Product Review: Resolve High Traffic Foam Carpet Cleaner

As the mother of two very messy youngsters, I’ve become somewhat of an expert on carpet cleaning. I’m the proud owner of a steam cleaner and I do use it regularly. But using a steam cleaner is a lot of work. It is big and awkward. I have to fill it with hot water and soap. Then after I’m done with it, I have to dump out that nasty water and clean the machine before putting it away. Desperate for something more time and energy efficient, I decided to try the Resolve High Traffic Foam Carpet Cleaner for some of the smaller messes.

Resolve has a full line of carpet cleaning products. If you have seen the advertisements on television for the high traffic foam, you’ve seen the dirty carpet in those high traffic areas compared to the cleaner carpet underneath an area rug. The claim for this product is that it can get your carpet looking like that cleaner carpet under the rug. For me, the problem areas are from the front entry hall through the living room and to the master bedroom.

The directions were pretty easy to follow. Just give the can a good shake and spray it on your carpet. From this point, you can follow one of two sets of directions. There is the manual labor way, which requires you to actually work the foam into the carpet with a damp sponge mop, and there is the self cleaning method, which doesn’t require you to do anything to it at all. After it has dried, you vacuum up the dried foam and loosened dirt.

I tried both methods. In the living room, where the carpet was a little less dingy looking, I tried the self cleaning method. The can says that it will cover about 168 square feet. I sprayed the carpet in our tiny living and let it dry. It had a nice, fresh scent. I vacuumed the area and evaluated the results. The carpet seemed a little cleaner, but I would say that this method is more for just freshening up your carpet. It left the carpet soft and clean smelling, but I didn’t notice a dramatic difference in the appearance.

In the problematic walk ways, I used the other directions. Not having a sponge mop, I actually used a damp towel. I figured it would give me the same results as if I used a mop. This took a lot longer and was certainly a workout! As stated in the directions, I rubbed the carpet in two different directions to make sure I worked the foam down into the carpet. Once dry, I vacuumed the dried foam and dirt. Again, the carpet smelled nice and was soft. This time, however, I noticed more of a difference in the cleanliness of the carpet. While it did not look like new carpet, it looked much cleaner than it did before. It no longer had that dirty “walk way” look to it. I was quite surprised!

The product also works to clean upholstery, but I did not try it on my microfiber couches. It is safe to use on wool and nylon, and is not recommended for use on velvet, silk, vinyl, leather, or those fabrics labeled “S” or “X” on the manufacturer’s cleanability label.

This product also does not harm wood furniture. If sprayed on wood, just wipe it off.

One thing that caught my eye about this product is that, not only is it safe to use on stain resistant carpet, it actually helps repel future stains. With kids, that is a big bonus. I need any little help I can get!

All in all, I would say that this is a fairly good product for cleaning carpet. It does not do the job quite as well as advertised, but it has some good qualities that make it a must have for moms. Anything that saves me time and energy and can do a half decent job is worth having in my house!