This steam cleaner is the last essential tool in my house maintenance equipment. Originally bought to maintain floors, I now steam curtains and clothes to protect against moths, dust the skirting boards, banister and all the other less frequently cleaned areas and corners, and effortlessly clean the windows too.
Material and build quality:
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The overall build quality and design is very good indeed. I was initially concerned with the quality of the plastic. It is not ABS but a cheaper plastic. The entire machine is made of it where I would have liked a metal tubing handle section at least. In use, the machine is excellent although I do not like using it as a steam wand due to the short 30” flexi attachment making it too bulky and uncomfortable for cleaning the entire bathroom.
Where I find issues arise with plastics in domestic tools is where objects are continually knocked against hard surfaces or where the tool falls over or is dropped onto a hard surface.
Design wise, I really like it’s ability to fold in half for easy storage. I also appreciate the simple removal of the water tank for practical refilling whether it is used in the hand held mode or floor mop mode. Not being heavy, it is also very easy to steam carpets.
The H20 can be left free-standing’ when not used but it is not stable and easily knocked over. It is for this reason that I ensure I ALWAYS lean it against a wall. I also take a pro-active approach to prevent damage when I’m using it. It isn’t cheap and there are far better dedicated and more robust floor streamers out there but they are not as versatile. I already have a Henry vacuum cleaner + turbo tools, large carpet cleaner, and two battery G-Techs. Storing tools conveniently means I need to think of size and space. If I can’t get to it, I am less likely to use it. The H20 HD fold in half and is easy to store as are the attachments and it is for this reason I bought it.
The cloth mop heads are excellent quality and I will be buying more original spares. I did originally have the older version of this mop. I did not look after it and bought cheap mop heads. It constantly blocked, was not well designed, the 3rd party mop heads fell apart quickly and it finally stopped working.
The H20 HD filters are excellent and last 3 months according to Thane. I will be sticking to this cadence. At current prices, this works out at £2.50 per month which, if used almost daily, I feel is very reasonable and ensures the machine will not need de-scaling or risk blocking up altogether. I will be regularly running white vinegar or citric acid through it too
In Use - 1st weekend!
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I had not planned to do any housework on the first weekend following the delivery but ended up deep cleaning carpets and organising my chaotic attic too.
I work from home and so continually maintain the house throughout the week.
I knew that if I steamed all floors, I’d keep pet smells down. I also thought I would save on the whole floor mop prep wash and dry time. What I didn’t know was just how much I’d use this tool.
Firstly, the stone floors are now steam cleaned daily as it is that easy and convenient
For the carpets, which I will now steam weekly, it occurred to me that I could also steam them as a preparation to using the carpet cleaner. I was shocked at how much more dirt was then washed out of them and in a far quicker amount of time I usually have to do two full passes with the carpet cleaner - a big machine which only comes out about twice a year and usually takes me the entire weekend to complete the house and stairs.
I iron as little as possible but now I can steam only the essential items when needed. The wife still washes and irons anything merely glanced at, her choice!
Whilst in the attic, where I have my, now redundant, officewear and seasonal wardrobe, I saw a carpet moth. I know that steam kills moths, larvae and eggs so I began to steam the immediate area. This lead to me to deciding to steam the floor…which was heavily cluttered and so I spent the next 4 hours reorganising the entire attic, hanging all clothing on the four rails I bought 2 years ago for the job, and then, to finish, I decided to steam each item of clothing…one by one!
Next unplanned job was the windows. You do need to polish windows/mirrors after washing but that was fine. However, as I was cleaning them, I noticed how dusty the shutters were. This lead to them being cleaned too - didn’t even have to change the attachment.
So, House is now cleaner and I am happy with my purchase.
I hope this review and my initial experience helps someone to make a decision.
I am very impressed with this tool and hope it will last a long time. I was not prepared to clean my whole house to to bottom almost within the first weekend of its arrival but now have a base line. Be prepared to get carried away cleaning!
| Brand | H2O |
|---|---|
| Model Number | 208001UK |
| Colour | Black |
| Product Dimensions | 65 x 24 x 20 cm; 2.92 kg |
| Capacity | 450 Millilitres |
| Power / Wattage | 1500 watts |
| Voltage | 240 |
| Material | Plastic |
| Runtime | 25 minutes |
| Special Features | Lightweight |
| Item Weight | 2.92 kg |
