic-usa.com/index.php/products/auto-detailing/bravo-339bh-ht.html

bravo-3-gallon-horz_1_600x600.jpg


The 19-pound Bravo™ spotter delivers incredible efficiency and power in a deceptively small package. Featuring a 1500 watt, in-tank heater that delivers high heat in minutes, the Bravo™ is ideal for spotting and quick cleaning of small carpeted areas, upholstery, and auto interiors. Includes 8' hose assembly and 1039AC stainless steel upholstery tool.
  • Unique molded-in holders carry spray bottle for greater ease.
  • Large six-inch wheels and a transport handle plus cord wrap assembly make it a snap to wheel about.
  • Quickly opens up for easy servicing and repair.
  • Large porthole on recovery tank allows easy access for odor-free maintenance.
  • 1500 Watt, in-tank heater delivers 150 degree heat.
  • Stainless steel heating element.
  • Carry-along handle increases portability.
  • Small and light enough to carry with one hand.
  • Includes 8' hose assembly and stainless steel upholstery tool #1039AC
 

encapman

Member
Joined
Oct 7, 2006
Messages
2,260
Location
St Petersburg, FL
Name
Rick Gelinas
gecko-1.jpg



Our Gecko Spotter has been a popular little extractor.
It's an excellent unit for spots and upholstery!
Built solidly. And it's priced right too - under $400 :biggrin:

http://www.excellent-supply.com/Gecko-Spot-Upholstery-Extractor_p_249.html


Its small footprint is nice to have on the truck for someone who does a lot of encap/VLM.
It's there whenever you need an extractor for an occasional spotting job or for upholstery.
 
Last edited:

encapman

Member
Joined
Oct 7, 2006
Messages
2,260
Location
St Petersburg, FL
Name
Rick Gelinas
P.S. The handle also slides out and the inline-skate wheels roll smoothly.
Makes it easy to pull the Gecko from spot to spot, or chair to chair.

gecko-2.jpg
 

steve_64

Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2012
Messages
13,371
thought i had a slow day, just two apartments. but i got two calls just now. one is dog pee on one stair and the other is a blood spot wick back from yesterday.

im taking the spotter and going to work.

im cleaning the whole house with the dog pee next week. a good customer i see about 3 or 4 times a year. the other is a new client from an OLD phone book.
 
  • Like
Reactions: J Scott W

J Scott W

Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2006
Messages
4,061
Location
Shelbyville TN
Name
Jeffrey Scott Warrington
What features would you like to see in a spotting tool? Would improved vacuum be an advantage?
Would you use a spotting tool for upholstery as well? Stairs? Auto interiors?
 
Back
Top Bottom