Shark CarpetXpert StainStriker Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner, 3 Tools, EX201

Color me impressed. My business switched office space and the existing berber carpet needed a good cleaning. Keep in mind that this wasn't a home with children or pets -- just an office with a low volume of visitors and residual dirt tracked in from the gravel lot after people made it past 2 welcome mats. My past experience with consumer "steam cleaners" wasn't great - they spit out a lot of water, did a half-hearted job at cleaning and really couldn't compare at all with a professional steam clean. But 2 things convinced me to buy this -- 1) I've had great experience with a Shark handheld that has done the best of any vacuum I've owned over the years and 2) the cost of this unit was equal to a single pro carpet cleaning session. Figured worse case we'd have a carpet cleaner on hand and we had some upholstery that needed to be tackled anyway (past experience with hiring pros to steam clean upholstered furniture felt like we paid a premium for 5 min effort per chair and they looked about the same before / after) Wow. This "carpet xpert" does a great job, easily rivaling a professional steam clean, at least in the application we used. Cleaner arrived almost fully assembled. Took a brief moment to snap on handle and push in hose. Pre- vacuumed as instructed before firing it up. (cleaner is not designed to pick up hair, crumbs, paper shards, etc. so you'll need to make sure they're appropriately vacuumed up with a clear surface to start). Operation was pretty intuitive (I did glance at instructions) with the exception of the hand held unit (the "stain striker" hand held piece has 2 buttons - not at all clear which was for spraying and which for drying. But the main unit has a very simple push forward to spray, pull back to extract/dry. The "deep clean" choice on the machine is a bit gimmicky since there is no "standard clean" option, just "deep clean" but okay, I won't dock for that. The unit does hesitate to power off - my machine takes a full second or two after the power off button is depressed before it actually turns off. So much of a delay that I actually tried at first to depress the power button more than once with the effect that I kept turning it back on before it turned off. For now I'm assuming that's not a genuine issue but I'll repost if it becomes a problem. Haven't used it on upholstery yet, but did a great job tackling the berber carpet. The water came out... disgusting. Which is exactly what one wants from a carpet cleaning machine. Oh, unit warned about water temp not exceeding 140. I didn't much follow warnings about water temperature because I'm not really sure what 140 degree water feels like exactly or how much below this maximum is intended. I know boiling is ... well 212 degrees F and 100 F is bath water. And most water heaters max at 140. But the warnings intent or preferred operational temp wasn't clear. Should the water used be... as hot as can come out of the tap? mildly warmer than bathwater? much warmer than bathwater just not hot enough to burn you? And what exactly happens above the 140 degree cut off? Does the unit melt? or is it just a warning so that people don't burn themselves? I decided to go a notch below the max temp out of the faucet to get nice hot water, hot enough to work the dirt loose but not so hot that I'd get burnt if it spilled on me and that seemed to work.

Overall, this is an excellent carpet cleaner. The actual cleaning power is exceptional! Definitely cleans better than previous home carpet cleaners we have had, and seems to just as good of a job as the "rent for a day" models available. All the attachments you need are included and are easy to use. Now for the pro/con situation. This carpet cleaner is much lighter weight and easier to maneuver than other brands, so that's a pro. However, that seems to be achieved by making the water tanks small. I did not mind the small tanks at all while just using the hose attachment to clean upholstery. I felt like I got a very reasonable amount of run time in before I had to change tanks. However, when I switched to floor mode to clean a medium size area rug, I had to empty/refill the tanks multiple times. So that it the con. I will say, my rug had not been cleaned for a while and required multiple passes. I do think the lighter weight and ease of use of the machine will make me more inclined to clean the carpets more frequently, in which case they should be less dirty. If the carpets are less dirty, they should require less wet passes, which should make the smaller tanks less of an issue. I originally had this listed as another "con" but after further internet investigation I found a solution to my complaint. Based on the paper instruction, I was under the impression that "quick dry" mode was for lightly soiled carpets and delivered less cleaning solution. However "quick dry" mode is actually suction only! So after you clean in "deep clean" mode, make sure you switch over to "quick dry" mode and do some additional passes to suck further moisture out of your carpets! Overall, the cleaning power and suction of this machine are outstanding and far outweigh any complaint about tank size. The tank size is both a pro and a con because, while it requires frequent emptying/refilling in floor cleaning mode, it also makes the machine lightweight and maneuverable.

