Steam cleaning with vaporized water is
a relatively new concept to the American market but has recently
blossomed in popularity. First, let us discuss the fundamentals
of vapor steam cleaning and why we prefer it to the traditional
method of spraying supermarket cleaning chemicals and wiping
up with a cloth.
What is Steam Cleaning?
Vaporized water, which comes out of the attachments
from a machine that physically resembles a vacuum cleaner,
is applied to a multitude of surfaces in a home or industrial
setting. The steam vapor is exceptionally hot, usually over
200º F at the tip. Heat is the first important component.
Heat weakens the physical bond between the dirt or stains
to the various surfaces to which the dirt is sticking or is
embedded. The second component is "dry steam" i.e.
water which is almost moisture less steam. Using the "dry"
steam, dirty surfaces can be wiped, scrubbed or rubbed clean
and the dirt collected in a steam-moistened towel, often attached
by clips to the attachment.
Why is Vapor Steam Cleaning more effective than
traditional cleaning?
All hard surfaces are actually porous. Steam
can penetrate those pores and get at that embedded dirt.
One of the more interesting tests we did, was
to wipe down a kitchen counter top with a good quality micro
fiber towel. We then took one half of the counter and steam
cleaned it. When we rubbed our hands over the steam cleaned
counter top, it felt as smooth as silk compared to the other
half, attesting to its superior cleanliness.
What are the chief advantages of steam cleaning?
Hot steam vapor penetrates pores of the materials
or surfaces to be cleaned, and cleans more thoroughly than
normal supermarket cleaners and does so without the use of
chemicals. This lack of chemicals used in the cleaning process
is a huge benefit to those people who are sensitive to chemicals
or are trying to reduce the level of toxicity in their homes,
especially if children are present.
Killing germs, bacteria and
microorganisms such as mold and dust mites
Perhaps the best advantage of all, is that hot
steam vapor is a natural sanitizing and deodorizing agent
without any chemical odor. When the vapor steam penetrates
surfaces, it destroys mold spores, germs, viruses, dust mites,
and bacteria. It is a wonderful sanitizer for environments
where there have been adults or children with infections of
any kind and now you want to restore the place to be infection
free. This process will be more effective than most disinfecting
chemicals. In normal household use, a steam cleaner is a magical
tool for cleaning and disinfecting kitchen and bathrooms.
More effective cleaning
Interestingly enough, although we are a great
proponent of the fact that steam vapor alone will miraculously
clean most things, it is pertinent to note that for stubborn
cleaning chores pre-spraying the area with a natural cleansing
agent and then combining with steam vapor enhances the cleaning
properties of the cleaning agent by a factor of several times
What tasks can a steam cleaner tackle?
The list of potential cleaning chores that can
be handled by a steam cleaner is extremely lengthy and has
been listed in our article Steam
Cleaners FAQ.
The places and things that we find are the most
useful in the majority of households:
- Bathrooms
- Kitchens
- Car detailing
- Wall paper removal
- Killing dust
mites and mold
- Unclogging drains
- Cleaning grout
- Pet stains and odors. Birdcages
- Windows, screens, sliding glass doors, mirrors
- Removing toxic dry cleaning solvent and other
odors from clothes
How to Choose a Steam Cleaner that is Right
for You
We discussed this topic at some length in a
prior article "Why
do some Vapor Steam Cleaners cost more than others?".
Also, another helpful article is Steam
Cleaners FAQ.
The following is a quick summary of features
to consider when purchasing a vapor steam cleaner:
Steam Temperature
There are two temperatures often quoted by manufacturers
of steam cleaners. One is the internal temperature in the
boiler and the other is the temperature at the tip of the
attachment. The temperature in the boiler is the most reliable
figure as the temperature at the tip varies with the attachment
and steam pressure being used. What is important to note is
that machines with higher temperatures will work much better,
as there is a quantum leap in cleaning effectiveness for every
10 degrees increase in steam temperature. The better steam
cleaners will have interior boiler temperatures of 285ºF
and above.
Tools
After the actual steam temperature, the quality
of the tools is one of the most important factors to help
determine whether you will be happy with your steam cleaner
long term. Both good quality tools and a wide selection of
steam cleaning attachments will make your cleaning tasks go
faster at the same time as achieving superior results. We
prefer manufacturers who make commercial steam cleaners in
addition to residential ones, as they have the experience
of supplying customers with tools of sufficient quality to
tackle the most challenging of cleaning problems.
