Meet The New Love Of My Life: Bissell Little Green {Update}

The following is my original review from 01/06/12.  There are some very important updates that I wanted to share, so I added them at the end of the post. 

Being a bit of an appliance hoarder ~ I would be ashamed to show you the inside of my closets.  This problem  applies to kitchen and household gadgets.  Since I am also an insomniac, late night TV infomercials could do terrible damage to my credit card bills too.  At our family gift exchange~ someone received a set of those plastic eggy things that you make hard-boiled eggs in without having to peel the shells.  I nearly wrestled her to the ground because I want them!  I have watched that same infomercial no less than 100 times in the last 6 months and resisted the urge to pick up the phone and order.  But I digress, this post was supposed to be about the new love of my life.  And here is how the love story began...

Once upon a time there was a Queen who married her college sweetheart.  Along came a tabby cat and a baby, in that order.  The cat still nearly outweighs the two year old so his messes nearly bring the Queen to the breaking point.  There is a reason why the Queen calls Miss G, Princess Destructo in her posts.  After years as a preschool teacher in a child-safe environment, Queen was unprepared for how much damage one cat and toddler could do in the natural home environment.  After years of scrubbing carpet messes that brought her to tears, yes tears, the Queen's cries for a carpet cleaner were met by the husband.  Two weeks before Christmas the kind husband trekked to the local Walmart to brave crowds.  The Holy Grail he was in search of was the Bissell Little Green on sale for $77.  He would not return empty-handed.  So after two visits to two different stores, the treasured Little Green was presented to the Queen.  No longer would she have to spend hours on her knees ~stain treating, scrubbing, and drying the carpet spots and stains that occur daily.  The Queen's new relationship is blessed with a date nearly every day.  And the royal home will live stain-free 'ever after...

So I am being a little dramatic about the carpet cleaning woes in my home.  The main thing I want to express is how much I love the performance of this Bissell Little Green.  We had rented a large Bissell cleaner from RONA over the Thanksgiving long weekend in October.  We spent two full days moving furniture and blasting our carpets in every room.  Thrilled with the results ~including fast drying time~ I have been coveting the Little Green ever since.  Hubs is a natural skeptic and a bit cheap.  He was convinced that the small domestic appliance would NOT live up to the demands of our home and the great results we got from the larger rental Bissell.

 We got a few early Christmas gift cards for Walmart and I volunteered to use mine on a Little Green.  Hubs   attitude softened and he agreed to give it a try.  In the end we went 50/50 on the purchase, each sacrificing a gift card to acquire the #1 gift on my Christmas list.  I actually haven't had a chance to try the Little Green myself. Hubs is an appliance hog and now rushes to clean up any spills or messes soon after they occur. I guess that is a good thing. What Queen could complain about that?

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Here is Hubs top five list of  reasons "Why Little Green Is The Best":

1. Size ~ It's compact with a long hose to reach corners and small spaces.
2. Suction ~ The hose doesn't lose suction. 
3. Timing ~ Fresh stains will come up easier, older stains require a few passes(2 or three applications of solution). 
4. Economical ~ Good price. Even if I had to spend full retail on this machine it would already be worth my money in the 3 weeks since I bought it.
5. Water Conservation ~ The amount of water used to clean up the stains is minimal.  The Clean Water tank can be reserved for next use. So you are not wasting water or cleaning solution.

Hubs final words of advice:

This cleaner is easy to use, complete with simple instructions and simple application of use. Even a girl can use it. (I will save the comments on that statement for another day... geesh....what a caveman!)

Pre-treating is good, but don't let the pre-treated spot hang around too long.  It will dis-colour your carpet and the dry stain will be harder to clean up.  Meaning you are using more solution and effort to clean it up. 

I haven't found the need to spend extra money on the special Pet Formula cleaner yet. The Original Formula is cleaning up the pet messes just fine.

I question whether the machine is going to stand up over time and use ~ The hose is flimsy, will there be replacement parts in a year or two?

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Post Update 08/01/12

The love affair with the Bissell Little Green only lasted 2 months.  Our first problems started in Feb/Mar.  Even though the instructions stated you can keep the clean water reservoir filled between uses- DON'T DO IT!  It leaks like a paper boat!  Bissell is fab to deal with when it comes to a customer service stand point. First they sent a new seal for the clean water tank, that didn't fix the leak, so the sent a whole new tank.  I'm still finding water under the unit, so will only be filling as needed. This takes the unit down a notch when I think of convenience. Having it filled and ready to use every time the kid and cat make a mess would be great.  Overall we don't regret buying it because it really does work well, we just can't use it the way we originally thought we could.

Another direct quote from Hubs:

"The only thing I really regret about the machine is how often I have to use it...no really...I wish the nozzle/scrub brush could come apart to clean the pet hair out of it better."

*This is not a sponsored post, nor is it endorsed by any of the Brands mentioned within.