I never write reviews even if I love/like a product. I had to once I used this Shark carpet cleaner. My carpet was in desperate need of cleaning. My recent carpet cleaner was not doing the job. When I was finished cleaning my carpet I was so amazed on how new my worn out carpet looked! I was also amazed on how dry it was! This machine was worth the buy. It is also extremely easy and quick to take apart and clean! The only thing I don't like about this product is the placment of the hose. It doesn't stay in place. I also haven't used the hose yet due to not having to yet and also mine didn't come with a hose cleaner. Not sure why because that is a great thing to have. I will probably reach out to the company and ask why. Other than that I recommend this carpet cleaner. I also want to mention the reason for me having one is due to the old dog I have and the new puppy that is being potty trained.

First, I regard my 4 star rating as a strong endorsement. And as a consumer-grade machine, it is very good. It still is not in the same class as a commercial machine. For that reason, I don't think it would be realistic to expect the EX201 to hold up to day-in, day-out work. But for typical home use where carpets might be cleaned once every year or so, it should give very long service. The unit is fairly heavy (18 pounds), so it is not flimsy plastic junk. It is heavier than our Shark Navigator vacuum cleaner. I just completed an initial cleaning of approximately 400 square feet of a combined living and dining room wall to wall carpet. This carpet is a short-nap "Berber" type, which is relatively easy to clean. I do not have experience using this machine with a longer nap carpet, which may be more challenging to clean. The cleaning took about 3 hours, which including an initial vacuuming and moving furniture back and forth. The unit has strong suction for removing the cleaning fluid and leaving the carpet only somewhat damp. It is useful to carefully read the instructions that recommend two back and forth passes on each area. Each forward pass dispenses cleaning fluid and each backward pass removes it. After that and initial double pass of an area, it helps to switch to suction-only mode to remove as much dampness as possible. One of the possible limitations of this machine is the dispensing and collection tanks are relatively small and require frequent emptying and re-filling. The 400 square feet took about 6 emptying and refill cycles. This is only a minor annoyance, but not difficult. Collection tank emptying is easy as is refilling of the dispenser tank and adding Shark's Deep Clean Formula to warm water. Shark also sells a separate oxygen cleaner that goes undiluted into a separate small tank and is used only for spot cleaning. The normal deep clean formula is added to the large tank for general cleaning. One of the strong aspects of this well-built machine is it more than pays for itself on first use compared to hiring a professional carpet cleaner. While the professional cleaning may be a bit deeper than the Shark, the savings with Shark are pretty significant. I estimate that the cost of the amount Deep Clean Pro Formula for the 400 square feet was approximately $15. It leaves a slight citrus scent on the carpet, which we found pleasant and not over-powering. The 12 ounces that came with unit is only enough for a small area, so anyone buying this, should purchase one or more 48 ounce bottles of concentrates. The oxygen cleaner is not needed except for spot cleaning. The Shark cleaning concentrate is fairly expensive (about 40 cents an ounce). There are many other brands of concentrate at much lower prices (as low as 10 cents an ounce). Many of those get good reviews, so I will probably try something more economical even though Shark recommends you not use any other brand.

Just do it! (Mid-pile carpet, stairs, car seats, upholstery.... is there anything it doesnt do and do WELL for that matter.) Step 1 order, also order replacement Shark soap and Shark oxidizer, receive shipment & open box Step 2 READ ALL THE DIRECTIONS THOROUGHLY. I get that this part sucks and borders an anxiety attack for some of us. Just do it! You will be glad you did. Follow one step at a time. Step 3 VACUUM whatever you are cleaning first with your vacuum cleaner. Step 4 Start it up, follow the directions and give it a go. *Try it out on a less important spot first, to get a feel for how long to spray/dry/etc. (The longer you sit over an area the wetter it gets but it really does dry reasonably fast.) Step 5 use a fan to circulate air and run the heater or A/C let dry for a few hours. VIOLA! All clean! Praise Jesus! P.S. Just as the instructions state... some users prefer to perform a "rinse" cycle after a cleaning. From what I experienced, if you have a heavily soiled area you might clean that area, then use the "dry" setting, and let the area completely, until fully dry. Then perform another cleaning cycle or rinse, followed by a "dry" cycle again, once again allowing it to fully dry. This will help prevent over saturation of the carpet or padding below, or too deep below the upholstery surface of the item you're cleaning while still achieving a fully clean rug/carpet/chair/auto seats/etc. If you really need to get it wet and get in there, I found if I went over that section using the hose attachment to suck up the majority of the liquid and then came back with the "dry" setting to suck up the remaining liquid that worked pretty great too! The hand-held spot treater does a great job and will not overly wet an area if you spray with a fast sweeping motion over the area, repeating to reach the desired saturation. Follow the instructions and take your time sucking up the liquid. Does a great job! ** Only drawback... the pet attachment must remain FLAT or nearly flat, or it will not work right. So if you need to scrub pet-"ick"/human-"ick", then first use the regular hose attachment to spray that area. Then TURN OFFFFF the carpet cleaner and use the scrubber on the standard hose attachment on the spot you are treating. After giving it a good scrub, remove the standard hose attachment. Then attach the pet hose attachment. Now, turn on the vacuum and spray/suck up the liquid until clean. Also, keep an eye on the "FULL" line on the pet resevoir to make sure the pet-"ick" doesn't end up getting in your vacuum hose making it stink. After you are done, follow the instructions and take nearly every part off. It is SUPER EASY & STRAIGHT FORWARD! You can clean nearly every part with some warm dish soap in the TUB/BUCKET/SINK/DRIVEWAY/ETC. with a scrub brush/sponge/rag/running water/hose. It seems really complicated the first time you run it, but after that first use & cleaning you will find it is SUPER SIMPLE to use & clean.

