Which iron is best -ceramic or stainless steel

[diddlydi]

I want to buy a good iron for my elderly Mother,it needs to be light in weight but also a good quality to cut down the ironing time.

Has anyone any advice in what I should look for,as there are blooming hundreds available.

I was wondering which is best between a cermanic & stainless plate & what sort of wattage & steam output I should look for.

The big steam generator irons would be no good unfortunately as they would be too heavy.

Any iron experts out there?
thank you

[jackieb]

I have a Tefal steam generator. It's a great iron, but it has a ceramic plate, and it gets quite black, and it's hard to get clean. I would have preferred if it had a stainless steel plate.

Are the steam generator irons heavier than the normal ones? The water is held in a tank, not in the iron itself.

[diddlydi]

Originally Posted by jackieb

I have a Tefal steam generator. It's a great iron, but it has a ceramic plate, and it gets quite black, and it's hard to get clean. I would have preferred if it had a stainless steel plate.

Are the steam generator irons heavier than the normal ones? The water is held in a tank, not in the iron itself.

Thanks jackieb
The problem of the steam generator ones for my Mum,would be the weight of lifting it unto the iron board,storing etc,as she has a bad arm.

Thanks for the info re the stainless steel plate

[MrsE]

Originally Posted by jackieb

I have a Tefal steam generator. It's a great iron, but it has a ceramic plate, and it gets quite black, and it's hard to get clean. I would have preferred if it had a stainless steel plate.

Are the steam generator irons heavier than the normal ones? The water is held in a tank, not in the iron itself.

Me too after a couple of Tefals I switched to a Phillips one.

I was going to say that too, to set up is heavier, but once in place the actual iron is lighter.

[maypole]

I read somewhere a while ago that ceramic was the better surface. I don't have one so I couldn't say.

[alanobrien]

Ceramic is lighter for sure and correctly finished the surface will be more resistant to picking up muck. It also has lower friction meaning it should move across the surface easier. This is why ceramic is often used in pump seal faces.

[adandem]

I had a few tefals, none of which lasted that long. My latest Philips Azur is about 3/4 years old and is fab.No discolouring, sticking or leaking.

[diddlydi]

Originally Posted by adandem

I had a few tefals, none of which lasted that long. My latest Philips Azur is about 3/4 years old and is fab.No discolouring, sticking or leaking.

Is the philips a stainless steel plate? & is it an easy ironer?
thanks

[MrsE]

Originally Posted by diddlydi

Is the philips a stainless steel plate? & is it an easy ironer?
thanks

Phillips do both, but most of them stainless steel.
I made sure to get a stainless steel one after owning Tefals for years.

[diddlydi]

Originally Posted by MrsE

Phillips do both, but most of them stainless steel.
I made sure to get a stainless steel one after owning Tefals for years.

Thanks for that MrsE,I think I will definately go for stainless steel plate,is your iron quite lightweight?

[MrsE]

Originally Posted by diddlydi

Thanks for that MrsE,I think I will definately go for stainless steel plate,is your iron quite lightweight?

No mines a big steam generator (I love them).

But I picked it for the soleplate as till them I'd only ever had Tefal, but once they start sticking they get harder & harder to clean. They seem to be like saucepans, the non-stick seems to wear away with use.

I'm loving the Philips stainless steel soleplate. Make sure you check though as they do one they call cezera (sp?) & its like the Tefal.

I think Argos say the weight in their ads.

[withabix]

Go for Philips ones with the Careeza (ceramic) soleplate.

Very good irons. Much easier than stainless and the Careeza coatings don't seem to wear out.

Previous ones have only stopped working through getting smashed from dropping on the floor!! :rolleyes:

Tefal irons are coated with Teflon (PTFE), which is actually quite a soft material and very prone to scratching, whereas the Philips Careeza coating is a very hard wearing ceramic product.

Tefal teflon (PTFE) coatings ARE rubbish by the way. With pans, once you've used Meyer/Anolon pans you'll wonder why you EVER bought Tefal ones.

[MrsE]

Originally Posted by withabix

Tefal teflon (PTFE) coatings ARE rubbish by the way. With pans, once you've used Meyer/Anolon pans you'll wonder why you EVER bought Tefal ones.

I was thinking of trying Myer pans, do they do a nice large wok?

[withabix]

Originally Posted by MrsE

I was thinking of trying Myer pans, do they do a nice large wok?

Probably do one in most of their ranges.

[diddlydi]

Originally Posted by withabix

Go for Philips ones with the Careeza (ceramic) soleplate.

Very good irons. Much easeier than stainless and the Careeza coatings don't seem to wear out.

Previous ones have only stopped working through getting smashed from dropping on the floor!! :rolleyes:

Tefal irons are coated with Teflon (PTFE), which is actually quite a soft material and very prone to scratching, whereas the Philips Careeza coating is a very hard wearing ceramic product.

Tefal teflon (PTFE) coatings ARE rubbish by the way. With pans, once you've used Meyer/Anolon pans you'll wonder why you EVER bought Tefal ones.

Thank you for that info withabix - do you also happen to know which phillips I should go for,for best steam & power,or should I just for the highest in both,for easy ironing?

[saving-grace]

Originally Posted by withabix

Go for Philips ones with the Careeza (ceramic) soleplate.

Very good irons. Much easier than stainless and the Careeza coatings don't seem to wear out.

Previous ones have only stopped working through getting smashed from dropping on the floor!! :rolleyes:

Tefal irons are coated with Teflon (PTFE), which is actually quite a soft material and very prone to scratching, whereas the Philips Careeza coating is a very hard wearing ceramic product.

I'd agree with all that. I had a tefal iron which got scratched easily and the surface became quite rough.
Now onto my second Philips Careeza (dropped first one) with ceramic soleplate and its great. Feels nice to iron with and the surface has not a mark on it, v hardwearing.
There are a few to choose from, could you get to a shop to see how they feel in the hand. Mine is a philips Azur 4340 and its quite heavy.

[diddlydi]

Originally Posted by saving-grace

I'd agree with all that. I had a tefal iron which got scratched easily and the surface became quite rough.
Now onto my second Philips Careeza (dropped first one) with ceramic soleplate and its great. Feels nice to iron with and the surface has not a mark on it, v hardwearing.
There are a few to choose from, could you get to a shop to see how they feel in the hand. Mine is a philips Azur 4340 and its quite heavy.

Thanks for that -off to lakeside now to lift irons!!

[withabix]

Would also recommend a mesh ironing board rather than a solid-top one. The newer steam irons which produce a large amount of steam tend to do a 'hovercraft' impression on solid boards!!

[burnsguitarman]

I back up what has been said about the philips careeza soleplate, definately the best irons I have used!

[Homecare Pro]

If your Mum has trouble carrying the steam iron to the ironing board, make sure she carries it there empty and then fills it with water from a large measuring cup. She can then plug it in and it will heat up fast.

I don't like ceramic soleplates myself, as the iron is not heavy enough to make crisp creases in wool or heavy canvas or denim pants. You have to press down hard on a ceramic soleplate iron to make good creases.

Hope you find this advice helpful.