Looking for a good vacuum?? An Objective Review of the Kenmore Progressive 35922 Vacuum Cleaner

With over 15 years of experience in the cleaning business, I have had the opportunity to test out many makes and models of vacuums.  There has been a lot written about the Kenmore Progressive Upright Bagged Vacuum.  Model #35922. It also is available as Model #35923, which is the same vacuum, just a 5 foot longer cord.

So, what makes this vacuum so special was the question on my mind, and after using the vacuum, my objective opinion is the Progressive is just a good overall vacuum.  It has easy to use features and is a BAGGED vacuum.  If you are a BAGLESS lover, Kenmore makes a bagless version of the same vacuum as well, however, from what I have witnessed, the bagged version has slightly more power.

First, the PRO’s

• Excellent power. The Kenmore Progressive is very powerful, it has a 12 amp motor that produces excellent suction for very tough cleaning jobs including picking up pet hair.  In our experience we used this on a trashed apartment and it picked up everything without a problem.
• No Belt. The drive system on this vacuum has no belt, it is driven by a motor which spins the brush on the bottom of the vacuum.  This eliminates the need for changing belts.  The lack of belt is nice if there is an obstruction like a paperclip or sock, the vacuum with automatically turn off.  A reset button is on the front of the vacuum so all you have to doo is clear the obstruction, reset the button and you are ready to vacuum again.
• Push button controls- I added this to both pro’s and con’s.  Although the push button controls make it easy to switch between carpet and bare floor, as well as letting you adjust the suction control, they can have a tendency to stick and wear out. We noticed this after about 9 months of use, but after service, we have not had any problems.
• Long reach hose- Over 15 feet of on board hose makes this vacuum easy to use for dusting, floor cleaning and crevices in upholstery without tipping the vacuum over during use. We were able to add a few extensions and dust the ledges of a very high mantle without problem, or the use of a ladder.
• Brushroll control- With a direct drive system, the brushroll can be turned on or off during use, or adjusted for hardfloor vacuuming.  The brushroll can be turned on, off or at low speed when working on bare floor or area rugs. Probably one of the best vacuums we have used on bare floor.
• On-board tools- A full set of onboard tools is included with the vacuum including an extension wand, dusting brush, turbo tool for pet hair, crevice tool and floor vacuuming tool.
• Price- We bought ours for around $250.00, which is much lower than other residential vacuums of this quality.
• Stays clean- With a HEPA bag and filter that you can change very easily, the Kenmore stays very clean and does get full of dust inside the vacuum bag area.

Second, the CON’s

• Weight. With the additional weight of the direct drive system, the Kenmore Progressive Upright is one of the heavier uprights at around 14 pounds.  If you require a lighter vacuum, this is not it.
• Pushbutton controls- As I mentioned before, these buttons could wear out or need service over time.
• No metal on the bottom. The plastic bottom is standard on most residential vacuums, including this one.  We wished this one would be the exception with a metal bottom.
• Edge cleaning. Due to the direct drive system, edge cleaning is more difficult since you cannot get right up to corners or edges easily.

Overall, a very good, solid vacuum. In our personal experience, we used this vacuum daily without any problem, the weight was noticeable, but not so much that it hindered performance or our ability to use the vacuum.  The bag is easy to change and priced fairly compared to other vacuums.  We have only changed the HEPA filter once in over 12 months of use.

So, do we recommend this vacuum, the answer is yes, in many cases.  If you have a great deal of carpet, this vacuum is a good choice.  If you have a small apartment, you might want to look at a different vacuum.

Also, if you have pets, this vacuum is the way to go.  If you are a senior citizen with health issues, you might struggle with the weight, otherwise, the Kenmore Progressive Upright is a good choice for most home vacuuming needs.

Mike George has 15 years in the cleaning and maintenance business, testing hundreds of vacuums both for residential and commercial use. Mr. George has detailed photos of this vacuum including current discount pricing on the Kenmore Progressive 35922 along with links to bags for the  vacuum, visit the review website,

St. Cloud Apartment renter’s Move-Out Report:

St. Cloud area renter’s here is how to save money on carpet cleaning before you move

If you are like most renters in the St. Cloud area, you are required by your management company or landlord to get your carpet professionally cleaned before you move out of your apartment. It pays to set this service up yourself, you can sometimes save up to 50% or more of what the management company or landlord will charge. So, how do you know who to choose, there are about 35 carpet cleaning companies in the St. Cloud area!

