Best Multi Purpose Steam Cleaner 2020 – Buyer’s Guide & Reviews

Whether it is the floors, walls, or even your fabrics, nothing cleans your home quite like a steam cleaner. With the power of water and heat, steam cleaners make convenient a task that was once extremely difficult. Of course, older steam cleaners were generally relegated to one particular setting or task. This is where the best multi-purpose steam cleaner really comes in handy.

With the ability to function on a wide variety of surfaces and materials, we felt that an accounting of the 5 best multi-purpose steam cleaners would help out our readers. We also provide a helpful buyer’s guide, so you can figure out what kind of steam cleaner is best for you. We personally like the Dupray with its list-leading specs, but it might be a bit too much to handle for some people. Keep reading to find out if the Dupray is right for you or if another product on our list would be better.

Best Multi Purpose Steam Cleaners 2020

Dupray Neat – Best Multifunction Steam Cleaner

The multi-purpose steam cleaner market is actually fairly new, even if the technology has been around for decades. That said, Dupray is one of the few companies we saw that has been around for a decade, so you can at least feel comfortable that they know what they are doing. Of course, you do not actually need to rely on the Dupray’s experience as this is one of the more award-winning steam cleaning companies on the market.

A quick glance is really all you need to see why this is our Editor’s Choice best multi-purpose steam cleaner that we saw. This is definitely not the right multi-purpose steam cleaner for everyone – especially if you do not expect to use it all that often.

Hotter than Hot

When it comes to steam cleaners or pretty much any kind, the cleaning ability of the steam cleaner is clearly the most important factor. Sure, features aimed at convenience and ergonomics are nice, but none of that matters if the product does not effectively clean.

However, you will want to be careful as the steam is definitely hot enough to cause serious burns if you put your hand to it.

Easy to Use

Another great quality about the Dupray is that it is fairly easy to use – though this is not simply relegated to its action. For instance, not only does this steam cleaner get the hottest, allowing it to break down dried gunk, but it also has the largest reservoir capacity as well at 54 oz. This steam cleaner also features a fairly low-moisture steam which prevents you from having to dry any surface that would otherwise suffer water damage.

Regardless, when you combine these two features you get a steam cleaner that can function for up to 50 minutes which is also the longest continuous cleaning time out of any product on our list. Finally, the compact design and retractable handle make taking this steam cleaner anywhere in the house a breeze.

LIGHT ‘N’ EASY S3601 – Most Convenient

It may come as a bit of a surprise, but Light N Easy is another company that has been around for a little while, though this company has more than a decade and a half of experience behind them. On top of that, the brand focuses primarily on steam cleaners, so you can rest assured they know what they are doing.

That said, there are definitely some questionable design choices that will turn certain customers off. This is definitely a consumer-grade product, and Light N Easy made it a point to make this steam cleaner as accessible as possible. That is why we rated this the most convenient multi-purpose steam cleaner that we reviewed.

Easy Breezy

There are a number of ways in which the Light N Easy is aptly named and the most convenient steam cleaner we saw.

This allows you to avoid having to dry surfaces or materials that might otherwise be damaged by excessive moisture.

Solid Specs

Though this steam cleaner makes its bread and butter on convenience, that does not mean the product sold out on specs to do so. Instead, this is one of the best-rated steam cleaners we found with a functional temperature of 248-degrees. Like with other extra-hot steam cleaners, you will want to make sure that you do not accidentally point the steam at your skin as it can and will burn you.

Another surprising specification on the Light N Easy is that this actually has the most powerful boiler motor we saw at 1550W. Unfortunately, one spec where this steam cleaner falls a bit short is in the tank department where it only provides a disappointing 10 oz reservoir – the smallest on our list.

Pure Enrichment PureClean XL – Best Rolling Multi-Purpose Steam Cleaner

Pure Enrichment is a bit tougher to pin down due to its organization, but the company has been around since 2010. It seems almost as if the Pure Enrichment does not know exactly what it wants to be or who its target market is. It comes with one of the more impressive kits and capacities that we saw, but it also has some unexpected flaws more commonly found with lesser brands.

