With a Flick ... Trap Dirt and Toss It!
Written: Aug 14 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: lightweight, easy to use, has built-in hanger, disposable cleaning cartridges
Cons: for low-pile carpets only, not for hard flooring, disposable cartridges add to landfills
The Bottom Line: The Bottom Line disappeared. It was there ... then it wasn’t. Do you think the CarpetFlick scooped it up?
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| dlstewart's Full Review: The Swiffer CarpetFlick |
The moment I heard about the Swiffer CarpetFlick Sweeper, I knew I had to try it. This looked like an ideal easy-to-use cleaning tool to take care of small messes without having to drag out the vacuum cleaner. So how did it clean?
What’s In the Box
The Starter Kit cardboard box is a colorful eye-catching orange with yellow and green accents. A see-through window shows an intriguing glimpse of the CarpetFlick Sweeper.
The box contains:
* 1 sweeper head
* 4 poles to assemble the handle
* 1 package containing 4 cleaning cartridges
The sweeper head is all plastic. The pole pieces are constructed from a light-weight metal and plastic. It’s hard to believe that four cleaning cartridges are in the package. They are very flat and don’t look like they would be effective ... but looks are deceiving.
Assembly
Assembly instructions are included on a card that is inserted into the body of the sweeper head. The card says to “Remove Before Use”.
The pole was the hardest part to assemble since the instructions simply say, “Assemble handle into pole sections, and insert pole into sweeper.” I looked at the four sections of pole and wondered where to start.
I grabbed the handle part (silver metal and orange plastic) that has an oval opening at the end for hanging the sweeper when not in use. There are two metal poles with no orange plastic on them. I connected these two poles together and snapped them into the handle. The bottom piece of the pole is also silver metal and orange plastic with an orange button on it. I snapped this into the end of the other pole section. Ta Da! This assembled portion of the pole measures 43 1/2" long.
If a shorter pole is desired, leave out one of the central metal poles. The instructions don’t state to do this, but if a shorter pole is needed, this is an easy way to make the pole a shorter length.
The assembled pole section is then inserted into the rubberized shaft on the sweeper head. Line up the oval button on the pole with the hole on the shaft attached to the sweeper head. The sweeper head measures 8 1/8" long x 8" wide x 2 1/4" high. Now that the pole is attached to the sweeper head, the full length of the pole is 45" long.
Next, it is time to insert the cleaning cartridge. The cleaning cartridge is a piece of cardboard where both sides are sticky to the touch. The cleaning cartridges are incredibly thin. Peel the paper covering off both sides of the cartridge. The instructions say to slowly peel these paper pieces from the cartridge. After the papers are removed, insert the cleaning cartridge into the sweeper. The white side of the cartridge says “This Side Up”. The cartridge slides into the side of the sweeper head and is designed with a hole that slips over a small orange knob that helps anchor the cartridge in position.
When fully assembled, the cleaning unit looks something like a metal detector. Although, instead of detecting metal, this tool sweeps life’s every day messes. The box says this sweeper is designed to work on berber and cut pile carpets. The list on the back of the box says it picks up: crumbs, leaves, dirt, grass, glitter, fuzz. The way this unit is designed, it reminds me of a huge lint roller with a long handle.
The way the sweeper works is that the user pushes the sweeper over the carpet in a gliding motion. Larger items such as crumbs are “flicked” into the top portion of the sweeper. Things like hair and grass attach themselves to the sticky side of the cartridge bottom.
My Experiences
I couldn’t wait to try this Swiffer CarpetFlick Sweeper. I’m tall, and the handle is a good height for me. I like the rubberized grip on the underside of the handle; it’s comfortable to hold. The sweeper head has a swivel connector where the pole connects, so that this cleaner can swivel in all directions. The top of the sweeper is a see-through orange color so that one can see the items flicked into the top of the cleaning head.
