First off, let me say that this machine will probably work well on carpets . However, it is not ideal for padding. A video from Bissell's own website led me to believe that this was not only a carpet spot cleaner but also an upholstery cleaner. While the suction may be at its strongest, it didn't seem to pull water from a small flat spot on our love seat. This got it VERY wet, although it pulled out a small amount of dirty water. Again, probably very well on small, flat areas of carpet, but not