If there’s one household chore that’s all but guaranteed to cause a faff, it’s mopping. Wrestling with unwieldy buckets that don’t quite fit in the sink and waiting for the floor to dry before you can make a well-earned brew are just a couple of inconveniences that spring to mind.
You can relieve yourself of all such frustrations with the Vileda Steam Mop Steam Plus for £96.24 at Amazon. With a new and improved triangular head and an ergonomic handle, this handy tech solution will reach deep into corners whilst delivering a thorough clean.
Simply fill up the 400ml detachable water tank, flick it on, wait 15 seconds for it to heat up, and you’re away. You won’t need to add any disinfectant, as the heat is said to kill 99.9% of bacteria and viruses from all hard-sealed floors. It will tackle carpets, too, helping to lift stains and keep your upholstery fresh. Not only that, but thanks to using steam over liquid water, your floors will dry rapidly.
The steam mop comes with three settings of varying intensity, allowing you to tailor your clean to delicate flooring as well as putting the pedal to tough stains. It also includes two machine-washable microfibre pads, promising fantastic longevity and overall value for money. It won’t take up much storage space, either, with a removable handle that slots onto the back of the unit for extra compactness.
794 Amazon reviews have yielded an average rating of 4.5/5, with hundreds of very satisfied customers sharing their thoughts. “Very effective on wood and tiled flooring, using their branded cloths. Super easy to use, light weight, and good quality,” said one five-star review.
“This unit is a real work horse. I am able to clean 120smq+ of differently tiled and wood floors in no time. No sweating, no swearing – I am over the moon,” said another customer relieved to leave the mop and bucket behind.
Another added: “A great steam cleaner. The speed, power and cheap cloths which are easy to apply makes it one of the best units you can get.”
However, some users said the triangular head shape can make it difficult to push it in straight lines. “It doesn’t like to move forwards in a straight line as it favors the straight edges on the front first. This can hurt your wrist a bit,” said one reviewer. Others have said the power output leaves a little to be desired: “I don’t find the steam too strong, if it would be more stronger, it could be more efficient.”
If you need a bit more oomph, Shark’s SteamPickUp cleaner is a floor-cleaning titan at £199.99. There’s also this £99.99 option from Vax (down from £139.99), which comes with an array of different heads to cover every task.
