Steam Cleaner - is it worth getting one?

lobbyludd

I had one, a very cheap one, and to be honest I never got into the habit of using it, so when I did it was a faff finding everything, waiting for it to heat up, clearing up the spread about watery gunk after it had been dislodged. and it spluttered alot, dripping water as I went so actually didn't help with spot cleaning rugs/carpets as they ended up soaked in a trail a bit away from the bit I was working on.

mostly it took longer than I would have spent manually cleaning whatever I was using it for so I freecycled it.

but it was a very cheap version and others obviously have better experiences.

[Deleted User]

I have a Polti too which was gifted to me via freecycle when OH had C Diff and needed to deep clean the house, especially the bedroom.

The muck it fetches off the kitchen floor when I use it once a month, (I mop the floor in between) is astounding. I have also used it on the carpets.

You can buy cloths for it, but I knitted a cloth in basket weave which does a super job and gets chucked in the washer with the whites on a 60o wash. You can also but an iron to use the steam generator to power the steam. I am saving up to buy one, my present iron leaks.....

luxor4t

I have a Shark steam mop.
It's great on the modern kitchen tiled floor and the Edwardian tiled hall floor as there isn't a slip hazard after use, it is easy to use and way faster than mop and bucket.

vikki_louise

Does anyone have one of those handheld steam cleaners you see advertises? A friend said she loved hers and used it everywhere, it heated up in a min and sterilised things. I'm sensitive to chemicals so thought it might be a good alternative but wanted others views. If you have one, which do you have and would you recommend it? Thanks

LolaLemon

I want one too. I have a steam mop and love it. Outright asked the bf for a handheld one but doubt I'll get one like the cleaner I asked for for my birthday. Haha

UsernameAlreadyExists

I had one years ago. It was rubbish! The TV adverts where the grease, fat, and burned on stuff just falls away from the hob & splash back tiles simply wasn't true. It's just like the JML ads where the product looks absolutely brilliant until you get it home and it's cheap crap that simply doesn't work, and will probably break in minutes.

I tried it under the bonnet of the car too, and decided I'd be better off with a cotton bud dipped in hot water. The effect of the "spray" was to get everything wet ... and only when you held it really close did you get a concentrated hot spot that actually had some cleaning power, and even then it was limited.

I gave mine away, and don't miss it.

Alton_Towers

I have a Polti Vaporetto the small one and its brilliant! Great for cleaning the oven, microwave, fiddly knobs and buttons where grime gets in. I also blast down the back of the radiators to get rid of dust. Cleans carpets, laminate, bathroom, windows. I probably should use it more than I do but I find that it does mean less elbow grease and cleaners are required for in between steam cleans.

chewynut

I have one at work and it's useless against grease. Great, when I need it to clean the splashback after frying burgers and chips

However, it's brilliant for stuff like ovens, the floor, getting graffiti off of tiles, awkward nooks and crannies, cleaning bins...

gleek1

Really as the title says. Our house has horrible laminate in the living and dining room, and unfortunately, the same stuff in the kitchen. I have a bit of an issue with using a mop to wash the floors because I am pretty certain that it is not good for the floor to get so 'wet'. We have tiles in the bathroom and hallway, so would like to get a steam cleaner to clean all surfaces. The icing on the cake would be if it would clean the oven too..!!

Any recommendations? Any other uses for a steam mop so i can convince OH that it is a good idea?!

Thanks!

troll35

I too have been wondering about whether to get a steam cleaner so would appreciate recommendations too.
thanks