Russell Hobbs Replacement Steam Mop Pads for RHSM1001-G Steam & Clean Mop, Pack of 5, RHPAD1001-G

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Whereas traditional mops rely on detergent and elbow grease to disinfect floors, steam mops heat water in an onboard tank and then release the vapour directly on to the floor at temperatures of up to 120 degrees Celsius, making for a deeper clean and killing most bacteria likely to be lurking on surfaces. Having said that, you don’t actually need to apply any pressure at all to get the Shark to work - it glides across the floor easily, so easily in fact that I wasn't sure it was working properly until I saw the grime it was able to pick up after just a few seconds’ work. But once the excess has been cleaned up the steam will loosen the most stubborn and built-in grime, which is then picked up by the microfibre of the mop head.

Russell Hobbs RHDSM4001 POSEIDON Detergent 11-in-1 Russell Hobbs RHDSM4001 POSEIDON Detergent 11-in-1

I pitted three of the best-selling steam mops head-to-head for our test, the Shark Steam and Scrub, the Lakeland Steam Mop and Russell Hobbs' Steam and Clean. They work more quickly and efficiently than traditional mops and don't leave you with a fully wet floor afterwards. While they look very different, all three mops have a similar motor size, ranging between 1120W and 1200W and they all say they get to temperature within 15 and 30 seconds with Russell Hobbs the quickest and Shark the slowest on paper at least. It had real oomph and power behind it but was still lightweight and easy to manoueuvre, while its extra-long cable made getting round quick and easy. When you turn it on it feels noticeably more powerful to use, to the extent if you’re someone who struggles with holding a hefty gadget I’d consider plumping for one of the others.Two of the mops tested came with a host of additions in the box, although notably the Lakeland only came with an instruction book. All three mops have a tank big enough to run for more than 15 minutes and, unless you live in a mansion, this would cover tiled bathrooms and kitchens easily. The cable length does vary considerably though, with the Shark coming in at a generous 8m compared to the other two’s 5m cables, making it easier to get round without having to swap plug sockets if you’re tackling multiple rooms.

Russell Hobbs steam mops and I tested Shark, Lakeland and Russell Hobbs steam mops and

In practice however, they all seemed much of a muchness and it’s not as if I was tapping my foot impatiently waiting an extra couple of seconds for the Shark to come up to temperature.Both the Lakeland and Shark mops had two speed settings, with the lower speed recommended for wood floors and more delicate surfaces and the higher speed for more ingrained dirt and tiled areas. Steam mops are are ideal way to keep your home clean but with them all largely doing the same thing how do you choose which one is right for you? The plastic carpet glider on the Russell Hobbs was also a handy bonus as it meant if you did have the urge to deep clean a carpet or rug or even tackle a stain on a sofa you could run the steamer across the fabric easily without it rucking.

Russell Hobbs Replacement Steam Mop Pads for RHDSM4001

To get the best results from your steam mop you do need to sweep first to get ride of any surface dirt because as there's no suction otherwise you risk simply pushing the dirt around the room. Secondly, if you really want to test a steam mop the best way to do so is in the aftermath of a precariously-put-away almost-full bottle of maple syrup falling out of a cupboard and smashing onto a tiled kitchen floor. Instead of one large pad it has two circular pads that work together to effectively simultaneously steam and scrub the floor.We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. All the handles snapped into place easily and the various shapes of mop pads all velcroed securely onto the bottoms, although the Russell Hobbs mop also came with a plastic carpet glider which, if you're wanting to deep clean textiles, helps keep the pad in place once although it took a bit of fiddling to get it securely attached. In terms of filling, the Lakeland actually has a key benefit beyond the other two, with the water tank able to be totally unclipped from the machine to fill at the tap and then be put back into the handle.