Looking at lots of different carpet cleaning methods and i cant seem to choose. I think that the challenger machines probably would work well. Talked to a guy and he said that von schrader lmx is best machine on market for carpet cleaning. Does anyone know anything about the von schrader equipment?

During my decade-long quest to find the best low-moisture carpet cleaning method, I tried many systems, including Von Schrader machines, in extensive real world situations. While I found the VS to have many virtues, I decided to keep looking. I owned both a standard 12" cleaning path VS, as well as one of the 24" commercial "double-wides". I found I was too often tinkering with the mechanisms that controlled the foam mix, in that too often I was either getting too much or too little foam. I found that in order to try and clean them adequately, I was leaving traffic lanes and similar soil-impacted areas too wet. Now and then, if I didn't empty if often enough, I would notice I was leaving a trail of dirty water overflowing from the defoam container. Then I would have to stop, slide it out while it was brim-full, and then carry it - without spilling anything - to where I could dump it. My own 12" machine had small wheels and was difficult to move up and down stairs, especially with a lot of cleaning solution in the tank. I see now they have put larger wheels on these machines, so perhaps they move more easily over stairs. Still, the machine is too bulky to maneuver up or down a narrow, twisting set of stairs.

thinking about purchasing the challenger startup package. but wondering what equipment do i need for upholstery do you offer that with startup package?

The 6" hand-held random orbital polisher/buffer-type tool that I supply primarily as a stair carpet cleaner I've found also to work well as an upholstery tool. Others cleaning upholstery strictly via a low-moisture process use a rotary drill version of this for upholstery, but I think orbital trumps rotary every time. Others who use low-moisture equipment for carpet cleaning also carry a small portable HWE extractor for cleaning upholstery. So, as you see, there are many choices in this area.