Continuous fill versus reservoir steam cleaning
machines
Both technologies have their fans who have strong
opinions as to which is better. Putting it simply, if you
are the kind of person who is only likely to use a steam cleaner
for 2 hours maximum but is not a "clean freak",
then a reservoir traditional boiler system will do you just
fine. On the other hand, if you are the kind of person who
gets satisfaction from prolonged bouts of cleaning or has
the necessity to use the machine for over 2 hours on a continuous
basis and might get frustrated with waiting for a traditional
machine to cool down and refill, then you would not dream
of owning anything else but a continuous fill steam cleaner.
In addition, continuous fill fans would also point out they
do not have to contend with letting out any steam from a safety
cap. Since there are two boilers in a continuous fill machine,
all you would be doing is opening up the cap and adding water.
Steam would never come out.
Reliability
This is where the average consumer can get taken
for a ride. Unfortunately, the new wave of consumer enthusiasm
for vapor steam cleaners has resulted in a plethora of "quick
profit, take your money and run" dealers who are selling
sizzle on the outside and a "break down waiting to happen"
on the inside. We have spent countless days both testing machines
and sifting through manufacturers' offerings. In the end,
there are actually only a very few manufacturers who stand
behind their machines and offer substantial warranties or
facilities for repairs. After a few years, even the best steam
cleaners will need some part replacing. The question is, will
the machine you bought have spare parts and service available
at that time? Unfortunately in most cases, the answer is no.
Durability
There is an old saying "you get what you
pay for". With many lower priced steam cleaners this
is all too true and they become throwaway items for your trash
after a year or so. Here are some durability features for
steam cleaners to be aware of.
- Metal-coated machines rather than plastic
coated ones add to the durability over the years. We have
not had any trouble with our higher end plastic encasings
on machines but have heard of cheap ones in the marketplace
that have been known to crack.
- Most steam cleaners do not have an enclosed
circuit board inside the machine, which means they will
short out if moisture gets in to the machine.
- The most sturdy of interior connections
to steam cleaners are copper tubing and brass fittings,
instead of the more usual rubber. Rubber breaks down or
rots over time.
- There is a debate between advocates of aluminum
versus steam boilers. The bottom line is steel boilers are
better if they are high grade steel and a good quality aluminum
boiler is better than cheap steel. While stainless steel
boilers will heat up faster, they are usually made of quite
thin grade steel in the cheaper machines, and if they get
pitted because of minerals in the water, they can become
susceptible to pinholes and leaks. The heating element of
a steel boiler will also get coated with minerals over a
period of time if distilled water is not used, which will
mean that the machine will gradually lose heating ability
over time. Clearly the best option of all is a good quality
steel boiler, as it will heat up faster, retain its heat
longer and will be more durable. Beware of cheap imitations.
- If the hose disconnects at the juncture
of the machine casing, then there is less likelihood of
breakage at that connection which happens as people tend
to drag their machines around by the hose instead of picking
them up to move them. If the hoses are reinforced with steel
wires this also helps prevent this breakage as does extra
long hoses which reduces the need for a steam cleaner to
be actually moved when cleaning any particular room.
Weight
One of the objections we have encountered with
a number of steam cleaner brands, is that in order to achieve
high performance, you need to use a machine that is either
quite heavy or bulky. When a steam cleaner is filled with
water, it can be quite hefty and weigh over 30 lbs. What we
have found is that the issue of weight becomes a lot easier
if there is a decent handle on the machine or if you have
a cart to push around the steam cleaner, especially if you
have a one floor living or workplace. It is for this reason,
we prefer to pack the accessory tools into a canvas bag and
put them over our shoulder or put them onto the cart, since
"tools on board" add to both the weight and bulk
of steam cleaners.
Safety
We are very conscious about the importance of
safety. Remember you are using high temperature steam to do
your cleaning. We have rejected many steam cleaners where
we have burned ourselves during testing, perfectly possible
to do with poorly designed machines.
- Look for an on/off trigger on the handle
of your steam cleaner which we think is an excellent safety
feature in case you accidentally leave the steam running(we
have done this with a cheap machine and burned off the finish
off a hardwood floor)
- Safety caps are essential with reservoir
machines and not all steam cleaners have them. In the unlikely
circumstance of excess pressure (which is controlled by
an internal thermostat) a safety cap would blow first and
the steam would not blow up in someone's face.
- There is a pressure gauge which has a red
zone for when the pressure is too high, and orange for too
low, and thus you can easily regulate the machine for optimal
(medium) pressure.
- A good machine will shut itself off
automatically when the water level becomes too low and the
machine needs refilling.
See all the vapor steam cleaners at Allergybuyersclub.com
First Published: late June 2003
Updated: April 2007
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