Steam cleaners - are they worth the money

jill36_2

Can any one recommend a steamer where the steam is hot enough to be effective?

victor2

Depends what you define as effective. My OH was taken in by the H20MOP X5 ad on a shopping channel. Complete waste of money as far as its "multiple" functions go. Even useless at steaming carpets clean (supposedly). However, it does clean a large tiled kitchen floor well and is used regularly for that. Used to use a mop and bucket of hot soapy water for that and it did the job just as well. Could have bought an awful lot of mops and buckets for the price of the steam cleaner and wouldn't buy one again, but it's there and might as well be used.

tracey3596

As above; effective ... for, or ON ... what?
It really depends upon your circumstances and what you intend it to be used for.
In MY case, I have multiple tiled and vinyl floors; tiled walls in kitchen/bathroom areas; a large but easily-accessible (for cleaning, that is) area of glazing; a medium-sized dog who loves leaving his mark when it's wet outside; a young child (so hygiene is a priority); and allergy issues myself.
So I chose a Polti; this one : http://www.polti.com/en/catalog/consumer/66/117
For my bungalow. It's "The British Allergy Foundation" approved.
(The steam cleaner, that is - NOT my bungalow! :rotfl:)

I read a variety of reviews prior to purchase and .... :j
It cleans my tiled and vinyl flooring VERY effectively - in fact, it has "rejuvenated" my vinyl flooring, bringing out colours I had forgotten were there!
It's good on windows - my patio door in particular has gone from being a bit of a nightmare (dogs! noses! say no more.) to .... well, easy, really.
Tiles? Yup, cleans them too, thank you.
Carpets? Untested by me - though it is VERY good on my 7' x 5' rug; just be aware that the more you "scrub", the more damp the rug will be. Dog gets the blame for that, too!
Downsides?
Well, you do have to wait for steam pressure - but only for 5 minutes or so.
Yes, you have to piece bits together - but no worse than (say) a cylinder vacuum cleaner.
Steam = boiling water = condensation. Okay, it doesn't take LONG to dry (depending upon how much you use it, obviously) but it is NOT a completely dry way of cleaning. That said, it is definately more-dry than: a bucket of water & a mop; a squegee and cloth/squirter; some mop-type steam cleaners my friends have. :cool:
Oh, and the mains cable is quite short - - maybe some logical reasoning for that.
But I plug mine in to (for example) the kitchen, and one tank of water does the kitchen AND dining room floors; kitchen tiles; windows of both rooms - including the pesky patio doors - with plenty left over! :T
I love it.
Okay yes, cleaning of any sort is a pain if we're honest BUT .... I refer you to the first few lines of my post:
"It really depends upon your circumstances and what you intend it to be used for."
HTH - but if you need more info. or help just ask.
Tracey.