WE DID THE WORK TO FIND THE BEST AND THESE ARE THE RESULTS:
| Preview | Name | Awards | Purchase |
|---|---|---|---|
  | BISSELL Symphony | Best Overall | |
  | Hoover FloorMate | Best for the Money | |
  | BISSELL 1940 | Best on a Budget |
A steam mop for laminate floors is the best way to get your laminate/hard floors clean. In years past, a mop and bucket was all there was available to maintain the health of hardwood/tile/laminate flooring. Nowadays, we have advanced steam mops to handle these floor types, and they’ve been getting better and better over the years.
Back in 2004, mass-marketing of steam mops began. And although it hasn’t been long since they were invented, through consumer testing and feedback, they’ve become one of the most efficient ways to clean hard flooring types ever!
In this article, we’re going to be reviewing the top 3 steam mops for sale on Amazon, as well provide you with helpful information on how to use your mop, what other people have experienced, and tons of other”Need To Know” information so you learn how to use it most efficiently.
There’s much more than meets the eye when it comes to steam mops, and in this article, you’ll learn A LOT.
Best Steam Mop For Laminate Floors
The BISSELL Symphony Pet All-in-One Vacuum and Steam Mop lets you vacuum and steam clean your floors at the same time
Having a pet is one of the most therapeutic experiences you can have in this lifetime, but it’s not without responsibility. In order to take the best care of your floors that you can, while at the same time taking care of your beloved pet, it helps to purchase cleaning supplies that are designed with your pet in mind.
The BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One Vacuum and Steam Mop 1543A provides you with features that put you “one step ahead” in keeping your home as clean as it can be while catering to pet issues at the same time.
The BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One Vacuum and Steam Mop is one of the highest rated steam mops for sale today, and although the price tag is a bit expensive, BISSELL took out all the “stops” to deliver a steam mop that’s at the top of consumer “Wish Lists” this year.
Best Steam Mop For The Money
Dual Tank Technology, keeps clean and dirty water separate so you never put dirty water back on the floor
The Hoover FloorMate Deluxe Hard Floor Cleaner is the best option for people that want the best deal for the money. Meaning, you don’t always have to buy the most expensive model out there to get a hard floor cleaner that does a good job and lasts a long time.
To help you out a bit with comparison shopping, the BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One Vacuum and Steam Mop includes a wide range of features that are upgraded and much higher performance than most people need. The fact that pets require a lot of maintenance is the reason for the higher price tag. If you had a house full of pets that left messes frequently, and you needed to “clean house” quickly with VERY little fuss, the Symphony makes sense.
You can take care of pet messes pretty easy with the Hoover Floor Mate Deluxe, it just takes a bit longer to accomplish the same tasks. And since the FloorMate Deluxe is a lot cheaper than the Symphony, for some people it’s worth the sacrifice to spend a bit more time cleaning, and be able to spend less on the steam mop itself.
Best Steam Mop On A Budget
Kills 99.9Percent of germs and bacteria. The flip-down easy scrubber allows you to clean up the toughest messes, grout, sticky and dried-on spots
BISSELL has made it easy for people with an average salary to buy the home cleaning tools they need at a price that always pays for itself. And in record time too! The BISSELL 1940 Powerfresh Steam Mop is our pick for the Best Steam Mop On A Budget.
It’s packed with all the most necessary features we see in modern steam mops, and not much else. Why is this good? Because people on a budget need a user-friendly steam mop that gets the job done for a cheap price, but doesn’t “skimp” on quality.
Basically, the BISSELL 1940 is a much more scaled-down version of deluxe steam mops we see in the marketplace “armed to the teeth” to handle specialized cleaning scenarios with ease. (Pets, Hermetic Seals, Dual Spin Brushes, Built-In Vacuum, etc.)
It has most of the features you see in the more deluxe mops, but is designed to be simpler so people on a budget don’t have to waste money.
