Review on Bissell Powerfresh Pet Steam Purple by Chris Santos

I generally don't leave reviews especially when you have such high ratings and thousands of reviews. However, I felt compelled to review this product because when I was deciding whether or not to buy it, I didn't see my specific concerns listed, namely: Can it effectively clean our 10 year old grout? My husband always washed the floor because his power made it more efficient and faster (and I hated mopping and the mess it made!). Unfortunately I unexpectedly lost my husband a few months ago and found that I will now be cleaning the floors. I decided to re-examine steam mops. I've always been frustrated at how awful our mortar looks because we have three grown children, two labs and two cats, and a husband in constantly dirty, dirty work boots. I have to say that this mop deserves its 5 stars even with some small imperfections (see below). Pros first: 1. Easy assembly - takes maybe a minute including the time to take a screwdriver to attach the handle.2. The price is more than reasonable in my opinion. I love never buying cleaning products again! 4. The steam is great - heats up very quickly and when a general cleaning can cover most of my 800 square foot floor in about 20 minutes the tank lasts (which was a problem because it used to take a good hour with a regular mop took). !). 5. Change the water when you need it and refill by simply pulling it out of the handle and removing the cap. Takes about 30 seconds to complete and return to mopping.6. My feet cleaned up! Of course, I used the small cleaning brush on the back of the unit (which I would have liked to have been a bit longer), but I gently nudged it with my foot so it "scratched" and entered the crevice, and out after two minutes Sometimes it turned from black to almost new clean. I assume it will only get better with time. *Note - see Warnings/Issues below regarding this aspect7. The floors were clean and dried out almost instantly even after 2-3 rides.8. You can "sit" it on an area that's particularly difficult to clean, and it also disinfects in about 15 seconds9. It gets very hot - yes it gives off steam (just like a new iron when you press the steam button)10. No footprints on the ground.11. Worked on hard tiles as well as wooden floors.12. Lightweight - easy to carry upstairs etc and has a decently long cord so you don't have to constantly unplug going from room to room. Well I'm not sure if these are "cons" but maybe more concerns/cautions so as not to mislead me by the comments above: 1. Be careful when putting your foot on the scrubber to press! The steam can burn your toes (yes, it gets that hot - which is a good thing!) and can also make them damp, making it easy for you to slip/fall. It took me some practice, but so far I've found this to be the preferred route - although perhaps a manual brush might work as well if you really want to go that route (or if you have kids who need 'fixes' ). . While I said above that floors stay relatively dry even after a few hits, I should mention that deep cleaning floors can get quite wet, especially on the highest steam setting. This is partly due to the high levels of steam combined with the saturation of the mop head, which can no longer pick up water or dirt. At this point you can either get spare mop heads, or use a towel or other mop to dry the door and pick up loosened dirt (easier than actually mopping as the hard part is done!). Again, this isn't a defect, just a matter of practicality and really only comes into play if you're obsessed like me, when you see the dramatic difference you can make with this thing! Still, it can get pretty slippery and even a bit "dirty" which I want to mention.3. Leaving the steamer in one spot for too long, at least with my porcelain floor, the floor retains that heat for some time and can burn your feet without shoes (it's only a matter of 5-10 minutes but again (yes it will so hot!). Not a big deal, but my feet were surprised when I accidentally stepped on it - not a big deal for adults, but if you have toddlers who like to crawl or walk it might be good to know (a plus, though, they can literally eat off it) the floor now with no worries about disinfecting properties). :)four. Although I've used tap water, you really should (and will continue to) use filtered water. I just didn't have them on hand and didn't want to run away because it was Christmas Eve. Although it fits next to toilets and gets into small spaces, applying the grout right next to cupboards or walls etc will likely require an old fashioned approach to the floor and the use of 'Goo Gone' cleaner and scrubbing. Please note that it will peel off the walls, they just aren't easy to scrub off. Well, with that said, the proof is sort of in the pudding, so I've included a section of my floor before and after for you to judge for yourself. The time was about 2 minutes with maximum steam and light foot pressure on the brush. If you look closely you can tell it is the same area as I believe there is a crack in one of the tiles although it is less visible after cleaning! :)