Category Archives: Homeware Reviews

First of all, let me say that this steam cleaner is to housework what Google is to the internet… invaluable!

When I first obtained my Karcher SC1.020, I didn’t realize just how ‘multi-purpose’ it would be.  I have used it, with great success, in most rooms in my house.

I suppose there were 2 reasons why I decided to try a steam washer.  The first being the fact that I live on a farm, with 3 young children constantly running in and out, bring all manner of dirt and grime with them.  The second reason is that I do not like using chemical cleaners in my house, as I can’t imagine the fumes and artificial perfumes of such cleaners being very good for you.  I am delighted to say that this steam cleaner cleans extremely effectively without the need for any additional cleaning creams, which is saving me money and providing a more healthy environment for my family.

This steam cleaner is very effective on my tiled kitchen floor, the beauty being in the fact that it does not leave streaks.  With very little effort on my part, my kitchen floor looks like new every time.( Mind you, it doesn’t stay that way very long!)

In our area, we are plagued with limescale in our water, which leaves awful stains on the shower and sink.  I usually have to spray on limescale remover and leave it to work for a while. This annoys me as the smell permeates through my whole house.  Not any more though, as this steam cleaner quickly and effectively removes all limescale and soap scum from my bathroom, with no nasty odours.  This is priceless to me.  It also managed to remove a patch of mould which has been slowly growing on the side of my shower tray, which I had tried in vain to remove with specialized mould remover.  My toilet has never been cleaner, with 2 boys in our house, this is no mean feat.

I have even used it to spot clean stains on my carpets that I had given up on ever being rid of. Now my carpets look like new again!

Not content with all this success, I decided to try my new toy on my windows.

I have to admit, I am not the most proficient window cleaner in the world, and find it hard to leave my windows streak-free.  I am pleased to say now that this is all in the past, as my steam cleaner is able to leave my windows spotless without using any window cleaner, which I always blamed for those residual streaks.

This Karcher steam cleaner comes with a variety of attachments, including a floor tool, a detail nozzle for those awkward, hard to reach areas, and a hand tool.  Terry cloths are supplied for both floor and hand tools.  I found the attachments simple to exchange, and the terry cloths are washable, which means they can be used over and over again.  The small brush tool is a very useful item, my husband uses this to clean the alloy wheels on our car with great success.

This Karcher steam cleaner has a 1 litre tank capacity.  As I was filling it for the first time, I was expecting to have to refill it a short time later, but I was surprised at how long the tank of water lasted.  The heat-up time is less than 10 minutes.  I use this time to do a quick vacumn before I started. There is a steam flow control on the handle, personally I find the machine to work best when I keep the steam output low. When I am finished, I press the nozzle to allow all the steam to escape, and then empty the tank- very simple.  It is surprisingly lightweight and compact which makes it very easy to store and transport around the house.

All in all, I would very much recommend this Karcher Steam Cleaner, it has certainly taken the ‘work’ out of housework for me and saves me valuable time, in which I can be doing many other important things.  I no longer dread cleaning day now that I have my new magic helper!  The only thing is, I’m wondering do my visitors think I have a cleaning service…

Available from www.karcher.co.uk