Why you need a Steam Mop
Steam mops are a relatively new-age way to clean floors. They were originally released to the public back in 2004, after prototypes successfully demonstrated their ability to clean floors better than methods used in the past (mop and bucket, scrub brush, etc.).
Steam mops are well known for their ability to disinfect high traffic areas with ease, such as where pets frequent, and in areas where children are known to place their bare hands and feet.
Because heat is bacterias natural enemy, the 212 degrees Fahrenheit steam from a steam mop is able to kill 99.9% of offensive bacteria on contact, and never leaves any form of offensive residue behind.
Steam mops help floors retain their original value for years longer than they would otherwise! Homes that would normally depreciate in value because of stagnant flooring can now retain, and even appreciate, in value. And it’s all thanks to the incredibly affordable innovation of steam mopping!
In addition to flooring, you can also use a steam mop to disinfect, remove stains, and leave your walls perfectly sanitized too. Sure, it’s not designed to function for wall cleaning, but other people have successfully done it!
Never Do The Following With A Steam Mop
Never Allow A Steam Mop To Idle When Hot – When steam starts erupting from a steam mop, it does so nearly instantly. So, if you think it’s safe to let your steam mop heat up while you go check on something, it’s NOT! Left unattended and in a standing position while steaming (for long periods), a steam mop is capable of doing a huge amount of damage to hard flooring!
Never Plug In A Steam Mop Without The Head Attached – Following normal operating procedure according to the owners manual is always smart practice. A steam mop isn’t designed to be plugged in without the mop head attached. You run the risk of electric shock or burning yourself if you try to attach the mop head while it’s trying to heat up.
Never Attempt To Use Additives In The Water Tank – Steam mops are designed to emit steam using water ONLY. Any additives you add to the water tank will clog the sprayers over time and reduce the functionality of the mop. Vinegar and other household cleaning agents aren’t designed to be used with a steam mop.
Never Leave The Microfiber Pad Wet When Stored Away- The microfiber pads included with steam mops are best laundered immediately after use, while attaching a fresh microfiber pad to the mop during storage. Through owning multiple microfiber pads, one can be “used up” and then sent to the wash, while you store the steam mop away with a fresh pad attached. Storing the mop away with a wet microfiber pad allows bacteria and mildew to flourish.
Never Apply Large Amounts Of Steam To Cold Porcelain – Porcelain fixtures, such as toilets, aren’t designed to handle the fluctuating nature of steam temperature. If you carelessly apply large amounts of steam to porcelain, you run the risk of cracking it.
Never Skip The Vacuuming Process – Steam mops are powerful cleaning tools to sanitize and bring new life to your home, but they’re not without their limitations. If you don’t vacuum or sweep first, all you’ll be left with is smears of wet dirt! Always look at steam cleaning in a SANITIZATION respect, NEVER as a primary way of removing dirt.
What Makes A Great Steam Mop – Buyer’s Guide
Long power cord – A power cord of 20′ or 30′ allows you to move from room to room without having to change outlets. Believe it or not, this is a major issue for people who clean frequently, and not having to be bothered with the power cord reduces a lot of stress.
Large Capacity Water Tank – Any part of a steam mop that requires additional time to manage and work with, whether it be messing with the power cord, filling the detergent reservoir, or having to replace microfiber pads frequently, takes away from your available cleaning time.
A large capacity water tank ensures that you won’t have to make frequent water faucet trips for refills, and that you’ll be making the most efficient use of your time that you can.
Wide Cleaning Head – The cleaning head of a steam mop should ideally be around 11-13 inches across. This way, you get more accomplished with each pass and spend less time cleaning.
Folding Handle – A handle that folds away lets you store your steam mop in tight spaces. The more spaces you have to fit your steam mop in, the better you can use the storage space you do have most efficiently.
A Feature Set You Can Actually Make Use Of – Every steam mop has its own abilities and strong points, so it’s up to you to decide which steam mop will fit you best. Watching demonstration videos of the steam mop you’re considering helps, as does reading online reviews and recommendations from people who’ve actually owned one.
