I purchased a Big Green Clean Machine in 1994, at which time we had 3 older cats. We were renting a condo at the time, and two years later we moved to our new home. I have used the machine for total house vacuuming, as well as for periodic carpet cleaning using the steam cleaner with Bissell carpet shampoo. I have never had any kind of problem with it and would highly recommend it to anyone. Another reviewer stated that the plastic becomes brittle due to the hot water, but I have used a combination of hot tap water and boiling water (about half each) in my machine and have no complaints...read full review »