Choose solution for your machine
Use a cleaning solution that your portable carpet cleaner’s maker approves for that model. Match the bottle to the machine type and follow the tank marks and manual. “Carpet shampoo” alone is not enough information.
A bottle intended for an upright cleaner, a spray-on stain treatment and a portable-machine formula are not automatically interchangeable. BISSELL specifically separates upright and portable formulas and warns that using an upright formula in a portable can cause excess foam. A stain remover used on the fabric is not necessarily meant to go in the tank.
BISSELL Little Green ProHeat and Max Pet
The ProHeat 2513G and Max Pet 3860 manuals call for BISSELL formulas intended for portable cleaners. Use the water and formula fill marks for your model. Do not borrow a mixing ratio from a different Little Green just because the bottles or tanks look similar.
The ProHeat’s Heatwave feature does not remove the need to fill it correctly. Follow its manual’s water-temperature limit; do not boil or microwave the water. Check the exact model number before following an online filling demonstration.
Hoover CleanSlate Plus
For the CleanSlate Plus FH14050, use a Hoover cleaning fluid intended for the appliance. Check whether the bottle is concentrated and follow the matching manual, bottle and tank instructions. Do not assume that a capful or the same dilution used in a BISSELL will be correct.
Shark StainStriker HairPro
The PX251’s PX250-series guide uses two separate formula tanks. Add water and Deep Clean Pet formula to the marked lines in the CarpetXpert tank. OXY Multiplier goes in the separate StainStriker tank as directed.
Do not combine both formulas in one tank or treat the second tank as another water tank. The guide permits warm water but rules out very hot, boiling or microwaved water. Match replacement formulas to the exact machine rather than buying by bottle color.
Fill and mix it correctly
- Find the model number on the machine, then open its supplied manual or the maker’s support page.
- Check the bottle’s compatible machines and whether it needs dilution. Follow the instructions together; if they conflict, ask the maker before using it.
- Switch off and unplug the cleaner before removing or filling tanks. Measure to the correct marks without adding extra concentrate.
- Secure the cap and tank before use. For furniture, also check that its care instructions allow the solution and cleaning method.
There is no single safe mixing ratio for every portable cleaner. Tank size, concentrate strength and separate-formula systems differ. More concentrate is not an established way to improve cleaning.
What to leave out of the tank
Do not substitute dish soap, laundry detergent, bleach, vinegar or another household cleaner for the solution specified by your manual. Do not add a booster or mix products unless the instructions for that machine explicitly allow it.
Plain water used for a model’s rinse routine is a separate question from what belongs in the tank during stain cleaning. Follow the appropriate rinse steps in our after-use cleanup guide, rather than assume every model uses the same process.
If you already filled a tank with the wrong product, turn off and unplug the cleaner. Check the manual or contact the maker before running it. Avoid trying to fix the mixture by adding another cleaner.