Remember, as with most products in the marketplace, don’t consider the price tag of a steam mop you’re considering as the “be-all end-all” deciding factor. Instead, remember that most every model steam mop is designed to serve a specific set of purposes, and the price tag itself really has NOTHING to do with how much value you can get from it PERSONALLY.
For example, if you don’t have pets, then you won’t need the extra pet features. Or, if you don’t have messes that require spinning scrub brushes, you won’t be able to justify the added expense of a steam mop that offers them.
High Quality Microfiber Pads – A steam mop should come with a strong set of microfiber pads so you’re able to handle messes without getting frustrated and giving up. Part of the joy of owning a steam mop is to be able to make FULL USE of what steam cleaning can do. Which is actually quite A LOT!
Warranty – Steam mops get used so frequently that we’re lucky to get a warranty with them at all. While the warranties that come with most steam mops aren’t for periods of 5 years or more, you at least get 1-2 year protection from them so you can return a factory defect or malfunction if you need to.
Best Steam Mop For Laminate Floors – Full Review
BISSELL continues to show itself the proven winner in consumer polls as one of the all-time best home cleaning product companies out there. They’ve got a full line of home cleaning products that cover the entire spectrum of home cleaning scenarios.
The BISSELL Symphony Pet All-in-One Vacuum and Steam Mop lets you vacuum and steam clean your floors at the same time
The BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One Vacuum and Steam Mop comes fully loaded with high quality features specifically designed with pet owners in mind. Everyday people, in homes without pets, end up spending JUST ABOUT the same amount of time using lower-end steam mop models as people with pets do using the BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One.
And it’s all thanks to the highly innovative design of the Symphony. The dual function steam cleaning and vacuuming ability allows pet owners to make quick work of what would otherwise require much more cleaning time than the average pet-free home.
The result? The BISSELL Symphony greatly reduces the amount of time it takes to clean your home as a pet owner! Now pet owners don’t have to say that owning or cleaning up after their pet is a chore they don’t like, because cleaning a pet home with the Symphony takes just about as long as cleaning a pet-free home does with lower end model steam mops.
BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One Vacuum and Steam Mop – Features
Cleans Both Hard Flooring And Carpets – The BISSELL Symphony, unlike many other steam mops, allows you to switch between hard flooring and carpets with a simple change of the head attachment. The vacuum function offers stronger suction than BISSELL models of the past, and the steam clean function effectively kills 99.9% of germs and bacteria .
Fast-Heat Steam Tank – The steam tank on the BISSELL Symphony Pet All-in-One heats up in 30 seconds, helping you get more done in less time.
Easy Touch Digital Controls – Changing the settings on the BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One Vacuum and Steam Mop is easy. You can instantly switch between low steam, high steam, and vacuum modes.
Exclusive “Drop-It” Dirt Tank Emptying System – With dirt tanks of the past, there was always a chance you’d get your hands dirty. With BISSELL’s exclusive “Drop-It” dirt tank emptying system, with the push of a button the dirt falls out, all while keeping your hands a safe distance away.
Folding Handle With Small Storage Footprint – The storage footprint of the BISSELL Symphony Pet All-In-One is only 6 x 12 inches so you’ll have more space for your stuff!
SwifferBISSELL SteamBOOST Disposable Mop Pads – The included disposable mop pads by SwifferBISSELL SteamBOOST provide an out-of-the-box hypo-allergenic and efficient way to clean up tough messes. Replacement pads are cheap, around $1 each. You can also purchase reusable/washable mop pads and spare yourself the expense of monthly SteamBOOST replacements.
Lab Tested For Quality Assurance – Tested under real lab conditions to ensure it meets safety and performance standards.
Best Steam Mop For Laminate Floors For The Money – Full Review
A step up from the BISSELL 1940, the Hoover FloorMate Deluxe isn’t the most full featured steam mop out there, but it comes with all the power you need to handle tough cleaning jobs with a strong motor and set of powerful spin brushes.
