# Karcher SC1020 steam cleaner!



## srod (Dec 31, 2010)

Hi,

been thinking about getting a little steamer for a while and, after reading many reviews of many cheapo machines, settled on the Karcher.

Picked it up today from Argos and rushed home to try it out.

All I can say is wow!  Seriously impressed.

Attacked my rancid oven first and, honestly, after 10 minutes of very little effort, the damn thing looks like new! I still can't believe it!

After this, with my mobile valeting business in mind, I attacked my van (a short-wheel base Transit connect). The van needed a good clean inside and out.

I did the whole thing using less than 1 litre of water! I didn't have to refill the tank at all! True, the outside of the van had what I would describe as 'light soiling' only, but it still took a good 45 minutes I reckon. I had to proceed very carefully (didn't want to destroy the van signing for one thing!) wiping very very gently with a good mf cloth, changing for a new cloth whenever needed. Probably got through 6 or 7 cloths there! 

The grime just ran off. Even tar marks required just a quick wipe. Particularly impressive was the job the machine did on the wheels and the windows, chewing through brake dust with some ease. Cleaning windows is my least favourite part of valeting, the most tedious. The steamer made absolute mincemeat of my windows, inside and out, leaving them absolutely spotless. My windows were really quite mucky and would have required quite a bit of elbow grease to polish up without the steamer.

After running around the outside of the van with a drying towel I then hoovered out the cab ready to clean the plastics and the matting. Ordinarily I shampoo all the plastics (door cards, dashboard, center console etc.) by hand, rinse and dry quickly with a mf towel etc. This time, however, I went at it with the steamer. First off I wrapped one of the attachments in a mf cloth and ran the attachment over the plastics. This proved somewhat cumbersome and so instead I uncovered the steamer and used very short bursts aimed at the plastic from some distance, wiping almost immediately with the cloth. This did a fantastic job, almost halving the time I would say that I usually spend on the plastics. I was a bit worried about doing this, but, well, there seem to be no adverse affects at this time! (I am hoping that I do not wake up tomorrow to find my van interior in tatters!)

What can I say; I am one very happy chappie right now! 

Just trying to figure the best way of integrating this machine into my valeting programs now? Will definitely use it to clean windows and wheels (if the wheels are not damaged in any way). Might consider pre-washing the lower half of the car with the steamer (following a blast with the power washer to remove larger particles etc.) as opposed to using TFR.
As for the interior? I think I will play that one by ear depending on the materials used etc. I think the headlining is a good candidate for sure for steam cleaning. Any truly stubborn stains on the seats or the carpets can probably be steamed as well before using my good old Numatic George.

Looking like the best bit of kit I have bought for a while.


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## woodym3 (Aug 30, 2009)

Sounds good. Just started looking around for a decent steamer, is the karcher more powerfull than the other brands?


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## srod (Dec 31, 2010)

woodym3 said:


> Sounds good. Just started looking around for a decent steamer, is the karcher more powerfull than the other brands?


On paper, some of the cheaper models offer more psi (I think the Karcher offers 3.2 bar), but what I like about this one is that you have a trigger so that you can turn the steam on and off etc. Some of the cheaper ones don't seem to have this and so once the boiler is up to temperature, you get all of the steam like it or not! 

I've never used another steamer and so cannot really compare, but this thing seemed to have more than enough power for me.


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## woodym3 (Aug 30, 2009)

ta mate, thought i was onto a good thing when wifey bought one of the cheapo ones from qvc, cant remember the make, it wasnt up to much and didnt seem to have a great deal of shifting power, will defo have a gander at the karcher. cheers.


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## ABC Detailing (Jun 29, 2010)

This one?

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Produ...earchtext>STEAM.htm#pdpFullProductInformation


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## srod (Dec 31, 2010)

That's the one yes.


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## srod (Dec 31, 2010)

woodym3 said:


> ta mate, thought i was onto a good thing when wifey bought one of the cheapo ones from qvc, cant remember the make, it wasnt up to much and didnt seem to have a great deal of shifting power, will defo have a gander at the karcher. cheers.


I intend using it on a full valet of an Audi A3 tomorrow (will just use it sparingly mind) and hopefully I'll be able to give you a better idea of how it performs tomorrow evening. Want to try it on some filthy alloys for example (my wheels are steel).


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