Customer Reviews

Hoover F7220-900 SteamVac V2

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(26)

 

 

We just purchaserd a new home and upon arrival things were not in good shape. The house was filthy and we needed to do something to get things on track. I ran out and bought the Hoover Steam Vac V2. After talking to a person who works with carpet for a living, we took some advice and avoided using any detergent when cleaning. We used only the HOT water from the Vac to dislodge the dirt. Apparently the detergent leaves residue behind that can actually ATTRACT more dirt. Using the water-only approach worked like a champ (If you want to use dtergent, the rinse mode of the V2 claims to remove most residue).

This is the best cleaning tool I have ever purchased. It did an amazing job on all our cparpets, and the house looks like new again. I would HIGHLY recommend this tool to anyone with high-traffic carpets, espcecially those with kids running on them.

I received the Hoover F7220-900 for Christmas and I was busting at the seams to get home and try it out. I have a dog that doesn't like going outside when it's raining, so I spend a lot of time on my hands and knees with my Dirt Devil Spot Scrubber (which, btw, is a wonderful little device for small spills and such).

I started cleaning in the frontroom where Skeeter likes to leave her mark and went over it several times and then cleaned into the adjacent dining room and I was thrilled with the results. I had to empty the catch tank several times, but I didn't find that to be any more of a hassle than any other carpet cleaners that I've used. I recommend going over it a second time with just the water rinse because it does remove a lot of detergent that you think you got out the first time. My front room and dining room carpets looked great, which is quite a feat, since that area is actually designated as my 2-year-old's playroom and my carpet is light tan.

Then I moved on to the living room. Let me preface this by saying, we LIVE in the living room. When the little one first started eating solid food, we would pull her highchair out into the living room and feed her, and let me tell you, it shows! We also have weekly spills of all sorts and the dogs leave their mark anytime the backyard has the tiniest patch of mud in it.

Anyway, I moved all the furniture out and started up the V2 and it made the appropriate noises, but the brushes had stopped spinning. Normally, I would open the thing up and tinker with it to see if I can ascertain the problem, but the Hoover is built so that you have no choice but to let a professional work on it. So, I went to the Hoover website, found my designated warranty service center and took it in. This was about a month ago and they have yet to "get the parts" from Hoover. It's bad enough that I only cleaned about 150 square feet of carpet before it broke down, but I was then told (in not so many words) that because it's a warranty job, that the service center feels that it's not a priority.

My experience with this product obviously doesn't reflect everyone's opinion, but I have a feeling that the shabby treatment I have thus far received from the warranty department, would be a common one. The Hoover F7220 SteamVac V2 worked wonderfully while it worked, but so far I can whole-heartedly say that 150 square feet of clean carpet is not worth.

I have had a Bissel Pro-heat for about 2 years. New models still have not changed the features that drive me nuts. The tanks leak, I had to cut off the attachment hose, it kept falling down, and it randomly stops working. We cleaned our carpets 2 days ago with the Bissel, and then used the hoover today. The Hoover brought up black water! The carpets look better now than they ever did with the Bissel. Also, the carpets are mostly dry in about 2 hours without opening every window in the house.

The only things I could complain about with the hoover are:
1. The attachment hose seems unstable (like it might fall out eventually), but at least it can be removed, at stored on a clothes hanger!
2. The 1 gallon tank, same as all the others, gets used up quickly. (Don't quite know how you could solve that problem easily)

Overall, I am very impressed with the Hoover Steamvac V2.

I got this unit to replace my big green clean machine, which is a back breaker everytime i use it, not to mention a real workout.
so i decided to give my back a rest, and what a difference!
Although it isn't self propelled, this unit isnt nearly as heavy as the Hoover Windtunnel vacuum. With the self propel option off, that's heavy!
I was a little hesitant with the 5 spinheads, afterall, the bristles are not that stiff, that made my wonder just how effective is it a cleaning carpets? Well, it did the job just fine, and i think it reached the base of the carpet, unlike other cleaners that just wet and work on the top part of the carpet, pushing dirt down.
The rinse option works great. I recommend that if you are a little heavy with the soap, just fill the clean water tank up with hot water, and no soap, to ensure you get all soap up and go over all areas until the carpet is almost dry.
Also another tip, after having my motor in the big green replaced for the second time, a repairman told me after each time i use the machine, to rinse out all compartments, fill with hot water and then fill the bath tub up with hot water.
run the clean water out of the sprayer section until there is no evidence of soap and then put the wand into the tub, sucking in all the hot water. This cleans both motors, the spray motor that has soap residue in it after every use, amd also the suction, to ensure there isn't any soapy dirt left in the motor. Cleaning both motors/compartments will reduce breakage.
motor replacement is the most common maintenance, because of a build up of soap in the motors.
So FYI.
also read the other reviews about the hose storage.
I recommend you hang the hose up after using the machine to allow it to air dry, to prevent a mildew buildup inside the hose. Also, rinse all used parts out/off with hot water to also make sure there is no soap biuldup/residue.

