anyone use a crb regularly?

[juniorc82]

I have some cash to toss in the wind and have been playin with the idea of getting a crb. I am very close to having a true 2 truck operation and thought a crb pre scrub followed by the wand would be the most effective way to get consistant results from an employee. I also think a crb would be less fatiguing than expect an employee to drag a 175 or rx20 up stairs several times a day or on every dirty one. But gosh after pricing the crb's I could pretty well buy a hoss to put on the other truck and run the rx20 on my truck. I am just trying to understand why a crb commands such a high price. For those dollars a good crb better last me 10 years. I paid 2 grand for a used rx20 and have no doubt Ill get ten years.....crb looks a lot less brawny than my beloved rx so I am skeptical.

 

[Mikey P]

Trying to get a tech to pull the brushes out and clean under the hood after every job will be tough. If you don't do the regular cleaning the rods/axels rust out.

Look for a 80 to 90 pound 175 imo.

 

[Mikey P]

That being said, we love our crb for stone and grout cleaning.

And real matted pile pre scrubbing

 

[dealtimeman]

We use crbs on almost all jobs. But as stated above you will need at least ten minutes extra per job cleaning the unit out. Taken cleaning to another level.

 

[juniorc82]

We use crbs on almost all jobs. But as stated above you will need at least ten minutes extra per job cleaning the unit out. Taken cleaning to another level.

how have you benefitted from it?

 

[carpetcleaner]

I have used my BrushPro on every job for the last year. After each job, it takes 1-2 minutes to pull the brushes off, wipe out, put the brushes back on. 5-10 minutes at the end of the day to give it a good cleaning with a stainless steel cleaner. They do seem to be over priced, but I don't have any idea what it would cost to design/build one.

I have a 175rpm that only got used on the heavily soiled ones. It was just too much trouble to bring it in on every job.

 

[FLYERMAN]

I have a CRB (Miele, I think is how you spell it) and I don't think scrubbing with it is anything like scrubbing with a 175. I have scrubbed with it enough times to know that if it needs to be scrubbed the 175 is the way to go. Now if you're ocd and scrub everything then a crb is the quick and easy way to do a scrub.

I really thought it was going to be the answer to my scrubbing worries but it was/is not. Now if it's dirty/nasty and you don't have a 175 the a crb is better than not scrubbing at all. But what do I know, only been in this for 24 years.

 

[AshleyMckendree]

Are there different brushes for different levels of agitation?
I just bought a whittaker 20" lomac on ebay, it looks to have worn out blue brushes, anyone have a source for where to buy them?

 

[Mark Saiger]

We have pretty loaded up vans with everything we could possibly need. We have a 10 inch CRB in each van and also a Rx20 in each van. The CRB comes out typically over the Rx20. We have had them for 3 years now without any problems of any nature. We also use pimped out 6 jet Prochem Titanium wands with our set ups. And the CRB are great on tile and grout as well as carpet.

 

[regarossa]

Are there different brushes for different levels of agitation?
I just bought a whittaker 20" lomac on ebay, it looks to have worn out blue brushes, anyone have a source for where to buy them?

Call Rick at excellent supply. He can get them.

Reg

 

[Steamin McFadden]

do not underestimate the power of a $300 ebay HOST machine. I sold mine awhile back and miss the heck out of it. It takes a little extra time to use it , but dramatic cuts down on wand time, ( basically one pass cleaning), makes for very good dry times as a result.

 

[Derek]

i never used the newer blue Host CRB's (Reliant is it?) but the older, cheaper CRB models that Andy mentioned above are GREAT for a light-weight, simple & effective pre-scrub for HWE.

just don't use it for anything else, like encap...it is complete garbage for encap. but yea pre-scrub to HWE it rocks from my experience to...a great tool and highly recommended!

i wonder how much better a heavy 175 is to this light-weight tool for pre-scrubbing...? due to the weight, a 175 must be a little better. but man the ease-of-use of those old Host machines is ridiculous.

 

[idreadnought]

I have 3 trucks that use the crb's everyday. For starters the rods will never rust because they are made out of aluminum or stainless. I have had a few maintenance type issues with them but never rusted rods.

For scrubbing carpet we use them on every job. We clean apartments up to very nice houses and it works great for both. On nasties the scrubbing helps a ton and on high end homes, the homeowners notice the difference the scrubbing alone makes and appreciates the quality of our work. being that they are only 42 pounds it is an easy and effective tool to use on every job.

The biggest issues i have had have been related to the techs that use them. If they are not cleaned regularly hairs will build up on the rod and push into the bearing damaging it eventually. Bearings are cheap but it is somewhat a hassle to change them. Other than that I still use my first crb i purchased used and it has been in service for 3 years.

 

[juniorc82]

Im lookin for ease of use. Im really thinking sending a tech blindly into a home with a 175 could end in disaster. Plus if it's light weight and easy to carry they will be more apt to use it

 

[Mikey P]

Don't be mistaken into thinking a crb can't do any damage. Weak or open seems, using the wrong brush on the wrong pile, sucking electric cords in etc..

 

[Desk Jockey]

Keep clear of PC cords and cables unless you enjoy digging them out of machine.

 

[BradFenstermaker]

I have been using a old Host machine for years. I have white brushes but the zebra will be my next brush. Its a combination of white and black, there most aggressive. Ask around at schools or large facilty's if they have 1 in the closet collecting dust. Host used to sale there systems everywhere.

 

[Total_Rookie]

Ordered me a Strong Dry TM4 yesterday. I previously had a sebo duo that I sold. Only to miss. Crb's bring up a lot of crud even after a good pre vac. Reminds me that, I'm going to have to dremmel out my hybrid GG.

 

[Ray Burnfield]

I'm still on first comment on cleaning out the brushes. It doesn't get any easier than pulling 2 rods out, taking a rag and wiping down the inside. Can be done in 3 minutes tops. I think taking off the brush of a 175 rpm is tougher and most users don't do that either.