steam cleaner.Is it really necessary??
- Thread starter pampos
- Start date
Accumulator
Well-known member
pampos- I find a steamer to be a unique piece of equipment. It simply does stuff that no other tool can do. Necessary? I dunno....I got by without one for ages and I don't use it for some of the things that they're popular for. I bet most people could get by without one just fine. But I do find it just great for some jobs, often ones where I dunno *what* I could use in its place.
I'll let somebody else suggest an affordable one, I got this: KleenJet Ultra 1500C Steam Cleaner KleenJet Ultra 1500C
I'll let somebody else suggest an affordable one, I got this: KleenJet Ultra 1500C Steam Cleaner KleenJet Ultra 1500C
proudpoppa
New member
are you talking about an actual steamer, or hot water extractor? If talking about the extractor it will get ten times the results of a standard vac. Mytee is a good brand. Ive got the hp-100 and its been a great machine, just keep it clean.
imported_grease
New member
Accumulator said:
I purchased a used 1500C for $1200. I got by without steam cleaners for years, but now that Ive been using it for a couple months, I couldn't go back.
What do you use it for? Ive used it for dirty headliners, clearing wax out of hard to reach areas, aiding in leather cleaning, etc...
Showroom Shine
New member
I have an extractor. The Aztec Hotrod Hot Spotter. I'm expecting a little cash this week. I was considering getting a small good portable steamer. Is it a waste or not? Also what will I use it on? Since I'm a mobile detailer,I need one that haets up quick and can run off my generator. Is this a tool that I'll LOVE as much as my extractor and my Flex? I checked out the one on the link. Very big and pricey. I need something more potable and not as expensive.
Showroom Shine
New member
This is just my thoughts.
I think with the steamer ,you will still need an extractor or at least a wet vac. I do know if they make steamers that vac too. But for carpets ,mats and some cloth items, my extractor has saved me alot of times. I can not go back to agitating ,brushing ,and vac. Some carpet and mats are so dirty that they need power washing. After I power wash carpet or mats I then use my extractor to get out the excess water. I know a steamer is not going to put down as much water as my extractor does, the steam will not be as wet. As for the pros and cons, right now I prefer my extractor,because that's what I have. I'm still looking at steaners.
I think with the steamer ,you will still need an extractor or at least a wet vac. I do know if they make steamers that vac too. But for carpets ,mats and some cloth items, my extractor has saved me alot of times. I can not go back to agitating ,brushing ,and vac. Some carpet and mats are so dirty that they need power washing. After I power wash carpet or mats I then use my extractor to get out the excess water. I know a steamer is not going to put down as much water as my extractor does, the steam will not be as wet. As for the pros and cons, right now I prefer my extractor,because that's what I have. I'm still looking at steaners.
Woob
New member
First things first, steamers and extractors are completely different. Pretreat with the right chemical, then use the extractor to shoot hot water and suck at the same time. The difference is it uses hot water (200F is good baseline if I remember right) to shoot throughout the fibers of a carpet or upholstery. A steamer that starts say around $700+ uses 300F+ vapor that can be used literally on EVERYTHING on an interior and many exterior applications (wheels, gaps, windows). A steamer can be used to act as an extractor, with the proper brush or triangle attachment with microfiber attached. The Vac+Steamer combos aren't good from what I've heard.
Alot of it comes to preference, experience, & belief. If you're a serious pro an extractor/steamer is a must have. No vacuum can replace a quality piece of equipment.
Might want to read this article: Detailing Vapor Steamers | Using Vapor Steamers For Auto Detailing Compared To Carpet Extractors
Alot of it comes to preference, experience, & belief. If you're a serious pro an extractor/steamer is a must have. No vacuum can replace a quality piece of equipment.
Might want to read this article: Detailing Vapor Steamers | Using Vapor Steamers For Auto Detailing Compared To Carpet Extractors
Accumulator
Well-known member
Yeah, steamers and extractors are completely different. I *sometimes* use my steamer on carpeting, but not all that often and not nearly as often as I use the extractor.
I do sometimes use the steamer to help with cleaning leather but you gotta be careful doing that.
I use the steamer to blast stuff out of inaccessible areas, but I do *NOT* use mine to blast dust/etc. down into the HVAC ducts the way many people do.
I haven't used it much on headliners...I'm *very* careful about how I treat those.
I use the steamer under the hood and on undercarriages. It cleans up brake calipers very well (now that I have a potent steamer, my slightly less powerful one didn't work well for that).
Sometimes a combination of steaming and extracting is the only way I can get really nasty interiors decent. Hard to explain when/why/how, but when you have both units you can play around with them and find ways they can compliment each other.
The way the steamer can soften/emulsify some substances without liquefying them can be very handy (e.g., an *old* piece of melted hard candy I found under a seat bracket on the Denali XL, must've been there for years; the steamer softened it up so I could wipe away 90% of it, the extractor took care of the rest).
I haven't tried my steamer's chemical injection feature yet....
I do sometimes use the steamer to help with cleaning leather but you gotta be careful doing that.
I use the steamer to blast stuff out of inaccessible areas, but I do *NOT* use mine to blast dust/etc. down into the HVAC ducts the way many people do.
I haven't used it much on headliners...I'm *very* careful about how I treat those.
I use the steamer under the hood and on undercarriages. It cleans up brake calipers very well (now that I have a potent steamer, my slightly less powerful one didn't work well for that).
Sometimes a combination of steaming and extracting is the only way I can get really nasty interiors decent. Hard to explain when/why/how, but when you have both units you can play around with them and find ways they can compliment each other.
The way the steamer can soften/emulsify some substances without liquefying them can be very handy (e.g., an *old* piece of melted hard candy I found under a seat bracket on the Denali XL, must've been there for years; the steamer softened it up so I could wipe away 90% of it, the extractor took care of the rest).
I haven't tried my steamer's chemical injection feature yet....
E300Diesel
New member
Accumulator said:
Still like the Daimer Accumulator? Any additional tips and/or experiences to share regarding it's performance?
Accumulator
Well-known member
michakaveli said:
Yeah, I still like it.
No new tips, I still haven't tried the chemical injection. I dunno, the whole steamer thing seems intuitively obvious to me (what to do/not); once you get a steamer and play around with it for a while it'll probably seem intuitively obvious to *you* too
Well, obvious or not I've had two "oops!" incidents: I melted the plastic clip that holds the hood-prop rod on the RX-7 (duh..heat will melt plastic) and I melted the carpet in the MPV when I let the steam hit it a little too directly (duh#2..synthetic carpet will melt, just didn't expect the steam to be *that* hot).
And wear rubber dishwashing gloves when steaming to avoid burns.
That's it: avoid overheating stuff that'll melt and avoid overheating yourself. Oh, and don't pull the steamer around by the hose or you'll be buying a new hose in no time
