I didn’t want to do it. I’ve heard horror stories about shampooing berber. Never have I had to do it, either, unless I’ve blanked it out of my retrievable memory. Long ago I switched out using commercial cleaner for laundry detergent (generally Tide) as a cheaper and just-as-effective alternative. The woes of oversudsing and having to dump out bubbles from the icky water receptor were… not so enjoyable, though.

That was before the days of low-sudsing HE detergent.

This time around I filled my wash container with Gain HE detergent (filled the cap between the 1 and 2 line mark) and 1/2 cup of white vinegar. It worked quite well, but there were some suds while I was filling. Not once, though, during cleaning the actual carpet did I have to stop and dump out the dirty water to get rid of over-sudsing.

If I was so inclined, I might just use hot water with vinegar and forgo the detergent, but I really needed that extra cleaning power this time around. I shampooed in the morning before work, and it was very well on its way to dry by the time I got home. And it smells so much better. My goal, though, is to get rid of the majority of carpeting in the house. So far I’ve successfully removed it from only one room, installing fake hardwood (installed by my father and I). And I am SO glad we did. In just tearing it out I was DISGUSTED by the dirt, crumbs, grit, stench and dust the carpet had collected over the years. I don’t regret getting rid of it one bit. The next room will either be the living room or the computer room. But… floor costs money and money doesn’t grow on trees, so we need to save up first.