The Best Floor Cleaners for Cleaning-Obsessed Pet Parents
Bissell offers a wide range of cleaning products designed to target pet messes on hardwood and tile surfaces, plus upholstery, stairs and even your car's interior. I tested out three of their most popular cleaning machines; here's what I thought.
Meet my mess-makers (and my hearts!), Sophie and Phoebe. Don't let their innocent faces and overall pretty poodle-ness fool you, these girls love a chipmunk hunt or muddy romp in the rain just as much as any pup.
As a helicopter dog mom, who’s also a total clean freak, it really was only a matter of time until simply vacuuming along with spot cleaning (on my hands and knees — ouch!) wouldn’t be enough, and I’d need to kick my cleaning routine up a notch to ensure my floors and upholstery stayed in tip-top shape. Enter, the Bissell family of pet-specific cleaners. Clearly, the design team at Bissell understands dog moms like me who are obsessed with both their furkids and a squeaky-clean home. They generously sent three of their pet-centric products to me to test, and below are my honest opinions.
First, let me say that these tools were all easy to assemble and use and left my floors, rugs and upholstery looking amazing(!) and smelling great, so you can't go wrong with any of these machines; however, each model offers different utility and customized tools — read my recs, below, to pick the machine that'll work best for your cleaning needs.
Best for Quick Clean-ups
Easier to store than the full-size, upright models, this compact version still packs in a lot of cleaning power. At just 16 pounds, it’s easy to carry to hard-to-reach areas, like stairs, and can even be used for cleaning stains from your car’s upholstery or floor mats. Plus, the 5-foot-long hose and extra-long power cord (20-feet!) let you achieve a pro-style clean almost anywhere in your home, even areas that are a bit of a stretch from an electrical outlet.
Best for Hardwood + Tile
A dream for cleaning both hard (wood and tile) and soft surfaces (rugs and carpet), this model is lighter than Bissell's larger multitaskers like the ProHeat 2X and is … wait for it … CORDLESS! As someone whose biggest complaint about my current vacuum (a Dyson pet model) is the thrice-blasted cord, I'm over the moon with this cordless model that makes it oh-so-easy to tackle multiple messes throughout my home, from area rugs to carpet to tile and sealed hardwood, without plugging and unplugging in each room. Cordless design = genius!
Best for a Pro-Grade, Deep Clean
Seriously, what stain can't this machine tackle?! I used it to remove muddy pawprints and senior dog slip-ups in a rug that I'd previously treated multiple times with spray cleaners and paper towels. This deep-cleaning machine handily removed the telltale shadows of my failed previous cleaning attempts and left my rug looking like new. Bonus: My machine came with cleaning solution that includes Scotchgard's stain-repelling technology so my now like-new rug will keep its good looks through the inevitable future stains.
Cleaning Essentials
Of course, as great as these machines are, using the proper solution is key. Luckily, Bissell includes small versions of the recommended cleaning solutions with each machine but, once you get started cleaning, you're going to want to give every stained surface in your home a refresh so you might want to stock up on these full-size versions.
And, as the dog mom to rescue pups and a staunch supporter of #adoptdontshop, I'm thrilled that Bissell has not only put so much research and development into creating products specifically for pet parents but also actively advocates for pet adoption and supports spay/neuter and microchipping services through their Bissell Pet Foundation. So, you can feel good knowing that each purchase of a Bissell product also helps pet rescues and animal welfare groups around the country. Clean floors + helping homeless pets = Win/Win!
Getty Images/Nataba
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