The machine is a little pricey, but if you consider the cost to have your carpets professionally done, it isn't so bad.
Also, you don't know where the carpet cleaner was last.
My friend with 50 cats in her house uses a carpet cleaning service, think about that next time you call to have your carpets cleaned. Leaving the carpet so wet cannot be good, the pad, under the carpet holds onto the moisture alot longer than the carpet, and in time, will develop a musty odor, if not mildew and mold.
So there are alot of advantages to owning your own machine.
Lastly, be stingy with the soap. it doesnt take a lot of soap to clean the carpet, Be sure to rinse the carpet and furniture thoroughly, a build of soap will cause discoloration to the furniture and carpet, not to mention a sticky residue and feeling.

consumer reports rated this carpet cleaner it's Best Buy, citing the features, the dual bucket design, long cord and hose, and of course the 12 Amps of power provides ample suction.
Consumer reports recommends a professional service over personal carpet cleaners, but i disagree.
Why spend hundreds of dollars every yr to have somebody bring in a machine, when you can do it yourself, and also they leave the carpet too wet, and you don't know where they were last, or how clean and how well their equipment is maintained.

Hopefully the next model of V2 will be self propelled, but if not, its no big deal.
I didn't buy the Bissell model because i was not keen on the dual bag in a bucket design, this hoover unit holds twice the amount of water, allow for easy cleanup and storage, and backs this machine with a one-yr warranty.
the price is a little steep but think of the savings after you use it 2-3 times.

This machine does wonders! First off, I have used a Steamvac SpinScrub before, but when I saw this model in the stores I just new it was for me! The manual rinse was a big plus, it does a great job of cleaning the floors and removing all the solution that was left over. It also seems to have more suction than the non V2 steamers. Stains that I could never get out with my other steamvac were gone in no time with this machine! My carpets dried in at least half the time, and the hard floors were dry in no time. I love the see-through tanks, and not to mention the whole look of the cleaner itself! It just looks sharp, and performs sharp.
I completely understand what everyone is talking about when they mention the hose falling off of its rack in the back. After fiddling with it, I discovered that if your hose rack is loosly hanging it is because you don't have it attached correctly. It has to hook on both the top and bottom. You have to attach it from the top and then the bottom will attach fine. Once I got it attached that sucker doesn't move an inch! It makes a real difference. Also, I took it into my local vac shop to have the machine looked at because it was leaking and he told me you're not to store the machine with water in it at all. He told me to remove all the water from the three tanks, and to squeeze the trigger a couple of times to get the water out of the trigger so it doesn't leak into the motor and damage the motor. Ever since then it hasn't leaked a bit!
I was a little skeptical to purchase this machine as it looked so cheap, but after running the machine throughout my house and keeping it out for little jobs due to my kitties. It is a must have for anyone with a pet!

I cannot express my disappointment with this unit and with Hoover.

First, the good points:

1) The SteamVac V2 cleans extremely well. It is a very powerful unit with a wide cleaning path and the trademark scrubbing brushes. Hoover made took a good idea from the original SteamVac and improved on it by adding an extra bush.

2) The extra long cord allows for entire room and even multi-room cleaning without having to move a plug around. The handheld tools perform adequetely.

3) The unit is loaded with power -- so much so that the lights in one room actually flickered when I turned on the SteamVac V2.

Now, the problems:

1) The wet tanks are made of very cheap plastic. They feel flimsy to the touch and can be hard to snap into place on the handle.

2) The rubber washers in the wet tanks can and do fall out on occasion -- resulting in either the dirty water or the clean water splashing all over the unit and the rug. This is how my unit was put out of commission. One of the washers is held into place by a spring. The spring snapped -- which broke a rubber nozzle -- which meant the unit could no longer hold clean water. Attempts to get a replacement nozzle failed.

3) Even when the tanks were inserted properly, they still leaked onto the unit.

4) The smaller cleaning solution tank is entirely inadequate for the job.

Overall, it was enough of a disappointment that I didn't even want to get the unit repaired at a Hoover factory repair center.

When it worked, it worked great -- freshly cleaned carpets practically shined. Unfortunately, the engineering and design of this unit suffered.

When I am shopping for new things, I frequently check out the reviews here at Amazon.com, and I thought I would leave one to hopefully help someone else.

