Review of the Vax Steam Fresh Combi (VX 24)
Like most busy mothers I am forever cleaning my floors. It seems that no sooner it's cleaned, between Little Miss, and my dog, it really doesn't last long before I have to do it all over again. If you haven't yet discovered the power of steam, read on, because it's seriously a game changer.
I cannot remember the last time I used an old-school mop and bucket. The thought actually grosses me out. A wet mop head, being dunked into a bucket of water… not only is it a lot of work, it's unhygienic and inefficient. It leaves too much water on the floor which takes forever to dry, and the detergent actually attracts MORE dirt on the floor. For those with porcelain or shiny tiles, the streaks are enough to make any person cringe! Totally counterproductive.
That’s only some of the reasons why I love steaming cleaning my floors. Not only is it much easier, and more hygienic, it doesn’t leave any detergent residue on my floors. And no streaks!
So when I was gifted with the Vax Steam Fresh Combi (VX 24) I was excited to see if it would live up to my expectations. What I immediately noticed about it was that it was a pretty lightweight design compared to what I had used before. I have a very large amount of floor space to clean, so this is a big deal for me. I don’t want to have to lug around a heavy machine.
The machine allows you to use detergent with it. Apparently combining detergent and steam cleans 99.9% of bacteria so I was intrigued to see how this would work.
It's got a separate water and detergent tank and both need to be unclipped to fill (above is the detergent tank). The water tank is 260ml and is located at the front of the machine. I found it relatively easy to follow the instructions to fill both tanks.
The machine comes with a small bottle of the detergent (around 250ml), and mine was the citrus breeze scent (featured below). It’s measured too so you just fill it up to the marked line (it requires 50ml of detergent for each fill up), but I believe you don’t need to use detergent if you don’t want to!
It came with many attachments including a carpet glider, a hose, metal brush, small and large plastic brushes, window and scraping tools, a grout brush and two nozzles! I've yet to try out all the attachments.
It also came with two floor pads so you can use one while the other is in the wash. I loved that they were blue and not white! Want to know why? Most manufacturers make the pad white, and we all know that after a few uses it won't stay white no matter how well its washed! They always ends up discolouring which annoys me, however, the fact that Vax made the pad blue was big tick for me. Purchasing additional cleaning pads is affordable as well, I believe The Good Guys sell a four pack for $29.99.
I loved that the machine was very quick to heat up (about 20 seconds!) and I could basically use it straight away. With many other machines you need to wait for quite a few minutes until it’s ready. It was also pretty quiet too when I started using it, which was also another bonus.
The power cord is fairly long, and I didn't need to attach an extension lead which was super convenient.
To release the steam you need to push the white trigger on the handle (pictured above), and I have to say this is the one thing that I found it difficult getting used to. I prefer continual steam to clean my floors, so this meant I basically had my hand holding down on the lever the whole time.
It was pretty easy to maneuver and I loved that it had a triangle shaped mop head as it made it easy to get into corners! The side of the machine was cushioned with the pad which means the machine wasn't scraping on the side of my architraves. Another tick.
Áfter going over my floors quickly, it did clean my floors well and any marks and spots were removed without too much back and forth motion. The floor also dried fairly quickly because there wasn’t too much water left on my floors. (Although it did leave more water that my previous steam cleaner.)
As I mentioned I have a VERY large floor space to clean, probably a lot more than an average sized home. I found that to clean my ground level (including my kitchen, lounge room, laundry, powder room and formal lounge) I needed to fill up the machine FOUR times, which meant I used 200ml of detergent. I also found it a bit of an inconvenience going back and forth to the tap to fill it up.
Once I had finished my floor, I loved that there was a very fresh and pleasant smell which wasn’t too overpowering. It’s one thing I missed about using steam cleaners with just water, you don’t get a fresh smell. So I can now see the appeal of why the power of steam and detergent’ has proven a hit with Australian consumers. However, as a downside, the cost of purchasing the detergent can add up. I believe Bunnings sell a 1 litre bottle for $18.90 (featured left below). I probably wouldn’t clean my floors with the detergent every single time, but I’d definitely use it often.
What I really loved was the handheld feature. It was really easy to remove from the base and click on the attachment. I have a recessed kitchen sink, which looks beautiful but also means that grime and dirt tend to accumulate underneath it. It's impossible to clean out without the use of a steamer. So I was super excited to see if this would get all the grit out.
The handheld attachment is extremely light compared to other ones I’ve used, and the attachment worked perfectly. I also used it to clean around my stove top, after I had already cleaned it to the best of my ability. And you won’t believe all the grit that still managed to come out! (see photo below!) I also love using this in my bathroom around the fixtures in there. Just when you think it’s clean, after using this you realise that it was not indeed!
I've been using this Vax Steam Fresh Combi for a few weeks now, and overall I have found it to provide efficient and effective results. I love that this is a complete floorcare brand but also has multiple uses and can assist with so many home cleaning tasks. I would probably use it more regularly for the handheld features it offers, and maybe once a month to clean my floors with the detergent.
The fresh smell is something which really appealed to me, however, due to the amount of floor space I have to clean this wouldn't be practical or economical for me to use on a weekly basis. This would be perfect for everyday floor use for someone who has a standard or small sized home, and especially someone with porcelain or glossy tiles that is not wanting streaks.
In conclusion, for the price point of the product, it is very effective and good value considering it has so many uses.
Vax is sold through a range of retailers including; Bunnings Warehouse, Harvey Norman, The
Good Guys, JB Hi-Fi Home and Bing Lee.
For more information go to www.vax.com.au
*I was kindly gifted with this product to review, however, views are my own.
