Last Updated on December 6, 2022 by Erik Sullivan
A steam mop is a convenient tool that can deep clean your floor efficiently and effectively in no time. In fact, they’re designed to be used without using any cleaning solution.
A steam cleaner can kill viruses and bacteria with just a high temperature of steam. That means, they can also be effective to sanitize and disinfect your floor surface.
Although, many people ask a common question – can you put disinfectant in a steam mop?
No. Using any kind of disinfectant or detergent or cleaners (homemade or commercial) in a steam mop is not recommended by most of the manufacturers. You can only use distilled water in your steam mop. You should not use normal tap water in your steam cleaner.
Why It’s unsafe to use a disinfectant in a steam mop Tank?
Using a cleaning agent or disinfectant in a steam mop can cause heavy damage to your device. Because, these cleaning agents can cause clogging inside the machine by creating chemical buildups. These buildups can damage the heating element of the steam cleaner. Consequently, the steam production ability of the cleaning device will be affected.
On top of that, some disinfecting agents contain dangerous gasses which are likely to explode when overheated. This is the biggest concern of using a cleaning solution in a steam cleaner.
Lastly, using disinfectant in the steamer tank can also be harmful for your sensitive surfaces.
What can you put in a steam mop to clean?
You can only use distilled water and demineralized water in a steam mop tank. Because, these forms of water do not contain any minerals or impurities in them. This also helps to increase the lifespan of your cleaner and your floor.
How to use disinfectant with a steam mop?
In this part I’ll show you how to use disinfectant with a steam mop. Although, it’s not necessary to use disinfectant and steam cleaner all together. The steam is all you need to deep clean and sanitize your floors.
Caution: Before applying any cleaning solution on your floor, make sure to read the manual or follow the manufacturer guidelines of the cleaner. I recommend doing a patch test first in a corner of your floors.
Here’s the step by step process:
Step 1: Sweep or vacuum the surface before using the steam cleaner. This will remove pet hair and other dry particles.
Step 2: Spray the area properly with your favorite disinfecting agent or solution. Let it sit on the surface for about 15 minutes. I personally use Mr. Clean to clean and sanitize my hardwood floors.
Step 3: Next, select the low steam output of your steam mop and run it over the area (maximum 2-3 passes is enough). This will help the cleaning solution to work more effectively.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Can you put cleaner in a shark steam mop?
Absolutely NO. Shark does not recommend to use any cleaner in their steam mop. This could be harmful. You can only use distilled water in a shark steam mop.
Can you use bona in a steam mop?
No, bona solution should not be used in any steam mop. However, you can use bona with any spray mop.
Can you put essential oils in steam mop?
No, you cannot use essential oils in a steam mop. Because essential oils are not water soluble. And most importantly, they can get clogged up inside the steam cleaner tank or nozzle.
What can you put in a steam mop to make it smell nice?
Unfortunately, you cannot put anything in a steam cleaner to make it smell nice. Steam mop uses just water to work efficiently. However, if you want to add some fragrance while steam cleaning, then you can attach some fragrance discs with the steam mop pad. Bissell PowerFresh Steam Mop comes with such fragrance discs which is really nice.
Resources:
https://www.realhomes.com/advice/how-to-use-a-steam-cleaner
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