Mastering Carpet Cleaning With Hoover FH50251 Power Scrub Elite

Overview

The Hoover FH50251PC Power Scrub Elite Pet is the higher-end version of the Deluxe model in the Power Scrub lineup, which is designed for superior drying and powerful cleaning performance. As a mid-range product, it is an ideal choice if you want a more capable machine without having to splash out money on a professional carpet cleaner.

Pros

• Bigger water tanks

• Two cleaning modes

• Good cleaning performance

• Capable of edge cleaning

• Auto mixing

Cons

• Spinning brushes lack the powerful agitation of roller brushes

• Many complaints about leaking

Hoover Power Scrub Elite Pet Carpet Cleaner Review

Overall Design and Assembly

Hoover Power Scrub Elite Via: Amazon

As an upgraded version of the Deluxe model, the Hoover Power Scrub Elite pet carpet cleaner FH50251 is slightly bigger, but Hoover has done a pretty great job in keeping its weight down despite the increase in size. While most carpet cleaners are bulky and hard to maneuver, the Power Scrub lineup of Hoover is known for its lightweight and ease of handling.

And just like the previous version, it's easy to assemble this carpet cleaner when it's been shipped to your home. Most of the parts have been already fixed in place on the main machine. You just need a Phillips screwdriver to attach the handle and fill the tanks with water before operating this small &  lightweight carpet shampooer for the first time.

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Features about Hoover Power Scrub Elite Pet Carpet Cleaner FH50251

Cleaning Modes

On top of the bigger capacity and size, the Elite version also comes with one additional cleaning mode. Now you are free to choose between the Deep Clean and the Quick Clean options, depending on how dirty your carpets are. These two modes can be switched using a knob on the cleaning head.

In the more-powerful Deep Cleaning mode, the Power Scrub Elite tries its best to soak up every bit of debris and dirt from your carpeted surfaces in order to freshen them up and bring back the original look as much as possible. You will love this cleaning mode if you own a pet who sheds way too much fur and leaves awful smells behind while playing on your floors. This Hoover carpet cleaner will completely get rid of those nasty stains within minutes.

On the other hand, the Quick Clean mode - designed for light-duty cleaning jobs - uses just a small amount of detergent and water, making it a more suitable tool for quickly cleaning newly-formed spills and stains. It's useful for high-traffic areas in your house that need to be cleaned quickly rather than given a thorough cleaning. This is not something the first generation of the Deluxe could offer, making it one of the most common complaints about that machine.

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If you have a kid at home, this will also be probably the most frequently-used cleaning mode as it allows you to do quick cleanup without having to wait several hours for the carpets to dry entirely. Hoover claims that your carpets will dry within 45 minutes, and in our tests, this number was backed up by the Power Scrub Elite's performance in most circumstances.

The Deep Clean mode is great for stubborn stains Via: Amazon

Wash/Rinse Cycles

In addition to these two primary cleaning modes, the Power Scrub Elite also lets you choose between rinse and wash modes for different phases during a cleaning session. Make sure that you have the correct mode before you run the machine over the carpets, or your previous efforts will be for naught.

Using the Wash/Rinse selector on the machine, you can go through the entire clean cycle properly. In the Wash cycle, the Power Scrub Elite will spray water and detergent across your carpets before scrubbing and picking up the excess cleaning solution.

After this washing step, you must go through another cycle. In the second Rinse cycle, the machine will use only water to soak up the rest of the detergent and dirty water on your carpets. This is extremely important, as any leftover cleaning solution will condense into powder and trigger allergic reactions after drying.

Water Tanks

One of the main improvements on the Hoover Power Scrub Elite from the Deluxe version is the bigger dual water tanks. While the Deluxe machine has only 1-gallon water tanks, the Elite has a 25% larger capacity. Both the dirty and clean water tank in this carpet cleaner can hold 1.25 gallons, meaning you have to empty and refill them fewer times during the cleaning session.

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Automatic Detergent Mixing

Mixing detergent and water together is usually guesswork that nobody wants to do, even if the manufacturer has clearly shown us the correct ratio for an effective cleaning solution. With the automatic mixing ability, the Hoover Power Scrub Elite Pet plus upright carpet cleaner has eliminated this task completely for its users. You just need to pour water and detergent into the machine, and it will handle everything else for you.

The machine will use its predefined formula to create the desired cleaning solution with the perfect consistency every time, which you can see with your own eyes from the cleaning results afterward.

Spin Scrub brush system

The Spin Scrub Brush System Via: Amazon

The antimicrobial Spin Scrub system is one of the unique technologies Hoover has included in this carpet cleaner lineup. We have explained this in our Hoover Power Scrub Deluxe review, but if you are not familiar with it, this is a brilliant and effective bit of technology from Hoover.

Spin Scrub means there are five counter-spinning brushes that work together to get rid of the most stubborn spots in your carpets. These quick-rotating brushes can dig deeper while agitating the cleaning solution into the carpet fibers, resulting in more contact per rotation. Consequently, the detergent and the brushes will lift and remove more odor-causing microbes and stains.

This system helps you save detergent and water while delivering the same admirable cleaning performance. Created with pet owners in mind, these antimicrobial brushes greatly cut down the effort that you need to keep your carpets clean and smelling fresh. However, for more stubborn stains, you may still need to do some pre-treatments before using the Power Scrub Elite.

