Clean with the power of steam!
June 8, 2012 3:50 AM Subscribe
Do you use a steam floor cleaner? I've read all the reviews, now I'd like your thoughts ... a few special circumstances inside:
The NPO I work for has a small childcare area, and we're looking into getting a steam floor cleaner (no chemicals) to clean the floors on a more-or-less daily basis. Bearing in mind that our maintenance people have some physical and learning disabilities, can you recommend a steam floor cleaner that:
a) does a good job
b) is very simple to use
c) doesn't weigh a lot.
We want to try to avoid the "mop" style (with the microfiber cloths that need to be washed) if at all possible.
The NPO I work for has a small childcare area, and we're looking into getting a steam floor cleaner (no chemicals) to clean the floors on a more-or-less daily basis. Bearing in mind that our maintenance people have some physical and learning disabilities, can you recommend a steam floor cleaner that:
a) does a good job
b) is very simple to use
c) doesn't weigh a lot.
We want to try to avoid the "mop" style (with the microfiber cloths that need to be washed) if at all possible.
We recently aquired a "Silvercrest" steam cleaner from Lidl (picture in this potentially useful thread). Here were my thoughts after using it:
1. While steam cleaners seem to be getting heavy infomercial promotion right now the same product has been available for several years under the label "wallpaper steamer". The newly marketed device seems to differ only in terms of having wheels, a few more attachments, a smaller reservoir and a higher cost.
2. Having a small reservoir is a pain if you are cleaning a large area - to fill it up again you have to wait for the pressure to fall, for example. The silvercrest cleaner can hold just 0.2 litres of water -enough to clean a small room. My wallpaper stripper can hold about 3.5 litres - enough to remove all the wallpaper in a small room - it also comes with an extension attachment for steaming floors.
3. The steam helps to loosen the dirt from whatever it is clinging to - it also liquifies fats and waxes making them easier to mop up - and it kills bacteria. But you still have to mop up as a second operation - with a mop, paper towel, etc. In other words the cleaning operation will take somewhat longer than it would with a traditional mop and bucket.
4. The trade off is that you will not be paying for cleaning chemicals - or potentially causing some kind of health problems for people or animals around the house by virtue of their allergies to such chemicals.
posted by rongorongo at 4:58 AM on June 8, 2012
1. While steam cleaners seem to be getting heavy infomercial promotion right now the same product has been available for several years under the label "wallpaper steamer". The newly marketed device seems to differ only in terms of having wheels, a few more attachments, a smaller reservoir and a higher cost.
2. Having a small reservoir is a pain if you are cleaning a large area - to fill it up again you have to wait for the pressure to fall, for example. The silvercrest cleaner can hold just 0.2 litres of water -enough to clean a small room. My wallpaper stripper can hold about 3.5 litres - enough to remove all the wallpaper in a small room - it also comes with an extension attachment for steaming floors.
3. The steam helps to loosen the dirt from whatever it is clinging to - it also liquifies fats and waxes making them easier to mop up - and it kills bacteria. But you still have to mop up as a second operation - with a mop, paper towel, etc. In other words the cleaning operation will take somewhat longer than it would with a traditional mop and bucket.
4. The trade off is that you will not be paying for cleaning chemicals - or potentially causing some kind of health problems for people or animals around the house by virtue of their allergies to such chemicals.
posted by rongorongo at 4:58 AM on June 8, 2012
If you have laminate floors or engineered wood (that is, a plywood base with a solid wood layer on top) be aware that using a steam cleaner on a regular basis can cause the laminate to lift or the engineered wood to warp.
posted by essexjan at 5:21 AM on June 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by essexjan at 5:21 AM on June 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
My mother actually laughed at our purchase of the steam Shark, but after using it a couple times went straight out and bought one...It has completely replaced our use of mops inside, except for once a year or so for a really deep cleaning. I 2nd it as a recommendation.
We looked into getting one without the 'mop' style cloths, but the reviews were just terrible at the models we looked at, and it didn't appear as if they'd clean anything, just move dirt around. Even after a good sweep, the shark picks up a ton of grime.
As mentioned, it matches all of your criteria except for one. It works very well, it is incredibly simple to operate (you just fill it with water, plug it in and push it around), and is very light.
posted by furnace.heart at 6:24 AM on June 8, 2012
We looked into getting one without the 'mop' style cloths, but the reviews were just terrible at the models we looked at, and it didn't appear as if they'd clean anything, just move dirt around. Even after a good sweep, the shark picks up a ton of grime.
As mentioned, it matches all of your criteria except for one. It works very well, it is incredibly simple to operate (you just fill it with water, plug it in and push it around), and is very light.
posted by furnace.heart at 6:24 AM on June 8, 2012
Thirding the Shark pocket steam mop. Yes, you have to wash the pads, but it meets all of your other requirements. It's handy that replacement pads are available at Target, unlike other steam mops where you have to order online.
posted by PorcineWithMe at 6:34 AM on June 8, 2012
posted by PorcineWithMe at 6:34 AM on June 8, 2012
Eh, me, after I Shark, I mop with this baby with organic floor cleaner. Steam alone just doesn't get the floors clean enough. I feel like I continue to use the Shark because I want to love it!
posted by thinkpiece at 7:27 AM on June 8, 2012
posted by thinkpiece at 7:27 AM on June 8, 2012
I have a Shark pocket steamer as well. It's not the miracle it was advertised as, but it gets my floors (semi?)-mopped when they wouldn't otherwise, and it's easy to use and dries quickly.
posted by leahwrenn at 9:24 AM on June 8, 2012
posted by leahwrenn at 9:24 AM on June 8, 2012
Nthing the Shark.
posted by Ink-stained wretch at 10:23 AM on June 8, 2012
posted by Ink-stained wretch at 10:23 AM on June 8, 2012
You could get a TANCS or "dry steam" machine. There's an in press article in American Journal of Infection Control "Biofilms on environmental surfaces: Evaluation of the disinfection efficacy of a novel steam vapor system" by Liyan Song, Jianfeng Wu, Chuanwu Xi. The authors don't compare different steamers, but do find that the dry steam machines work as well as chemical sanitation against biofilms, but that steam is much faster. I've heard from someone in the field that dry steam is the way to go. The abstract is here.
posted by SandiBeech at 5:55 PM on June 8, 2012
posted by SandiBeech at 5:55 PM on June 8, 2012
If you are concerned about killing germs and such, make sure the steam gets hot enough. I know that has been a concern of the cheap (aka affordable) models at big box stores.
I got mine here where they do testing and provide good info.
posted by evening at 5:50 PM on June 18, 2012
I got mine here where they do testing and provide good info.
posted by evening at 5:50 PM on June 18, 2012
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I'd put it on your "let's look at this if all else fails" list.
I bought this Shark steam cleaner from Target, and it is WONDERFUL.
Who knew that something from an infomercial would work?
posted by THAT William Mize at 4:53 AM on June 8, 2012