cleaning my carpet around the tank

[nbsdsailor]

I have a 75g reef in my living room and I plan to clean the carpet soon. I have heard that there are some carpet cleaning solutions that have vapors that can crash a tank. Does anyone know which products to stay away from? I will also be turning my skimmer off to decrease the amount of vapors that get mixed into the tank. Is there any other equip that I will want to turn off until the room is dry?

[bertoni]

I'd try having some fans going to move the air. I have never done this, so I have no idea what specific products might be an issue. Do you have any specific products in mind?

[nbsdsailor]

I have a bottle of resolve pet steam or a bottle of bissell 2x that I can use.

[SushiGirl]

Just use hot water. I bought a carpet cleaner years ago, used the "cleaner" stuff in it until it was gone, then found out hot water works better (I don't remember where I got that recommendation, too long ago), because it doesn't leave a film on the carpet that attracts dirt. If you ever use resolve on a spot, then find it keeps coming back, it's because it leaves sticky stuff in that area, and dirt attaches to it.

[agreeive?fish]

+10000 what sushigirl said

personaly i take 5g of hot water and a scub brush get on my hands and knees and spead the water out(using a big cup) and scrub the carpet until the whole room is done then i only use my carpet cleaner as the water suction machine, you will be amazed at what you pull out of your carpet that way comapared to just using the machine to apply and suck up the water and as sushi girl stated the carpet cleaners leave a film that attracts dirt..a marketing ploy to sell more cleaning agent because your carpet looks clean(surface clean) and smells perfumed so it tricks your mind into believing the product did a wonderful job at cleaning your carpet so the next time your carpet looks dirty (with the aid of the cleaning product used) you run out and buy more cleaner

and i have one of if not the best shampooers on the market and i pull way more crap out of my carpet using my method described above than using the shampooer as the sole means of cleaning the carpet and i learned this method by accident when my wifes indoor dog lost bladder control and had to have several surgeries to fix the genetic issue....

[nbsdsailor]

Hmmm, thanks for the advice. I am going to try the scrubbing with hot water idea. Thanks!

[agreeive?fish]

nbsdsailor

i just reread my post and it seems i forgot to say

it will take more than 5g of water to do each room because the carpet is gonna soak up water big time and you will need to use a fan to help in drying the carpet after the cleaning...and it might take a good 2 days for the carpet to dry... the diffrence is your cleaning the whole carpet not just the surface

[SushiGirl]

Scrubbing with a brush can be avoided depending on what kind of carpet cleaner device you have. The ones with the standard "beater brush" like a regular vacuum cleaner don't work very well, and the ones that just suck (no brushes) don't work very well either. Mine is a Hoover and it has 5 brushes in it that rotate, so I can even clean tile/linoleum with it & it doesn't take days to dry, as you're cleaning the carpet and not soaking the pad beneath. It was the best $$ I ever spent LOL. The only thing I don't like about mine is the little hand attachment doesn't have brushes. Those came out the next year after I bought mine. I bought mine in 1999 I think. Great investment!

[Ninjapotamus]

turn off your skimmer when you clean and you should be fine. let the room air a day or two then turn it back on. simple

[Onedeadbob]

Add vinegar to the hot water instead of carpet cleaning solution; it disinfects and helps with any pet odors; tip given to me from a professional carpet cleaner.

[travis32]

I had my 55g reef going while the carpets were cleaned by professionals. I did the full pet treatment and mold / mildew treatment (due to spilling 30 gallons of RODI water on my living room carpet.. Don't ask... )

I didn't suffer a single loss before, during or after.... I was concerned about it, but they came while I was at work and couldn't do a thing about it!

[bertoni]

Hot water or vinegar both sound like a good approach to try. I suspect the standard cleaners will be okay with good ventilation, as far as the fish go.

[EdKruzel]

Add vinegar to the hot water instead of carpet cleaning solution; it disinfects and helps with any pet odors; tip given to me from a professional carpet cleaner.

Vinegar is great. You can also use a cup of ammonia to a gallon of hot water as well.

My father used pickling salt and a stiff brush to remove stains and clean carpets; rub it in dry and vacuum. Leaves the rug looking new.

[bertoni]

More home cleaning tips from RC. :)