Steam mops and cleaners.

lostinrates

I keep reading about them. Some here seem to love them, some do not.

I think i want one....or both? I am often not very mobile, and need something handleable..which is why i think a steam cleaner rathe rthan steam mop might be too hefty for me for doing things like floors, and the little steam cleaners too much need to refill.

I would be interesting in hearing from old stylers who have one or both p, what model it is and what the like and dislike about it.

Apologies should a steam appliance thread exist!

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

Absolutely! Because it may be a quick and hygienic way of cleaning the floor!

FrugalLina

I have a Black and Decker steam mop and it is lightweight and a lot less effort than a mop & bucket to clean my floors (I have a remitting/relapsing illness so sometimes I struggle). I am also more inclined to use it, so my floors are much cleaner.
Benefits are: ease of use, takes up less space in the kitchen than a bucket/mop, spotless floors, no chemicals needed just water.
Disadvantages are: uses electricity, costs a lot to buy (but I had a gift voucher and used that, lol), slightly slower, the removable cloth needs to be washed in the washing machine (but that could be an advantage too as no smelly mops drying out about the house).

Bargainloverbec

I've got a Bissell steam mop - bought via Groupon so it was a third of the normal price.

Personally I love it - mopping is my least favourite job and it's encouraged me to actually clean the floor for once! It does a pretty good job just using water; very occasionally I have to bend down and scrape something off the floor but with a toddler and a baby you can imagine that we get quite a lot of food flung under the kitchen table. Also because the steam is so hot it dries really quickly rather than having to wait for ages for the floor to dry.

I just throw the microfibre cover in the washing machine when I've finished and as someone else has already said it is a lot easier to store than a mop and bucket.

Personally I love it. Downside I guess is the initial outlay and some electricity costs although I don't suppose it will be significantly greater than the cost of hot water and cleaning solution.

Hope that helps anyway.

seafarers_wife

I have a polti vappereto 950 and love it as it steam cleans everything and does floors.

However I wouldn't recommend that model for yourself as you've said you have mobility issues, but would recommend buying a steam cleaner from the likes of Lakeland or qvc so if you don't get on with it you can return it even after using it so that your not stuck with something you can't use.

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

Maybe then the initial outlay can be justified and the use of electricity.
One if one wanted could also put a mop and bucket aside to use with boiling water and detergent of choice for a no/reduced use of electricity option.

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

Lakeland is always a good option when it comes down to buying High Value Items as their Customer Service is so fabulous and Lakeland care brilliantly about the products they sell.
As for QVC I have no idea but because Shopping Channels use Easy Pay then in time I will open an account, only using it if they can grab with me with something that is on my Wish List and my Qaulity Criteria.( a money saving device believe it or not!!!!!).

squeaky

Hi

Have a browse... Steam Cleaner - is it worth getting one?


For what it's worth I have a steam cleaner (the jet type thing), a steam mop AND a carpet cleaner. They each have their own uses and best application, though there is a certain amount of crossover.

My steam cleaner is a dead cheap one from JML and it's not bad... in fact, I thought it was brilliant until I saw a more expensive one (£115) in action; which suggests that it might be worth buying at the top end of your budget rather than the cheapest you can find.

The steam mop is mostly retired now, since the carpet cleaner (Vax Rapide) does hard floors AND furniture.

So on balance, depending on your budget, and cleaning needs, I'd consider a steam cleaner and a carpet cleaner.

For doing hard floors you definitely don't need to buy the special cleaning liquid, small amounts of washing powder (or even dishwasher powder on stubborn stuff) is fine. Obviously - steam cleaning only uses water so is cheaper per clean no matter how frugal you are when buying cleaning agents.

Edit: Oh... and having limited movement etc I've found them all easy to use.

donteatthat

I not long ago got one of these - the vax one. It's good for the reasons given above floors drying quickly etc but I don't like the smell it gives off (I do wash the pad!) steam just seems to have wet dog kind of smell! I was a bit annoyed not long after I got it to see vax now do one that you can put detergent into I did try with detergent in mine but it doesn't work, so am wondering if anyone manages to put detergent into theirs and if so, how much etc?

Lizbetty

donteatthat wrote: »

I not long ago got one of these - the vax one. It's good for the reasons given above floors drying quickly etc but I don't like the smell it gives off (I do wash the pad!) steam just seems to have wet dog kind of smell! I was a bit annoyed not long after I got it to see vax now do one that you can put detergent into I did try with detergent in mine but it doesn't work, so am wondering if anyone manages to put detergent into theirs and if so, how much etc?

Ah. I have put a tiny bit of the the Asda spray and mop stuff on the floor before now when I've used the steam cleaner to make it smell better, and I have also (probably absolutely wrongly) put some smelly ironing water stuff through the deionising crystals and used that in my steam mop, too. But then I figured it probably wasn't a good idea and I would curse myself if I broke it.

I can hear people saying that using products is sort of defeating the object of having a steam cleaner, but I do agree about the wet dog smell. Having said that, it doesn't last if I open the windows. Maybe diluted essential oil on the pad before use might help? I haven't tried that one, but the only concern would be possibly staining on the surface you're cleaning, I suppose?

Luce.

donteatthat

Maybe I will try it with just a tiny drop of stardrops or flash or something similar. I think the problem is these products froth up and block up where the water goes through the machine. But the oil idea is good - thanks