This may be due to the fact that Pure Enrichment does not actually specialize in steam cleaners at all and instead offers a varied assortment of home goods. Regardless, one thing that the Pure Enrichment is its design which why we feel this is the best rolling multi-purpose steam cleaner we encountered.

Larger than Life

To be clear, just because the Pure Enrichment does not have a focused approach does not mean that it is a poorly performing steam cleaner.

So, it should be noted that the Pure Enrichment attachments are noted for not being that durable and deforming after few uses. This is especially surprising considering there is not much reason to do this and the Pure Enrichment is a more expensive product.

Worry-Free

Thankfully, the Pure Enrichment does also feature the longest lasting warranty on our list at 5-years, so you do not have to worry about the attachments if they fail. In terms of using the Pure Enrichment steam cleaner, the extra-large wheels allow you to transport this product much easier than some of the other steam cleaners we reviewed.

Whether you are pulling the Pure Enrichment over a divider or across a carpet, the wheels provide a solid base that resists tipping over. Another great feature that makes the Pure Enrichment convenient is the trigger action that features a concave profile for easy activation.

Steamfast SF-370WH – Best Consumer Multi-Purpose Steam Cleaner

Steamfast is a bit unusual in that they seem to buck the trend of pedigree in favor of a focused market approach. The reason we say this is that Steamfast is actually the more experienced company on our list – with a history of almost 20 years – as well as a brand whose first product was a steamer and whose current products all rely on steam actions.

This brand seems far more dedicated to the consumer-grade market rather than truly competing with many of the other companies we saw in terms of raw performance. This is not to suggest that it performs poorly, and the Steamfast is definitely the best consumer-grade multi-purpose steam cleaner we came across.

Solid Specs

While this steam cleaner may not lead the industry in terms of its specs, it does at least make a proper showing – something that cannot be said for all steam cleaners focused on the consumer-grade market.

Great Value

Of course, one of the reasons for a brand focus on the consumer-grade market is that it allows them to offer their products at a lower price. However, the Steamfast might use this as an opportunity to cut further costs, especially as they relate to the kit. For the good news, the 15-piece kit included with this multi-purpose cleaner is the second-largest that we saw with more than half the pieces being attachments.

Unfortunately, this steam cleaner’s attachments suffer the same structural integrity issues as some others do and will deform after regular use – especially if you do not provide ample cooling time between uses.

PurSteam Handheld Pressurized – Best Budget Product

Our final multi-purpose steam cleaner also happens to be from the youngest company on our list with less than half a decade of experience. That being the case, this company does at least focus exclusively on steam-based products.

Still, this is easily the best budget multi-purpose steam cleaner we found, and the price comparison is not even close with the PurSteam coming in at half the cost of its next closest competitor. A big part of this has to do with the fact that PurSteam is one of the few companies in this market we found utilizing the only online business model which helps keep overhead costs low. However, plenty of this price difference is surely due to a lower than average set of specs too.

Pretty Convenient

The best thing that the PurSteam has going for it is that it is fairly convenient to use.

Questionable Specs

While most of the products we reviewed had an issue here or there, the PurSteam graded out as one of our poorest performing steam cleaners. Granted, this product does have the advantage of being more effective for fabrics than many of its competitors, but that is a difficult selling point when it is significantly less powerful. For one, this is the only steam cleaner on our list with a motor that uses 1000W – a full 500W, or 50-percent, less than the next lowest competitor. This ends up translating to a lower temperature than most with a functional temperature hovering around 180-degrees. It compensates a bit with highly pressurized steam that features a good flow rate, but the 12 oz tank reservoir limits that benefit before you have to refill it.

Multi Purpose Steam Cleaner Buyer’s Guide

Power

This is ultimately the heart of a steam cleaner and should be understood as one of the most important factors for both performance and longevity. Essentially, the more powerful a steam cleaner’s motor, generally the more durable the boiler and the hotter the temperature the steam cleaner can achieve. That said, it seems as though there is a bit of an upper limit in regards to the power that a steam cleaner can utilize before it starts to break down under the power. This power rating generally hovers around 1500W, though it can be significantly higher for professional-grade steam cleaners. Of course, those steam cleaners are generally specialized and not sold to consumers – especially not as a multi-purpose steam cleaner.

