Is Steam Cleaner As Useful As the Internet Claims to Be?
Our esteemed editor-in-chief once relaxed me by saying that many of her friends swear that the steam cleaner is the best cleaning tool. They claim the steamer will clean virtually everything – floors, walls, appliances, mattresses, toilets, windows – the list goes on and on.
Naturally, I felt the need – no, the duty – to verify these claims. So I bought a reasonably priced model (only $ 30.99), read some safety information, and decided to determine if the steam cleaner is the all-in-one cleaner we’ve been praying for.
Before starting, I learned not to use the steamer on unsealed surfaces such as wood floors or porous stone. My apartment does not have any of these surfaces, but it is rented and I would like to get my full deposit back, so I was wrong out of caution. The statement about disinfecting the walls also seemed dubious; My research has shown that a steamer is great for removing old wallpaper, but it can also remove paint from your walls, so I avoided this test too.
I tested several surfaces with a steam cleaner: my mattress, oven, apron, baseboard, toilet, grout, and shirt. I expected that just one quick stream of steam would instantly brighten any surface, but this was not the case. Some surfaces were allegedly “disinfected” by steam, but I could not visually see how they became cleaner. On some surfaces, the effect was about the same as wiping with a damp cloth. But some of the tests – the apron and grout in particular – were truly revolutionary: after just a few seconds of steaming, these surfaces began to shine like new, without the use of chemicals.
To see the full test and for some more tips for proper use and attachment, watch the video above.