Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Bottom line: While the performance of this steam cleaner is well below top-tier products such as the Ladybug, it's the best by far of the ones I've used in the under$200 range. Outstanding value for the price. Full review: For me, a steam cleaner is a necessity for cleaning just about anything. I started using them about 10 years ago and have yet to find a better cleaning device for floors, countertops, bathrooms, ovens, refrigerators....the list could go on and on. The problem is that the really good ones are horribly expensive. You can easily drop $600+ and, in the case of the really nice ones (such as the Ladybug) get close to $2 grand. There are several that are far more affordably priced but they tend to suffer from poor build quality, poor performance, or both. Up until now, my favorite in the under $200 class was the Monster cleaner, which is no longer made. After using this model, however, I have a new favorite. The build quality is better than expected given the price. The case is solid (albeit all plastic), the hose is pretty robust, and the attachments are decently made. The hose does not detach, but there's a resting bracket for it on the machine which makes for relatively compact storage. It comes with a wide assortment of attachments. (That's another pet peeve I have with the lower-priced machines. Rather than provide only partially useful attachments, such as the window squeegee, why not provide a dozen or more brushes, which would be used far more often?) I'm going to concentrate on the brush attachments and the floor attachments since those are the ones I use most often. You get three brushes - 2 nylon and 1 brass (plus one that is sort of a scrubby pad). They press onto the steam wand securely and don't fall off in use, even when scrubbing. The quality is so-so - they don't last too long when they are used for tasks such as grout cleaning. On the plus side, they can be purchased separately. The floor attachment uses a micro fiber pad. It works well, but again, durability is an issue. After two floor cleanings it has already started to wear down. Unfortunately, the floor attachment uses a proprietary pad - you can't easily fashion your own using a cotton or micro fiber cloth since there are no attachment points or bars to hold the cloth (the ones that come with it have a velcro backing). I imagine someone with some sewing skills could fashion their own pads, but it's not a simple process. Performance is very good. I got 168 degree steam when using the hand wand alone, and 145 degree steam when using the floor wand. Not bad at all considering the price of this unit. Temps were taken 10 times and averaged. The steam is pretty dry. Not dry enough for this to be useful as a way to steam clean a mattress to kill bedbugs, but more than dry enough to make it useful for pretty much everything else. The hose and wand are not well insulated, so condensation will cause a spurt of hot water when you turn it on after leaving it off for a few minutes. It is not as bad as other inexpensive machines, however. The steam pressure is excellent. I don't have the means to quantify the force of the steam, but it's far better than other low-cost machines I've used, and even a wee bit better than(or at least the same as) my former favorite, the Monster cleaner. Steam force is an important component of the cleaning ability since the velocity of the steam will help dislodge dirt and grime, especially in nooks and crannies. The wand has a "lock on" button - excellent! Helps a lot with preventing hand fatigue when doing a task that requires the machine to be on for a long time (such as floor cleaning). The grip is reasonably comfortable. Heat up time is decent - less than 10 minutes using room temp water. There's a clear "ready" indicator, "on" indicator and an easily found on/off switch. It holds an ample amount of water (48 ounces) for extended run time. The manual claims 45 minutes of use for a full tank, but that's a bit optimistic - 30 min is more what you should expect. Still, that's an impressive run time for a small machine, and it can be refilled after only a few minutes cool-down time. The cord is long and very stout. No problems reaching every corner of even a large room without having to change to a different wall outlet. The fill cap, an area that is often the first failure point, is well-made with good threading. Still, be careful not to cross-thread the cap when putting it on. It is loud compared with other cleaners. I've used a previous Steamfast cleaner (don't recall the model number - it was about 5 years ago) that was so loud I had to wear earplugs. This is not nearly as bad, but the steam sound is somewhat piercing, especially if you're working in a small room with tile floors/walls. Hearing protection is not a bad idea. In conclusion, it's not perfect nor does it stand up in terms of build quality or performance to a high-end cleaner. But given the price, this is the best I've come across after using models from Haan, Dirt Devil, Hoover and others. Excellent value, and a great way to find out if steam cleaning is a good match for your needs. Highly recommend. TIP: As with any steam appliance, mineral build-up will quickly degrade performance and eventually kill the machine. Using distilled water is best but, if that's not practical, use vinegar or citric acid to clean the boiler on a regular basis. Easy to do - instructions are in the manual.