Bissell Spotlifter Powerbrush Handheld Deep Cleaner, 1716B

by Bissell

Product Features

• Continuous suction and brushing to target stains and spots on carpet
• Motorized dual brush roll
• Manual spray trigger lets you control cleaning solution
• Brush cartridge removes for clean-up and maintenance
• 16 by 5.5 by 8.88 inches; weighs 4.1 pounds

Product Details

Product Manual [600kb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 18.5 x 9.8 x 7.4 inches ; 7 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 7.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
• ASIN: B00008URR8
• Item model number: 1716B
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (154 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,202 in Home & Kitchen (See Top 100 in Home & Kitchen)

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Traditional vacuums handle dust and dirt, but some spots and stains call for more rigorous measures. The Bissell Spotlifter Powerbrush deep cleaner targets just such problems with powerful rotating brushes and a tank of cleaning solution. During operation, continuous suction ensures that surfaces don’t get too wet and that dirt and stains are sucked up quickly and efficiently. The machine includes a manual spray trigger, so you can decide how much solution to use depending on the surface and the damage.

The Spotlifter is a fairly maneuverable appliance--about the same to handle as the average large hand vacuum. Filling and emptying the separate clean and dirty water tanks is notably simple--they just slide off the back end of the machine one at a time. The brush roll cartridge is also removable for easy upkeep or replacement of the brushes. The cleaner comes with an 8-ounce starter bottle of Little Green Cleaning Solution. Bissell also includes a circuit interrupting safety device and a one-year warranty.

Product Description

Bissell Spotlifter Powerbrush Handheld Deep Cleaner - the quickest way to clean spots and spills

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

421 of 427 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Works for me!, July 28, 2003

By 

Sandi Hultman "SandiDandi" (Coon Rapids, Minnesota United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bissell Spotlifter Powerbrush Handheld Deep Cleaner, 1716B (Kitchen)

We struggled between buying this unit and the comperable Dirt Devil offering, when we saw them at the local discount stores. Liking the stiffer dual-rotating beater-bar style brushes on the Bissell better than the much softer brushes on the spinning disk the Dirt Devil had, we settled on the Bissell. At the store, the only negative factor for the Bissell appeared to be it's one-year warranty, versus the two-years offered with the Dirt Devil.

We did not consider a cordless model, presuming they would be less powerful. We also did not consider a model without scrub brushes.

I used our new Bissell briefly last night on a couple of recent pet stains, and it did a good job. Today, I used it on all the rest of the pet stains on our light living room carpet, many of which were old. Almost all of them lifted well.

The Bissell clean tank will hold a full 8 oz. (3-4 oz. cleaning product and 4 oz. water), compared to the Dirt Devil that only holds a total of 6 oz. It does a decent job of suctioning up liquid. Many with the Dirt Devil seem to complain that it's suction is inadequate, and we did test its suction at the store and agree that it is weak.

The manual doesn't document the total clean tank size, how many ounces the "Formula" fill line is at, or how many the "Water" fill line is at, but I measured them. This way I know the proper dilution, if I choose to mix some of the cleaning product into a regular spray bottle for pretreating convenience, without hauling the heavier unit around. (They suggest leaving the pretreat on for 3-5 minutes.)

Note that once you've filled the clean tank, if you have a lot left over you do not have to empty it. You can save it for next time. (The disadvantage to doing this is that you would no longer have warm water to help you clean better.)

The 20' cord was more than adequate for us to get to the areas we needed to clean. Others complain that the Dirt Devil's cord is too big, but I'm not sure if that means diameter or length. The cord on the Bissell flows nicely. It isn't stiff and doesn't stay too curled up to be able to be used easily. It even had a convenient velcro strap that stays attached, to help you manage the cord for storage.

The unit is really easy to fill, operate and clean. Both the clean tank and the dirty tank detach and reattach very easily. Even the beater brush cartridge removes easily for cleaning. It only took me a few minutes to have it ready for storage again. Dirt Devil users complain that reattaching a tank is not always easy.

This is not a full size steam cleaner and I don't think it's fair to expect it to behave like one. It's great for the purpose it's designed for. Be sure to vacuum your capet before using it, if you haven't done so recently. This will minimize the amount of hair etc. to clean out of the brushes when you are finished using the Bissell. I did not do this, and it still wasn't bad to clean out the brushes.

The unit has a solid and durable feel to it. Dirt Devil users seem to think that unit is flimsey and has an awkward manual solution/water sprayer.

I think the product works well and would recommend it over the Dirt Devil. I am happy with it

179 of 180 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One powerful little cleaner, June 3, 2003

By 

Samantha Rupinski (Oconomowoc, WI) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bissell Spotlifter Powerbrush Handheld Deep Cleaner, 1716B (Kitchen)

I have mostly hardwood in my home, but I do have a little bit of carpet, so I bought one of these for the small spots and spills. I have 3 kids and 2 dogs, so it seems that accidents are a daily occurence. I used this Spotlifter on some old pop stains that have been on the carpet for months, and it got them out no problem. I couldn't believe how well it worked and how dirty the water was that came out of my carpet. It worked so well that I decied to try it on my couch and chair, and it did a great job on them as well. Next stop was my car's interior, which was no small feat. It made my 6 year old minivan look and smell almost new. Buying this Spotlifter was definitely money well spent.

67 of 74 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Do not WASTE your money!, February 29, 2004

By 

Susan Shams (West Des Moines, IA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bissell Spotlifter Powerbrush Handheld Deep Cleaner, 1716B (Kitchen)

I feel bad about giving this review, but I must. This is the worst machine ever created. Let me say that I think Bissell has excellent quality machines (Little Green) but this is not one of them.

First of all, this machine has absolutely NO suction to it whatsoever. I managed to trigger out around a cup full of solution, and the spotlifter only 'sucked' 1/4 of it back up. My carpet was soaking wet. I had to lug out my Hoover Steamvac to suck up the rest of the water. Naturally, I thought I had a faulty spotlifter, so I exchanged it for another one. I got the SAME thing, a spotlifter without suction.

Secondly, the trigger mechanism is horrid. Instead of it releasing a steady stream of liquid, it is spray oriented, where you must continuously spray it like a spray bottle. That becomes extremely tiresome, and it actually hurts your hands, as when you 'try' to suction the liquid, you have to tilt the machine forward and it is very cumbersome and large.

All in all, I hated this machine. It was clunky and did not clean anything. It is horrifyingly loud for no reason. The rotating brushes actually mat the carpet to the floor. This is a very bad buy. If you are looking for something that is easy to use for those quick stains, buy the 'Little Green Clean Machine'. It is wonderful and has amazing suction. You actually get what you pay for.