I've been telling myself that carpet replacement is imminent, so what's the point of steam cleaning? But when I realized my clean socks were dirty from walking on the carpet, I had a meltdown, did a few hours' research, and bought this Hoover SmartWash. And I am over the MOON about it.In the photo, that's not a shadow -- it's the actual nightmare that was this carpet on the left, and the newly cleaned area on the right. (I hadn't yet pulled out the sofa to get up under the edges properly; the stains at the bottom of the photo are now completely gone.) I'll discuss the cleaner first, then add a few tips that have helped me get the best cleaning experience from it.Fitting the pieces together takes a little getting used to, but all the parts fit snugly, and nothing leaks. I briefly lost suction after I emptied the dirty water for the first time, but that was because I hadn't placed the lid back on correctly. (The lid on the receiving tank is a little fiddly, but if you pay attention to the logic of it you won't have any problems.) The edging attachment works great -- gets right up under the edge of the baseboard -- but it's quirky; I'll get to that in a moment. If I could change anything it would be the "spot chaser" attachment. Since it operates on two alkaline batteries, it isn't powerful enough to deliver a robust spray, but instead offers a water-pistol-style stream. I found the Hoover Oxi Spot Chaser very effective, but it takes a lot to fully saturate the stain (and if you aren't thorough, it will come clean in the trickle pattern the sprayer delivers, leaving the rest of the stain behind).Now for the tips:-- The solution tank doesn't leak, but it does drip a little when you remove it. Keep an old towel handy to catch the drips. Ditto for the spot-cleaner tank.-- Keep another towel by the sink where you empty the receiving tank and refill the water tank. It's a messy process, not because of the design but because water + gravity = splashing.-- While working, plan each forward stroke, going slowly where the dirt is heaviest to allow extra solution to dispense, and more quickly where the dirt is lightest. Ditto for each backward strike, going more slowly over the really dirty bits.-- Don't skip the plain-water rinsing step. If you work barefoot, you can feel where the carpet is wet with solution vs. where it's just wet with water; that solution residue will attract dirt after the carpet dries. The rinsing step also lifts out additional dirt that the first pass brought close to the surface but didn't quite get.-- Extraction is your friend. Go slowly and let the Hoover suck every visible drop of water out of the carpet, bringing the dirt, dander, and dust mites with it. Your carpet will also dry more quickly if you don't neglect this step (and in summer, a damp carpet easily becomes a sour, smelly carpet).-- The spray from the edging tool will land a couple inches short of the baseboard. If you want it to reach all the way to the edge, you'll need to lift the tool and angle the spray where you want it to go. Let the solution sit a little, then really work that tool into the gap, angling the head up and down to find the best suction. If you're not especially strong, it helps to apply a little downward pressure with the opposite hand so it can really suck the water out. (Sadly, the brush won't reach that gap no matter what you do. To remove trapped hair, you'll need to go in first with a small, stiff brush.)-- Clean the machine thoroughly after use, and allow all the parts to dry before reassembling it. Trust me on this. If you have pets, there will be a lot of wet, nasty hair that you'll want to get out of there before it dries.-- And finally, although I found the Hoover-branded cleaning solutions very effective, I obviously needed some extra oomph. I ended up pre-treating stains and traffic areas with a solution of OxiClean (1/4 scoop to 32 oz. water), applied with a spray bottle. Where necessary I later re-treated the especially funky stains with the Spot Chaser.I don't always go on with product reviews, but the enthusiastic ones helped me, and I want to pass that along. Buy this machine. You won't regret it.