If there is an easier way to mop a floor, I want it. Years ago, I had a Steam powered Cleaning machine that was called the shark, but it was damaged in a move. I went looking to replace it, and found the Euro Pro Shark Steam Mop
What it is
This is a glorified mop that shoots steam out to help clean the floor. The water is held in a small tank, and you plug it in, the water heats up, and emits steam to help you clean your floors. The dirt or grime is picked up with a reusable microfiber pad.
What I don't Like About The Shark Steam Mop
One - The water container is very small, so you can only use the Steam Shark so long.
Two - The Steam Shark Needs to be plugged in to work. Alright, I guess I shouldn't complain about this one, after all, vacuum cleaners need to be plugged in as well. It's just that one gets used to mopping without worrying about holding the cord out of the way.
Three - Reusable Microfiber Pads? You get two "microfiber" pads with this that basically stick to the mop bottom via velcro. As far as I can see microfiber is a stupid buzz word designed to sell stuff, because I saw no advantage whatsoever in this over a plain white rag. The package suggests throwing it in the laundry to clean and reuse them. Of course you don't want to throw the dirt off your kitchen or bathroom floor in with your laundry, so these should be washed separately. So now, in addition to still having to mop your floor, you now get to do a load of laundry for the two re usable microfiber pads! You could also hand wash them. I thought the purpose of this was to make my life easier.
Four - It doesn't really Clean Very Well!
I really thought that any grime or stains would come off like a charm with this. The area that my cat eats in the kitchen is always a mess, and I don't really like to clean with chemicals close to where he eats. This seemed like a good solution. Trouble is, it isn't! The microfiber pad or whatever it is, just doesn't really do anything to remove stains even with a big dose of steam. It also only does floors. My old Steam Shark had several attachments so you could blast your counters, your bathtub or whatever other hard surfaced areas you needed clean. I don't think this is the same company that makes this mop, because the steam and water just doesn't shoot out in the all powerful cleaning jet that I had hoped, or had with my old Steam Shark.
After I "cleaned" my kitchen with the Shark Steam Mop, I couldn't help but notice that when I mop the floor the old fashioned way (with a big bucket o' harsh cleaning chemicals in hot water), the floor comes out MUCH cleaner and shinier looking.
Five - Value Well, the Steam shark costs $80.00, which is about 8 times more than a good old fashioned mop. Alright maybe not so much when you factor in a bucket and some bleach and shining agents. However, I found it horribly overpriced for the lackluster job that it did.
What I like About the Shark Steam Mop
It disassembles easily to go back into its box, to be returned to Sears.
My background / evaluation experience
I'm a divorced guy. I'm messy sometimes, and I don't have a maid so I do my own housework. I don't like to mop floors. I have a cat who eats messily. I have a son who spills things on the floor occasionally. Alright, I also spill things on occasion. In the simplest words possible, I have a real life messy kitchen floor that looks nothing like those beautiful kitchen floors in magazine ads. I got this mop to transform said messy floor into one of those magazine style floors.
Summary
Steam can be used to clean, if I could find or fix the Steam Shark I used to have, I would. However, this product, the Pro Shark Steam Mop didn't do the trick for me, and it has too many problems for me to recommend it to anyone.
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