I have cut pile carpets as well as a few throw rugs throughout the house. My main reason for wanting to try the CarpetFlick was to see how it cleaned in my sewing and craft area. No matter how hard I try to keep threads and beads off the floor, they manage to find their way to the carpet. The thread is pretty easy to locate, but I wanted a way to scoop it up without resorting to a vacuum cleaner. The beads have a habit of playing hide-n-seek and are often impossible to find on the carpet.
Unleashing the CarpetFlick, I glided it across the carpet in my sewing and craft areas. The cleaning head just pushed the threads around on the carpet. However, this handy little machine found beads I didn’t know I had dropped! True to its name, it flicked the beads up into the top of the cleaning head so that they adhered to the top of the sticky cleaning cartridge.
I was curious to see how this cleaner did with the cat hair on the living room carpet. My Maine Coon Cat is shedding clumps of fur, while the other cat sheds shorter hairs. This cleaner does not advertise that it picks up fur ... and it doesn’t pick up fur clumps. The cleaning head just rearranged the fur on the carpet. However, it does pick up loose short cat hair and even some strands of people hair.
However, the promotional material says this machine will pick up leaves, grass, dirt and crumbs. I aimed the cleaning head at some dried leaves on the carpet. The unit broke the leaves into tiny, crumbling bits before picking up the pieces. Grass, dirt and crumbs were all flicked into the unit. It even picked up bits of bird seed that had been tracked into the house. The cleaning head also grabbed a metal nut that had fallen to the floor from a lamp that had been dismantled.
Here is a sample of materials that the CarpetFlick collected:
fuzz, lint, crumbs, gravel, beads, leaf crumbs, grass, dried flower petals, bird seed, short cat hair, some human hair
When finished cleaning, it is easy to remove the sticky cartridge from the cleaning head. However, I have to be careful not to shake the cartridge or the looser articles fall off. Throw the used cleaning cartridges in the trash. The manufacturer cautions not to flush the cleaning cartridges down a toilet, and do not use this product on hard floors. Also, keep out of reach of children and pets.
I’m curious how this CarpetFlick would compare to a regular, more traditional carpet sweeper. The sticky-sided cartridges of the CareptFlick don’t last as long as I would like. Fuzz and lint rapidly collect on the bottom of the cartridge. When the bottom of the cartridge is filled and no longer sticky, I keep gliding the carpet head along the carpet to collect larger pieces that will flick into the top of the cleaning head.
Purchasing
This CarpetFlick was given to me by a promotional firm in exchange for my honest opinion regarding this cleaning unit.
I saw my first television advertisement for the CarpetFlick the other day, yet this cleaner is not yet in my local store. The manufacturer plans to market the Starter Kit for $12.99 and a package of replacement cartridges for $4.99.
Summary
I like the Swiffer CarpetFlick Sweeper though it doesn’t clean the thread from the carpet in my sewing area. I love the fact that this sweeper collects loose beads from their hiding places in the carpet, and it’s easy for me to pick the beads from the sticky cardboard cartridge so that I can use them. When I first started to use the CarpetFlick, I didn’t think it was doing a good cleaning job since it didn’t clean every spec from the carpet. But this carpet cleaner is not meant to replace a vacuum. For spot cleaning between more serious vacuum jobs, it does an okay job.
I hope you have found this review useful.
Enjoy your day,
Dawn
http://dlstewart.com
Additional Information
Procter & Gamble
Cincinnati, OH 45202
Toll-free Telephone: 800-214-8734
Please read my other reviews:
Mr. Clean Magic Reach Starter Kit
Clorox BathWand
Windex Wipes for Glass & Surface
Clorox Disinfecting Wipes
Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Duo
Ultra Dawn Dishwashing Soap – Apple Blossom scent
Cheer ColorGuard Laundry Detergent
Bounce Dryer Sheets
Tide To Go Stain Remover
Casabella Hang-on Squeegee
Cush Pillow for Comfort & Stress Relief
Copyright 2005 Dawn L. Stewart
Recommended:
Yes
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