Pros: Fast-drying, super clean with no nasty chemicals
Cons: I wish the water reservoir was clear, and held a little more
The Bottom Line: I really love this nifty gadget for achieving a safe, chemical-free, sparkly clean for my floors. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone.
I recently purchased the Shark Steam Mop on a whim at my local Costco for three reasons:
1. I hate mopping because I have a very large, open tile space on the main floor, which usually takes 12 years to dry.
2. Costco would let me return it no questions asked if I am dissatisfied after giving it a whirl.
3. We are committed to cleaning our home as "greenly" as possible.
Given that the purchase was risk-free, the Shark was plopped into my cart and came home with us.
Assembly and use
I assembled the unit easily whilst humming the theme to "Jaws". It basically comes in 3 pieces you line up and snap together. There were instructions, but you honestly don't need them to assemble it. Very straightforward.
I then stuck the little microfiber cleaning pad onto the bottom of the Shark. The velcro seems pretty sturdy. I should note here that the package at Costco comes with FOUR of the little cleaning pads, vice the two that come with the unit if you buy it at Target or elsewhere.
I then proceeded to fill the Shark. It comes with a pitcher marked "max fill line" and a teeny little funnel. You stand up the mop, unscrew the lid to the water reservoir, and use the funnel to pour water in from the little pitcher. Then you screw the lid back on, and away you go. The little pitcher holds just shy of 8 oz.
Once you are filled up, you plug in the Shark and wait 30 seconds or so for it to heat up. Once it heats up, you're off and away. You mop in a sort of pumping motion - on the "push" of the mop stroke, you are pushing the handle in to pump the steam. This is just like using the steam burst feature on most clothes irons. You just mop like usual, and the mop emits steam. There's no more effort required than regular mopping (because you'd be pushing your regular mop forward anyway).
As for residue, the mop leaves none. The floor will be wet, but not heavily so. It typically dries in under 5 minutes. THis is because you have cleaned it with steam, instead of water.
I've read other reviews that discussed noise coming from this unit. Honestly, it makes the same amount of noise as a steam iron, which anyone should expect. The heating mechanism itself makes no noise whatsoever. You only hear the noise of steam being released. So turn on your clothes iron, heat it up, and pump the steam button. That's the extent of the noisiness of this item.
(UPDATE 11/1: My one year old has started refusing to nap anywhere but on the couch in the family room, and we have a very open floorplan. The other day I mopped my entire kitchen and hallway (probably 600 sf of tile) while she slept, and she never even batted an eyelash. That's how nice and quite this puppy really is.)
The Shark has a 20 foot cord, which is a limitation of this kind of mop vis a vis a regular old sponge mop or a Swiffer Wet Jet. However, that's what you get with an electric item. I found that via strategic planning, I only needed to unplug and replug once to do my very large kitchen. So I advise just planning your outlet access in advance.
Performance
After the first mopping, I crawled around on the floor to take a look at the results, and they were impressive. Sparkly clean, with no smell.
I did discover that it takes a little bit more elbow grease to get up sticky stuff, or stubborn spills (like formula your baby tossed onto the floor and you didn't notice because it is the same color as the floor and the baby had a blowout diaper to distract you). However, those spills still come up just as effectively as a regular mop. Given that you are not employing any chemicals, it's honestly to be expected that it might take a little more work. If you're a member of the green cleaning movement, you're used to trading a little more effort for a better quality clean. The reason chemicals cut through everything so fast is that they are chemicals, and highly toxic at that. Given the choice, I'll take an additional pass with the steam mop over putting something as nasty as PineSol down on my floors. ANd really, how many difficult spills are you likely to be cleaning up on mopping day? Most of those you are wiping up when they happen, anyway.
The proof is in the cleaning pad at the end of the mopping - man, was that thing filthy! It got all the dirt up, and did not swish or swirl it around on the floor as a sponge mop might do.
So how far does that 1 cup of water go? I can clean a 20' x 17' space without needing a refill.
Care
The cleaning pads are made of microfiber, and you just toss them in the wash using warm water. The manufacturer recommends that you NOT use bleach or fabric softener, as this will damage the microfiber over time. The manufacturer also recommends air-drying the pads. ANd obviously, because of the velcro, you should wash these separately or put them in a garment bag so you don't damage other items in your wash.
The mop itself doesn't really require any care. Just don't do anything stupid like trying to clean it with chemical solvents. It shouldn't need any cleaning at all as long as you don't spill stuff on it!
Cons/limitations/things I hope they change
All in all, I am pretty happy with my Shark Steam Mop. However, there are a few things I think they could improve.
First, I'd like to see the water reservoir made clear, or less opaque. It can be difficult to tell how much water is in there. So if you go to refill it, you can actually overfill it easily if you are not paying attention and the reservoir was not fully empty.
Next, it would be nice if the reservoir was slightly larger. I can do my kitchen, but it would be nice not to need a refill to take the unit down the hallway and clean the foyer and the powder room.
Finally, I'd like to see the fill mechanism improved a little bit. There really is no room for error with that tiny funnel - and the funnel is tiny. I can see how it could easily be lost, and then finding a new tiny replacement funnel might be difficult.
Summary
I am very happy with my Shark Steam Mop. On extremely difficult spills, it does require some more elbow grease than a normal mop, but honestly, shame on me if this is a serious problem! Difficult spills should be few and far between.
The cleaning quality is great, and I am extremely pleased to achieve it without putting chemicals on my floors. The floors dry quickly, which means less time out of my life to mop & wait. Mopping is no longer a dreaded chore.
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