My first Hoover steam cleaner was the SteamVac Delux. I have 3 dogs and 6 cats.....between all of them, accidents are no stranger in our house. My SteamVac Delux was a real trooper...it survived 5 years of HARD work before it had finally had enough.

To replace the SteamVac Delux, I purchased the SteamVac V2 in June. It performed wonderfully for about 3-4 months, then I noticed that the rotating brushes were no longer rotating. I took it to a local repair center to be fixed and then we were back in business.

About 3 weeks later it started to have a steady stream of water running off of the pedal in the back that releases the machine from the upright position. It made such a mess...things were clean in front of the machine, but I constantly had a puddle behind the machine that I had to clean up after the clean water bucket was empty. The external toggle fell off of the power switch, too. I dealth with it for as long as I could before taking it back to the repair shop two weeks ago. The repair shop called last week to tell me that #1, "Hoover really missed the mark with this unit." They proceeded to tell me that they have seen a large number of these units through their shop, all with generally the same problems. Because of that, places like Wal-mart and K-Mart are replacing the units without question! #2, They told me that the "motor is shot" and that the "bearings are all dried out. It cannot be repaired to be any more functional than it is now."

Given the champion performance of my first SteamVac Delux, I have been SOOOOOO disappointed with the SteamVac V2. It does not come close to living up to the Hoover name or reputation.

I'd give this steamVac a higher rating if it didn't leak. I'm going to return mine for another unit, maybe I just received a lemon the first time.

things i like:
1. pretty easy to assemble
2. did an excellent job cleaning up after pets and heavy traffic on an off-white carpet
3. water and soap containers are easy to fill/empty, handles on the water containers make them easy to transport
4. size of water containers is enough to do about 250 square feet of moderately soiled carpet
5. clear intake and tanks makes it easy to see how much water is being sucked up
6. two modes: wash and rinse

things i don't like:
1. cheap feel to the parts, although in some respects this probably keeps the unit relatively light
2. short attachment hose made cleaning the stairs really cumbersome
3. suction on the attachment for cleaning stairs wasn't great, it took a long time for them to dry as a result
4. leaking:
- the unit leaked some when it was in a reclined position as i was using it on the carpets (enough to be annoying but not enough that this was a huge problem)
- the unit also leaked when i was using the attachment hose, primarily from the clean water source tank but i also noticed some of the dirty water spraying out (this was a quite a bit of leaking, i had a puddle under the unit when i was finished)
- i filled the unit with clean water and left it alone, when i came back about 45 minutes later the entire tank of clean water had leaked out, fortunately it was in my garage

I will be very happy if the new unit doesn't leak, because overall this steamVac did a great job in its first run.

I purchase this unit for doing spot cleaning in the house and the floor mats of the cars/truck. I had to put the unit into action shortly after it arrived when I knocked over a can of Code Red MD soda trying to answer a phone the other afternoon. The unit required a little assembly, but it only took a couple of minutes. I could pretty much assemble and operate the unit without really needing to read the manual. It goes together well and is easy to see how to fill the hot water from your sink (no on board heater) and where to put the soap. I was able to clean the up the red soda with no trouble. I went ahead and cleaned more the carpet in the house. The unit operated well and did a pretty good job. I got a little carried away with spray so it took overnight to dry. It is completely controllable; I just used the trigger a little too much. The basic brush and the small upholstery brush all worked well.

The reason that I did not give the unit five stars was because the water can cool quickly since you fill it at the tap and the installation of the water tank can cause some water to be released from the values on the bottom if you do not have it aligned correctly as you and installing it after filling. I cannot compare it to a professional unit since I have not rented one in years, but this unit is a lot easier to operate since it is all on unit and it ready when you are, especially if you spill something in the living room while the wife is out shopping. Overall I like the unit and it is a good value for the money.

I usually wouldn't take the time to write a review of a product, but I'd like to save other people from going through the same difficulty I have.

The Hoover V2 seemed to be a good carpet cleaner. It received good reviews from Consumer Reports. Unfortunately, however, the CR reviews do not take the machine's durability into consideration. After 3 uses, the clean water tank cracked. The valves at the bottom of the clean water tank conceal the problem. However, upon removing them, you can see that the EXTREMELY thin plastic forms stress cracks. These cracks grow and multiply across the opening for the valve until one day you notice water pouring from your machine across your carpet.

There's no way to correct it or even prevent it. If you use this cleaner enough, you will eventually have cracks in the clean water tank. The replacement tank costs $59 -- 1/4 of what I paid for the cleaner originally. I'm going to check our other products today. I can assure you, it will not be a Hoover.