How much does it cost to steam clean carpet?

If you found yourself on this page, you must be searching for local carpet cleaners and wondering how much it will cost.
Like you find in many industries, every professional carpet cleaning company is priced different. Some carpet cleaners will charge by the room, and some charge by the square foot.
It will also depend on how they clean the carpet. The old saying is 100% true that you will get what you pay for. Here is a short run down on the options you'll have depending on your location.
#1 Renting a carpet machine
The least expensive option is renting a carpet shampooer from a store like Walmart, Home Depot or Walmart. The machine itself may not be a lot to rent, but there are other factors to seriously consider. See more here about why it can cost you more in the long run.
There are a lot of downsides to carpet shampooers. One of the main issues is that it usually leaves your carpet very very wet. When the carpet fibers are not wet and have the cleaning chemicals remaining, it attracts all the dirt, debris and skin cells floating in your home. This can make your carpet actually dirtier than it was to start with. Many people complain about the same issue with upholstery.
There's just o way to get the same suction power to remove the water and cleaning products out of a retail machine that you get with the professional equipment you'll see described under #3 Hot water extraction.
#2 "Dry" Carpet Cleaning
Dry cleaning is really a low moisture process that involves applying a cleaning product to the carpet, and then using a machine with a rotating pad to remove it. It tends to be a really quick process and less expensive, but it still doesn't have the power to remove the deep dirt and debris closer to the pad in the same way a truck mount machine does.
Depending on the company, technician and machine you can be left a lot with chemicals in your carpet that are not safe for your children or pets to be breathing in.
A similar type of cleaning is common in more commercial environments using a process called encapsulation. The cleaning product is applied, the pads scrub in and clean, and the product "encapsulates" the dirt. It dries in about 30 minutes and is then vacuumed up to completely remove the debris.
#3 Hot water extraction aka Carpet Steam Cleaning
At Mr. Steam Carpet cleaning, we believe this hot water extraction gets you the best clean possible in your home. When done correctly, it doesn't leave your carpet wet for days and removes allergens like pollen, pet dander and dust mites. We also believe the products used should be both safe for your family and pets, effective in removing odors and stains, and not leave your carpet crunchy or feeling like chemicals are being left behind. Because they aren't.
What is carpet steam cleaning?
Hot water extraction is a process that uses a machine called a Truck Mount. This machine is typically pretty large and "mounted" or installed in a vehicle, like a cargo van. Afte