HeatForce Technology

Another feature to speed up the drying process with this Hoover Pet Power Scrub deep cleaner is the HeatForce technology from Hoover. While a lot of other carpet cleaners can deliver amazing cleaning ability as well, long drying time is usually a common issue among them. Many people have to wait for several hours for their carpets to dry completely before they can be used again.

The HeatForce technology helps carpets dry faster Via: Amazon

Hoover was aware of this problem, and before its first launch in the carpet cleaning business in 2017, this company knew that it had to provide a solution for it, which is how the HeatForce technology was conceived.

What it does is blow heated air into your carpets to help them dry faster. Thanks to the design that blasts warm air into a small area on the surface, the Power Scrub Elite helps you save a lot of time after cleaning your carpets.

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Dual-V Nozzle

The nozzle of the Power Scrub Elite has a V-shaped design to split the powerful suction equally across the nozzle. This also helps a little bit with the drying time, as the Dual-V nozzle can soak up more excess water and cleaning solution off your carpets.

Cleaning Path

The Power Scrub Elite pet carpet cleaner has a fairly wide cleaning path of 12 inches, which helps reduce the number of passes you need to perform in order to clean the whole carpet. The best part about this cleaning head is that it cleans in both forward and backward movements, meaning you won't need to twist and turn it to clean a dirty spot.

Accessories

This carpet cleaner comes with an 8-foot hose that you can connect to the cleaning head to clean any carpeted surfaces, like your stairs, the interior of your car, and your furniture. This long hose will come in handy if you don't want to move the main machine between tight spaces or up and down the stairs. On top of that, there is also a 2-in-1 pet tool to clean pet hair in hard-to-reach areas.

Hoover Cleaning Solutions

You can purchase cleaning solutions directly from Hoover Via: Amazon

To achieve the best cleaning performance, you're recommended to use the cleaning solutions made by Hoover itself. Apart from the filters, this company makes a wide range of cleaning detergents, usually optimized specifically for different surfaces and types of dirt. There are two popular options:

• • Hoover 2X CleanPlus Carpet Cleaner & Deodorizer: this concentrated, non-toxic cleaning solution is suitable for everyday use, such as cleaning car interiors, upholstery, area rugs, and odors or stains on carpets.

• • Hoover PetPlus Pet Stain and Odor Remover: this product has been enhanced with enzymes on top of the concentrated formula, making it stronger in order to deodorize odors and pet messes on carpeted surfaces. This is also a non-toxic cleaning detergent.

Usability

Most customers love the ease of use of this Hoover Elite carpet cleaner because it can help them load cleaning detergent and water faster. Just pour them up to the fill line, and the machine will handle the rest.

The bigger water tanks also show great advantages. You don't need to pause and empty the dirty tanks before starting the whole process again, which is a huge deal if you need to clean a large area of carpeted surfaces regularly.

The Power Scrub Elite also makes it easier for you to keep tabs on the volume of dirty water and dirt it has collected by showing this level through the transparent dirty tank.

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Alternative Choices

#1- Hoover Power Scrub Deluxe

Hoover Power Scrub Deluxe Via: Amazon

Of course this should be the first choice to keep in mind when you need a similar machine to the Hoover Power Scrub Elite. As products in the same carpet cleaner lineup, there are a lot of similarities between these two Power Scrub models. At first glance, you may mistake both of them for upright vacuums due to the resemblance in design.

Additionally, they are also equipped with a lot of technologies from Hoover, such as the Dual-V nozzle, the dual-tank system, or the Spin Scrub brush system.

However, while the Deluxe version takes a no-frills approach, the Hoover FH50251PC comes with some more advanced features and bigger capacities, while using the same base design. For example, you will have larger water tanks with the Elite version, and the older Deluxe model lacks the Deep Cleaning ability as well.

Pro tip: You can look for the limited Anniversary Edition of the Elite version, which is almost as cheap as the Deluxe model. If you still need a traditional vacuum, check out our review here to find out what is the best Hoover vacuum for your needs.

#2- Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Pro

Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Pro Via: Amazon

This Bissell carpet cleaner is positioned in the same market segment as the Power Scrub Elite from Hoover. With powerful suction and an advanced feature set, the ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Pro is a great choice for pet owners with a lot of carpeted surfaces at home.

Like the Power Scrub Elite, it also features a Max Clean mode, which is comparable to the Deep Cleaning mode, to help you go into tight spots and clean the carpets more thoroughly. Bissell also provides plenty of cleaning solution options, including formulas for pet urine.

If the Hoover machine comes with Quick Clean mode, you can also find a similar option in the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Pro - the Express Clean mode, which can allow your carpets to dry entirely within 30 minutes.

What makes this machine stand out in this Hoover Power Scrub Elite vs Bissell Proheat 2X Revolution comparison is the Clean Shot mode, which can burst a concentrated stream of soap into stubborn stains.

Final Verdict

With some small improvements, this carpet cleaner is worth considering if you think the Deluxe model still lacks something to fulfill your cleaning needs. As shown on this Hoover Power Scrub Elite review, it is an easy-to-use machine with versatile cleaning modes, making sure you can choose the correct way to clean your dirty carpets while helping them dry faster.