Here are a few tips:

1. Some companies are equipped to do empty apartments and some are not. The difference is price. You will normally pay more for company that usually does mostly homes than a company that has experience cleaning empty apartments. You can get a good job done at a fair price by company that can clean empty apartments efficiently without sacrificing quality. Our company, happens to do both. We have cleaned hundreds of homes and apartments throughout the area.

2. Up-front pricing. Usually, empty apartments can be priced over the phone if you give the company you are calling enough information. If you are shopping for the best price by phone, be sure to give ALL the details about the size of your apartment and if there are any spots or very soiled areas. This can affect the price. A carpet with spots, stains and traffic lanes will take longer to clean than a carpet without these problems. Most people understand that more time equals more money. Hiding details about the condition of the carpet just means that when the cleaning technician gets to your apartment, the price could be more. Our company has very easy to understand promotions for renters depending on if you have a 1, 2 or 3 bedroom apartment.

3. Sometimes bigger is better. A larger company can have more resources available to make sure they can fit you into the schedule at the right time for your move-out. Our company employs many technicians that are at your disposal to get the job done.
   

   Hopefully, these tips will help you save money during your apartment move-out.

   If you would like to see our current company promotions visit our site at: www.stcloudmncarpetcleaning.com or give us a call directly at 320-310-4900.
   

Carpet Cleaning-The case of heavy soil…Can it get clean???

Many times, we run into situations of very high traffic areas that have light colored carpet. In most cases these are walk-through areas near the entry and exit points of homes. In our latest carpet cleaning job, we encountered a home that has a living room between the entry point, and is a walk-through area to the kitchen and the deck going out the back. The living room obviously has furniture, so a path is created in which there is no other option to walk through the home. This creates a carpet that looks like this:

So, you can see that it is very ground in traffic soil, along with a lot of wear. Our process for cleaning this included, pre-treating the carpet with a soil and oil releasing detergent, a wait time of 15 minutes for the chemicals to work, followed by deep agitation with a carpet grooming tool. Then, we extract and rinse the carpet. We repeated the process twice, and did a final cleaning and grooming. Here was the end result:

Better? Absolutely. Perfect? No. This is an example of what cleaning can and cannot do. You can clean and rinse a carpet but if the carpet fiber has a good amount of wear, there is not much you can do since the fiber has broken down and is naturally more dull than the surrounding carpet under the furniture that has not had any traffic at all.  If you have any questions feel free to give us a call for your cleaning project at 320-310-4900 or visit St. Cloud Carpet Cleaners.

Eye Opening Carpet Cleaning Report for St Cloud MN residents: Watch out for this…

I found a really good video that sums up a lot of the crazy stuff that goes on in the carpet cleaning business.  The video is an investigation of carpet cleaning companies that use a very old coupon tactic to get into a person’s home and then try to upsell and switch the customer into more expensive services that should be included anyway.

My only complaint about this report is the fact that customers should have some common sense, there is just no way any company could survive charging $10 bucks per room for carpet cleaning.

So, here is the video:

A common question about carpet cleaning

A common question I get is”

“How long will it take for the carpet to dry?”

The answer to this is it depends.  Most of our technicians use the hot water extraction method for cleaning.  This means that there will be the element of drying involved.  This can take as little as a few hours depending on a few factors:

1. Air circulation- Air moving over the carpet will speed up evaporation and drying.  The moisture must have a way to get out either a window, exhaust fan or other means.  Rooms that have closed doors or poor air circulation make dry times longer.

2. Humidity- Less humidity in the home will make dry times faster.  More humidity makes carpet dry slower.  You can reduce humidity by turning on central air if it MORE humid outside than inside or opening windows if it is LESS humid outside than inside.

3. Temps: Cool temps make longer dry times, warm (dry) air takes less time to dry.  This can be accomplished by turning up the thermostat on cold days.

