It is a misbelief that a solution is required to duly clean and disinfect surfaces using a steam cleaner.
Steam cleaners do not utilise anything other than water since they must boil it to produce pressured steam. If you use a laundry detergent or another chemical-based cleaning solution in a steam cleaner, it will produce hazardous fumes that might endanger you and others around you, damage the equipment, cause an explosion, or could result in toxic clouds of dangerous smoke and smells.
Why Don’t Use Solutions in Steam Cleaner?
You cannot ignore the fundamentals of using steam cleaning as a modern necessity for every home. You’ll find portable steam cleaners perfect for cleaning clothes and can clean house floors and walls. It is a legitimate safety concern to inform you about the steam cleaner’s purpose, usage, and cleaning ability, especially the safety and cons.
Steam cleaners do not require solutions since they are designed to generate steam from only water, which is then used to clean and sterilise surfaces. The high temperature of the steam is what kills bacteria and germs; but, if you add a cleaning solution such contain chemicals, it may cause severe harm by releasing noxious gases from heating the chemical solution you’ve filled in the steam cleaner tank.
That’s the reason, it is advised not to use solutions in steam cleaners. They work well with regular water and are effective on almost any surface cleaning, but use them with caution to avoid burning your hands.
How to Use Steam Cleaner without Chemical Solutions?
You should always use plain water in the steam cleaner. This is a safe and effective way to clean many surfaces, including floors, countertops, and appliances. The high temperature of the steam will kill bacteria and germs, and will also help to loosen dirt and grime from grouts and other hard-to-reach places in the bathroom, kitchen, and in corners of the house.
If you are concerned about disinfectants (Hydrogen Per Oxide) and other cleaning chemicals that can help in the killing of microbes, viruses, and germs, You may do it using a sprayer instead of a steam cleaner. Steam mops and other steam cleaners require just water to function, which means you cannot use ‘disinfectants’ in the steam cleaner instead of plain water; if you do, you are putting your health and property in danger.
In addition to avoiding cleaning solutions, you should avoid adding essential oils to the water in your steam cleaner. Even though they nurse to refresh the air and leave a nice aroma behind. However, steam cleaners are created to handle no other refilling materials other than water. So, it is necessary to avoid using essential oils, vinegar, or other DIY or chemical-based cleaning solutions in steam cleaners, as they are not compatible.
Our Last Safety Concerns
Water is the only thing that can be used in a steam cleaner. Laundry detergents and DIY remedies are unfit since steam cleaners are designed to work with only water, and adding anything else can damage or degrade the machine’s performance. It can also damage the surface, turn a pleasant atmosphere into a toxic zone by emitting harmful smoke, and fumes, and in extreme cases could burn the surface.