Dual Tank Technology, keeps clean and dirty water separate so you never put dirty water back on the floor
And not only that, but the Hoover Floor Mate Deluxe Hard Floor Cleaner is designed with a front end that seals strongly to the floor to maximize cleaning ability. With a tight seal, the spin scrub brushes deliver a higher level of clean than more cheaply designed hard floor cleaners for sale currently.
Below, we’re going to outline the features of the Hoover FloorMate Deluxe as well as some helpful information to help you make sense of it all.
Hoover FloorMate Deluxe Hard Floor Cleaner – Features
11.5-Inch Removable Cleaning Head – Making quick work of floor cleaning chores is easy with the 11.5 inch removable cleaning head. It only takes a handful of quick passes across your laminate, marble, tile, grout, or other hard flooring surface to create a fresh, clean, sanitary area.
Dual Cleaning Tanks – The 1.5 quart clean water tank allows you to tackle large cleaning areas without having to empty out the dirty water tank all the time. The dual tanks keep the clean and dirty water separate, so you always get a super clean end result.
Multi-Purpose SpinScrub Technology – The 8 spin scrub brushes do an amazing job to get your floors as clean as they can be. They wash and scrub hard floor surfaces at all possible angles, and thusly clean faster than many other competing models.
Clean Boost Control – If you encounter a dried on floor mess that requires a bit more cleaning power, the Clean Boost Control lets you add a blast of detergent to a specific spot with a push of a button.
Wash/Dry Mode Selection – In wash mode, the Hoover Floor Mate Deluxe is designed to get dirty areas clean, with a focus on the floor washing process. When it’s time to dry your freshly washed floors, the Dry Mode selection stops the spin brushes and directs all the power to the vacuuming ability.
20′ Cord Length – While not the longest power cord length out there, the 20′ gives you enough space to move across even huge rooms with no outlet switching. Two small rooms can be tackled at once!
13.8 Lb Total Weight – While deep carpet cleaners such as the Rug Doctor weigh in at nearly 40 lbs, it’s nice to know that the Hoover FloorMate Deluxe is only 13.8 lbs. That means less fatigue when cleaning, and more energy to tackle additional household cleaning projects.
2-Year Limited Warranty – The 2 year warranty is plenty of time to not only recoup the cost of the Hoover FloorMate Deluxe purchase, but also ensures you get your money back in the event of a product defect.
Best Steam Mop For Laminate Floors On A Budget– Full Review
BISSELL continues to prove themselves as the undisputed king of home cleaning. The BISSELL 1940 is one of the cheapest ways to get your hardwood, laminate, tile, and marble floors clean on a budget, and still retain the legendary quality BISSELL is famous for.
Kills 99.9Percent of germs and bacteria. The flip-down easy scrubber allows you to clean up the toughest messes, grout, sticky and dried-on spots
This steam mop costs so much less than competing steam mops, but does a wonderful job to include all the basics known to keep hard floors as clean as they can possibly be.
Below, we’re going to outline the feature set along with some helpful info so you can see exactly what this steam mop has to offer.
BISSELL 1940 Powerfresh Steam Mop Features
Steam Technology Kills 99.9% Of Germs And Bacteria – The BISSELL 1940 Powerfresh Steam Mop allows you to clean and sanitize any hard floor without the use of chemicals. When it comes to getting your floors as clean as they can possibly be, steam is the greatest!
Steam works to clean so well because the temperature is an incredible 212 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s hot enough to kill all known forms of bacteria, molds, mildew, and viruses on contact!
Flip-Down Scrubber – Just because steam works so well to clean up messes, that doesn’t mean you should be putting wasteful effort into cleaning.
The flip-down scrubber on the BISSELL 1940 lets you tackle tough messes and remove dried-on spots in record time. The average 1 foot area of dried on spaghetti sauce (left to dry for 72 hours), is removed nearly effortlessly by the BISSELL 1940 in just 5 minutes! It can get into crevices and hard to reach areas too!
