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Clothes steamer

(7 Posts)
Rosiebee Sun 29-Jan-23 09:20:49

I recently read a favourable article on clothes steamers. Can anyone give a personal recommendation on using them? I do tend to iron most items of clothing and thought that a steamer would save time and my achy back. Thanks.

Oopsadaisy1 Sun 29-Jan-23 09:26:18

I used them when I volunteered at a Charity Shop and they were brilliant, but the room I used them in got very steamy so I had to have the doors wide open, not good in the Winter. It was a commercial steamer so maybe a domestic one would be better?

So they are very good and easy to use, but the condensation created is not so good.
I had to clean out the water container each week as it gets filled with a yucky sludge, but it was in constant use so probably won’t be so bad in a home setting.

Georgesgran Sun 29-Jan-23 09:28:08

I loved my Polti steam iron system - produced great results, but after many years use, the water tank sprang a leak. I didn’t replaced it (just with a normal iron) as I don’t have that much ironing now. I understand the system’s much improved now, in that the tank can be topped up during use, whereas mine was more like a pressure cooker and I had to wait for the system to cool down before I could release the pressure and add more water.
I’m sure other GNs will provide helpful obs on newer systems.

Marydoll Sun 29-Jan-23 09:37:17

I bought a hand held steamer from Lidl, I have found it handy, when an item is difficult to iron.

Rosiebee Sun 29-Jan-23 13:02:52

Thanks. It was a hand held steamer that I'd read about. Thought it might also be useful to take on holiday. Useful point about the condensation.

AreWeThereYet Sun 29-Jan-23 13:54:05

I used to have a hand steamer and found it incredibly useful in the Summer when most clothes are thin and lightweight. I was always a bit wary of the steam and used it either in the bathroom over tiles or on the patio outside the patio doors. I used to hang things from the door fitting to steam then on the dryer in the garden. I can't remember the make, I bought it in the US and it broke after about two years. Still think about replacing it as it was quite quick and very lightweight.

AreWeThereYet Thu 23-Feb-23 16:06:11

I've just bought a cheap and cheerful Beldray clothes steamer from Lidl for £12.99 🤨 No idea if it will work very well, but the OP started me thinking about summer clothes so I thought I would give it a try.

First problem - the cord isn't very long, about a metre I think. I can plug it into an extension cable if necessary though. The little plastic jug that comes with it for filling the tank is tiny so I've chucked it in favour of my old bigger one from my iron. The tank isn't huge so no idea how much it will need to be refilled. I'll give it a go tomorrow to see how well it works on different things.