This Shark is easy to use, lightweight and really does a good job at cleaning the carpets & rugs we have. Some of our stains were older as the old Bissel couldn't get these out after multiple treatments. With a kid & 2 dogs in the house I like to keep things clean, but it's harder. This Shark has 2 cleaner solutions that are used and there is no holding the button or pressing a lever to distribute the cleaner. You load it up & it does the work for you. It pulls up the water & solution up VERY well! The carpets do not stay soaking wet & dry faster. You do not have to go over the area multiple times to pull up the wet as it's done the job usually on the first pass. It is not as noisy as some carpet cleaners we have had in the past. It is not heavy or hard to push/pull. When cleaning a room, both tanks may need to be changed at about half the room on deep clean. I was glad to see all of the yucky brown ick that it pulled out of our carpets and we vacuum often. The carpets are softer and definitely fresher. This Shark seems pretty durable; will see over time. There are just the right amount of attachments to do the chairs & sofa as well. I shopped around and even on the Shark website the price Amazon had beat their 'sale'. It arrived quickly & very well packaged.

I thought this would be a slam dunk because I love shark vacuums and it had good reviews. I was replacing my Bissell, which I liked but it was getting old and not getting the suction it used to. But I hate this carpet cleaner. There's so much I hate about it. The top tank holding the cleaning water is so small I have to refill it twice just for one small room. The head of the cleaner is pretty narrow. To be fair, the measurements are on the description so that shouldn't be a surprise but it made more of a difference than I was expecting. The suction is terrible. It will suck up satisfyingly dirty, gross water. However, I'll go through two whole tanks of clean water before I have to empty the dirty water, meaning I'm putting significantly more water on my carpet than I'm getting out. I know that's inevitable, but this is extreme- it's like a 4:1 ratio of water on my carpet vs water out. And I use the quick dry mode after deep clean, every time. I might as well just dump soapy water on my carpet and walk away. But the very worst part is the process you have to go through to clean this thing. I have dogs so I clean it after each use to avoid dog hair build up. It's impossible to remove the cleaning head from the unit so I take off the cover and the brush roll, and then set the whole darn thing in my walk in shower to rinse the part the brush roll sits in. If I didn't have a walk in shower I don't know what I would do, probably just throw it away. Lastly, the method of using the cleaning formula is wasteful. You pre-mix the formula right in the clean water tank, so if you don't use up the entire last tank you will have to dump it out/waste it. Plus, there's a second oxy boost type formula in a separate container, and much less of that is dispensed, so at least it's in a separate container so it's not wasted. But the two formulas are sold together- so even though I'm going through the first formula like hotcakes, I have to keep buying the second formula. This is maybe the third or fourth carpet cleaner I've owned. I didn't realize I was picky about carpet cleaners until this one exposed everything I can hate about a carpet cleaner.

definitely recommend all things shark they never disappoint this is very easy to put together and take apart to clean i cleaned my whole apartments floors it pulled up soo much

I would like to inform you that the item I ordered was defective. As soon as I turned it on for the first time, it started producing smoke and a strong burning smell came from the wires. This was very dangerous and unacceptable. This is the worst quality product I have ever received, and I am concerned about safety. I would like to return the item and receive a full refund as soon as possible. Please arrange the return collection and confirm the refund process. Thank you.