Variable Steam Control – You control the amount of steam that the BISSELL 1940 Powerfresh Steam Mop creates. Use a lot for tough messes, or keep the setting on low to preserve the lifespan of the unit.
Removable Water Tank – Working with the removable water tank is a snap. It simply clicks into place and can be removed with the push of a button.
Microfiber Scrubbing Pads (Two)- Because not every mess is the same, you get to choose between two different microfiber pads. One with scrubber strips for caked on messes, and one that’s smoother for everyday cleaning.
Disposable Fragrance Disc Slot – This steam mop is compatible with Febreeze scented fragrance discs. These discs are reusable and disposable, and replacement discs don’t cost a lot. There’s more than one scent to choose from, and a single disc can last months at a time in a single person home!
Soft-Grip Handle – Cleaning chores can last all day, and BISSELL knows this like the back of their hand! You can always count on the comfort-grip handle to deliver lasting comfort without soreness.
23′ Foot Power Cord – The ample power cord length allows you to travel across more than one room without having to change outlets. With no “outlet nag” going on, you’ll be more likely to do a better job cleaning.
1 Year Warranty – Because the BISSELL 1940 is a streamlined version of more deluxe steam mops, and thusly costs a lot less, BISSELL knows that people might choose to use it aggressively to tackle hard jobs because it’s so cheap. That being said, it does come with a 1 year warranty to keep you safe from factory defects at least.
Other Considerations
If you want to get the most from your steam mop, using distilled/purified water is best. Distilled water prevents scaling from building up in the internal parts, allows it to run “cleaner”, and extends the lifespan of the mop.
Also, steam mops should never take the place of other steam based cleaning tools designed to serve purposes that steam mops aren’t appropriate for. Trying to force steam mops to fit into awkward places is dangerous and can result in accidents or injury quite easily.
Simple Steam Mop Tips For Excellent Results
Tip #1 : Vacuum And Sweep Frequently To Keep Floors Clean Between Steam Mop Sessions
Vacuum/sweep hard floors frequently in between steam mopping sessions to preserve the life of your microfiber pads. The more dirt they come in contact with, the less lifespan you’ll get from them.
Tip #2 : Learn To Apply The “Idle Steam” Technique
When you spot a really difficult stain on your hard flooring, such as a really “tacky” dried on grease stain, simply set the steam mop on top of the stain itself and let sit for about 20 seconds. Then, lift the steam mop off the stain so you don’t risk damaging the floor with the idle steam, let it cool a bit, and then repeat the 20 seconds steam/ cool down cycle as many times as it takes to lift and remove the stain.
You’ll need to gauge how long is safe to leave a steam mop “steam idle” in a single spot, as every flooring type has a different “threshold” of safety when it comes to idle steam duration.
Tip #3 : Learn How To Use Mopping “Motions” For Better Results
There’s methods of back and forth, circular, and combination mopping motions that can greatly increase the productivity of your cleaning efforts. Using the correct amount of downward pressure while using the mop helps, and has a direct affect on the lifespan of your microfiber pads.
Instead of overusing/abusing the delicate nature of the pads, the remainder of some messes should be absorbed with a paper towel or washcloth once you’ve loosened them enough with steam.
For example, beginners to steam cleaning might attack a stain with only a simple back and forth motion and get poor results. It’s easy to get discouraged that way.
If the mop owner would have realized that applying a circular mopping motion with light pressure (for about 20 seconds to “prep” the area), then a back and forth motion with strong pressure (for about 20 seconds to scrub the stain out), and finally a circular motion again (for about 10 seconds to buff and finish), would remove the stain quite easily, then they’d know how to remove similar stains in the future without frustration.
You can choose from one of the 3 we’ve showcased, or you can take what you’ve learned and do your own comparison shopping. Some steam mops for sale are designed to serve specific purposes, and it’s up to you to decide what kind of steam mop you need. As you can see from the 3 we’ve showcased, there’s no “One Size Fits All” that will be perfect for everyone. So be sure to inspect the features of any steam mop you’re considering to be sure it’s a proper fit for you.