Temperature

This can be a bit of a double-edged sword as the hottest temperatures are the most effective when trying to clean especially difficult, stuck-on gunk. However, you also have to be careful since extremely hot temperatures can often damage whatever you are trying to clean. As such, you need to strike a balance with the temperature or have the option to adjust the temperature as desired.

It is worth noting that some steam cleaners do not actually get the water hot enough to evaporate into steam and instead rely on pressure instead. This makes it fairly easy to prevent the steam cleaner from melting or deforming the cleaned surface but can make it difficult to clean the toughest messes since the working temperature drops precipitously once the steam is released.

Tank Reservoir

The tank reservoir is a necessary evil that you have to deal with in some respect, though your preference will hugely impact your experience with the steam cleaner. Basically, if your steam cleaner has a larger reservoir, then it will necessarily have a larger base to hold it. This will make the steam cleaner a bit larger and less mobile than some of their smaller competitors.

On the flip side, a smaller reservoir tank might allow for easier portability, but it will also decrease the amount of continuous use you will get before having to refill it. This is especially tricky for steam cleaners that must be carried as a large tank reservoir will also increase the working weight of the product. That said, steam cleaners have a tendency to provide either a larger tank or a smaller tank with not much in between.

Ergonomics

This can actually relate to a number of different qualities of the steam cleaner, but we generally consider this to focus more on the form factor and the ease of use. The former will largely impact how easy it is to take the steam cleaner from room to room, while the latter has more to do with how you engage and set the steam cleaner in the first place. While neither of these qualities ultimately affect how well the steam cleaner performs, they will both definitely impact how convenient it is to use the steam cleaner. It is worth noting that a product which works well but is a pain to use is often seen as negatively as a product that is easy to use but performs poorly.

Form Factor

This relates to the size of the steam cleaner with some providing a larger base and others opting for a handheld profile. Clearly, the handheld design allows for the easiest portability, though many steam cleaners with a larger base provide wheels for easy rolling. On the other hand, the larger base will also often provide for a larger reservoir tank while the handheld models will often struggle with shorter continuous use times. In order to account for this discrepancy, some manufacturers have taken to making hybrid or convertible steam cleaners that can function as both types.

Ease of Use

This generally relates to the controls that a steam cleaner has as well as the activation method. The most common type of activator is a trigger, though this can come with a full-hand style or even a concave form to make holding it for longer periods of time easier. Other control features include the flow rate which allows you to add more or less moisture depending on the surface material you are cleaning. On top of that, the ability to control the temperature can also provide some flexibility and ease, though that is a fairly rare feature, all things considered.

Material

Generally, the material would not actually be that big of a deal for this kind of product, but due to the large number of complaints various steam cleaners have received regarding their attachments, we feel it is a necessary consideration to make. Basically, all steam cleaners use plastic as the material for their attachments, but some of them use worse plastics than others. It seems odd that a product would make it out of quality control testing with this issue, but steam cleaners have a consistent issue with using nylon attachments that either melt or deform from the temperature of the steam.

However, not all nylon attachments will necessarily suffer this fate as it seems to be an issue relegated mostly to the less expensive options. This is not necessarily the worst thing as attachment bundles are not that expensive, though some brands use proprietary attachments that force you to purchase their brand or poorly performing attachments over and over. As such, a steam cleaner with poorly made, proprietary attachments will cost you more money over the long-term than a better made steam cleaner with a higher up-front cost.

Conclusion

As we can see, the capability of a multi-purpose steam cleaner is not always tied to price, but you generally have to pay more for the best. In this market, the Dupray leads all of the other steam cleaners we reviewed in the max temperature as well as the tank reservoir capacity. However, this is easily the most expensive steam cleaner we reviewed and carries the greatest risk of burning if you are not careful.

If you are looking for a less expensive option that still provides a solid performance, we recommend the Steamfast – even if some of its proprietary attachments are liable to deform or melt. The most common purposes still function extremely well and the 48 oz tank reservoir is more than enough for most purposes. Even better, this product does not sacrifice power or temperature and still manages to put together a fairly convenient steam cleaner.

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