You can contact the experts at Abra Carpet Cleaning of St. Cloud MN for more information or call 320-310-4900.

Saving money in today’s economy, the value of getting your carpet cleaned:Good news for St. Cloud MN homeowners

A friend of mine mentioned that it might be a good idea to put up an article about the real value of getting your carpet cleaned rather than getting it replaced.  He is right.  Often, we as professionals overlook the importance of cleaning and maintenance in the eyes of the homeowner, since we do so much of it every day.

There have been many, many jobs, to numerous to count, in which the homeowner would have replaced the carpet if it did not get clean- and after cleaning, decided to keep the carpet.  This is probably the tip of the iceberg.  Estimates show that there are roughly 40% of homeowners that DO NOT clean their carpet at all, for whatever reason.  Carpet is expensive, and is one of the most expensive furnishings in your home.  Periodic cleaning can keep it looking good, for a long time.

This can save you money in the short term and the long term, here is why.  If you have a carpet that you think is just too dirty and needs replacement, give us a call.  Our opinion and estimate is free.  If you were to invest $150-$250 to get the carpet cleaned and it looks great, rather than getting it replaced for 5 to 10 times that amount, you made a great investment! If you are still unsure, have the company clean a few areas first to see the results.

That is what happened in the example below, the homeowner was unsure whether to keep the hallway runners, steps and carpet in the living and dining room.  Facing a $1000 plus replacement cost bill, we told the homeowner why not let us try cleaning the runners and the steps.  As you can see, we cleaned up the runners nicely, and we got the green light to clean the rest of the carpet.  The homeowner saved a great deal of money and we got to clean the whole house.

So, if you have a question, leave a comment below or call 320-310-4900 (local call in the St. Cloud MN area)  You can also see our site at Abra Carpet Cleaning of St. Cloud.

Can You Get Good Carpet Cleaning Service In St. Cloud Nowdays??

Carpet Cleaning Service St Cloud MN

One of the complaints you hear everywhere these days is the fact that it is very hard to find good service whether it is for carpet cleaning or some other service.  Why is that?

I think from a business owners perspective, we have become too concerned over production and getting the job done over making sure the customer is happy.  The fast pace of society seems to be squeezing out service.  I think there will always be a demand for good service.  Just look around.  If you had your carpets cleaned before, or had some other service performed, when was the last time you got a letter, email or phone call to follow up after the job?  But, if you look at retail, they are always following up, sending you mail or email etc.  Most of the time retail service is just as bad, but at least they care enough to follow up.

Yes, sometimes it is hard to tell if the client  is REALLY happy with service, even if you ask, or are they just being friendly to keep the peace.

Many years ago, when I started cleaning carpets myself, I decided to start sending out anonymous comment cards.  In the beginning, I had a very high opinion of myself and my cleaning, only to find many clients with less than stellar reviews!

This was hard to swallow, but the comments told the story.  They said I was very friendly and for the most part satisfied their cleaning needs.  The complaints were from small things like not cleaning under a chair, or leaving the lights on in a bedroom, or a wet spot on the kitchen tile.  All very easy to remedy complaints.

So, from my experience, this is what good service amounts to, which is to find a way to make sure that the client is REALLY happy.

Our company, ABRA Carpet Cleaning, has developed a 3rd party system devoted to client satisfaction.  We want clients for life, and we do this by calling you, the client, to make sure after the job that all the details are taken care of.  Plus, our carpet cleaners are independent technicians, giving them much more incentive to make sure things are cleaned to your satisfaction. For more information you can call 320-310-4900.

Welcome to our blog on carpet cleaning St. Cloud MN

This is our first post!  We will be adding a number of great articles and information that you can use to keep your carpet and upholstery looking great.  Our company, Abra Carpet Cleaning, will be beginning operations by September of this year.   The purpose of our blog is to update you on the following:

1. Techniques that you, the homeowner, can use to keep your carpet and furnishings looking great.

2. Ideas that will keep your carpet looking great for years.

3.  Updates on our company.

Thanks again, we look forward to providing you information and service here in St. Cloud!