Heats up in just 3 minutes Weight is all in hand Best Deals for Karcher Kärcher SC1 Steam Stick What is the Kärcher SC1 Steam Stick?The Kärcher SC1 Steam Stick is a lightweight steam cleaner that can be used as a steam mop – by adding the extension tubes – or as a handheld cleaner for detailed jobs.It's affordable and heats up quickly, making it great for smaller jobs. But if you're looking for a workhorse for mopping the whole house there are alternatives that are easier in the hand.SEE ALSO: Best Steam Cleaners 2015Kärcher SC1 Steam Stick – Design and FeaturesThe lightweight handheld – in Kärcher's trademark yellow – has a very practical design. You can add tools directly for close-up cleaning or use one or both extension tubes and the hose for a longer reach or for floor-cleaning.The design gives superb reach and flexibility. The two tubes are each 45cm long and then the hose is 110cm so you can get anywhere.It comes with a handy mesh bag to store tools in, but it doesn't come with many tools.

Apart from the floor-cleaning head you just get a hand tool, small plastic brush, power nozzle and detail nozzle. Plus two sizes of terry towelling cloths – one for the floor-cleaning head and one for the hand tool.If you want a brush, scraper or squeegee visit the Kärcher website… where you'll find a very wide range of optional accessories.Kärcher SC1 Steam Stick – What's it like to use?The Kärcher is very quick to get started. It doesn't come with a jug but it's small enough that it fits under a kitchen tap.A full tank of water is up to steam in 3 minutes. The 'run-in' time is fast too – that's the amount of time it coughs and splutters the first time you press the trigger, as you wait for the steam to come through.The 1.5kg weight is extremely light for a steam cleaner. But it doesn't exactly feel light because all the weight is in your hand, compared with a stick-style steam cleaner where the weight is lower down.The cleaning head, conversely, is lightweight so it struggles over bumps.

A heavier cleaner would take floorboard edges in its stride but the lightweight Kärcher just doesn't have the momentum to cope with them. And on heavy rugs it's sluggish, again because the cleaning head is so light – we found it helped to keep the body of the steam cleaner low, to put some welly into it.That said, it does a good job of cleaning floors. The lightweight floor-cleaning head is flat, so it's great at getting under furniture. It comes with a flat, rectangular terry towelling cloth that clips is held securely in place by clips on both sides, though you could use any cloth that's the right size in its place.Steam is powerful, but not variable. So if you don't want to leave the floor soaking you press the trigger in bursts rather than squeezing it constantly. The trigger also has a safety lock under your thumb, which is good for safely changing tools.When you're done, the Kärcher packs up nice and quickly. Turn it off and squeeze the trigger for a minute to release enough steam that it's safe to empty.

Then simply tip it out. There's obviously no onboard storage, but it comes with a mesh bag for storing the tools – a practical design as you can throw them in there while they're still wet.Should I buy the Kärcher SC1 Steam Stick?Yes – if you're looking for a versatile steam cleaner as opposed to a steam mop for floors alone. This design feels simpler and more practical than upright steam cleaners with a Dustbuster-style handheld that pops out of the middle. bissell home vacuum cleanerAnd it cleans very effectively.vacuum cleaner spares ltdIf you'd prefer an upright cleaner then look at the Vax Steam Fresh Combi. compare the market dyson vacuum cleanersIt's also worth considering cylinder-style cleaners such as the Polti Vaporetto GO, which offers lots of cleaning power at a very reasonable price.

SEE ALSO: Best Vacuum CleanersVerdictThe Kärcher is an impressive, versatile little dervish of a steam cleaner. April 30, 2015, 1:46 pm Nice product just what I was looking for and with a glowing review.It’s spring again and so we get the pressure washer out and start making the house, driveway and garden ready for summer use.The Kärcher K5 Full Control Home Pressure Washer is one of the most advanced and environmentally friendly pressure washers in the Karcher line-up. It is German engineering at its finest.This mid-range unit is great for practically any domestic environment. The pressure washer can manage a whole range of cleaning tasks including paths, patio, and decking, walls and garage doors, plus car washing. The unit also comes complete with the T350 T-Racer, a patio and path, decking and vertical surface cleaning attachment from Kärcher. Other accessories include the variable pressure lance for general washing and low-pressure detergent application; dirt blaster that increases cleaning power by 50 per cent for stubborn spoilage and marking such as mould spots.

Getting started involved partial assembly of the unit. It took about 30 minutes to put together; it does seem that there was a lot of unnecessary assembly. After that, you attach it to your water supply and attach the spray lance to the trigger gun. It is certainly lighter than previous models but still heavy enough to get tired lugging it about from one place to another.Kärcher has improved the hose position. Earlier models had the hose positioned high up on the unit, the presser washer would tumble over, (and nearly always spill your detergent). Now, the hose position is lower down, meaning the unit doesn’t fall over at the smallest yank.The 8m hose reel is easy to use as well, so you only use the length you need instead of having a long hose sprawling behind you. It is stored on a winder and pays out through a slot in the front (my only beef is that there isn’t a similar arrangement for the power lead.)The unit has handy storage for the hand grip and wand elements, which slot together easily and without the need for brute force.

Different power levels can be chosen using a setting on the hand grip to decrease the chance of unintentionally over-pressuring wooden surfaces or your car.The trigger handle sports an LED display. This shows a Vario Power setting (2) for cars, which gives you the ideal water pressure to clean your car with.The K5 as detergent bottles that plug straight into the machine. However, it does use up a lot of detergents, pretty much the whole bottle on a single car wash.The K5 is very effective on all types of surfaces and makes short work of cleaning. It is great around wheel arches, it is very powerful and perfect for cleaning the car, decking, patio, and driveway.It has a good range of attachments, so you can extend usage if you buy the correct accessories. We would definitely recommend this one over the cheaper models if you have a significant area to cover.The K5 Full Control is a much-improved model over the older model K5. There are more attachments that assist in giving a more pristine clean, especially for the patio or drive way.