Steamers...

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ChadLoew

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I'm getting ready to buy a new steamer, what brand do you guys prefer?
 
I have the mcculloch mc1385. I like it a lot.

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Well, I am looking to buy a new one by April. I had a fantastic conversation with Chief Steamer and was highly impressed with how the owner handled the conversation. It helped built a lot of trust into his machine without making a cheesy sales pitch. Customer service is top notch and is very important to me. Plus the machine I want hits all the check marks on my list.

Here is the one I want:

Chief Steamer Refill 100 Steam Cleaner

I also had a conversation with a highly reputable brand of whom shall be remain nameless and I was not sold as much. I understand that they have been in business for 20+ years, but seemed like they were selling on based on the history of the product rather than why their machine should still be considered a great machine.

Don’t get me wrong. Both are strongly recommended by many detailers, but I need to also believe in the company and make sure I am backed up somehow.

At the end of the day, what ever steam cleaners Autogeek sells is most likely a great recommendation.
 
That’s the one I will be getting, along with a Mytee. Just waiting for triple points!!!
 
I had a Vapamore MR-100 Primo, only steamer I've ever used so I have nothing to compare it to. But I loved it. The one Dan linked to is obviously like 10x better. But I think unless you have a deep budget you ought to look at a Vapamore or Mcculloch. I used mine a lot before it got stolen. And it did a wonder job getting stains out of customers interior, it heated fast too. It was a dry steamer too, so it didn't leave much moister at all behind. I would LOOOOOVE the one Dan linked to, yikes that looks awesome :D
 
I recently purchased the Dupray Hill Injection unit and I love it. Loads of steam and never have to wait to refill. I've had it about 60 days and have used it 6-7 times and it has performed wonderfully. My wife loves it for cleaning the grout in our house (we have about 1200 sf of tile in several areas).
 
ChadLoew said:
Maybe I'm wasting my time with a cheap one??
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I wouldn’t go as far as saying you are wasting your time with a cheap one. It’s is still very possible to get great results with an economic model. I did it for years.
 
Here is my thought on it. I don’t have one, I will need one shortly, the one I want is $1000. Absolutely the $200 McCulloch will work fine, but if hopefully down the road I have a need for the bigger unit, I will still need to spend $1000. I have budgeted for the Chief steamer now, to just be done with it.
 
I have a Vapamore MR100 and am very satisfied with it. I'm not a professional, so it doesn't get daily use. For the average person, I don't see the need to go beyond it price-wise.
 
ChadLoew said:
I'm trying to keep it under $250.00
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ChadLoew said:
Maybe I'm wasting my time with a cheap one??
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When I first started out I was 100% mobile and I went through about one steamer per year using those cheap McCulloch versions. Since they are an integrated unit there really is no way to repair anything if it breaks. Mine would always fail on the hose somewhere. If I could go back and do it over again I would have just saved up for an actual commercial grade steamer and not waste my time with the cheap ones.

Now in a shop setting we have two Vapor Chief units and couldn't be happier with them. Currently own a 75 and 100 (the 100 gets the most usage) and they work literally 10x better than the cheaper McCulloch models. If you could compare any of the Vapor Chief units side by side with a McCulloch you would understand that there really is no comparison. The cheap ones just seem like a toy when put side by side with a professional grade machine that actually builds and sustains usable steam pressure for longer than 5 seconds.
 
This is my thought exactly. I go mobile full time in May, and figured buying a cheap one would be a waste in the long run.
 
briarpatch said:
I have a Vapamore MR100 and am very satisfied with it. I'm not a professional, so it doesn't get daily use. For the average person, I don't see the need to go beyond it price-wise.
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I’d just buy a quality one and get it over with. I went through 5 rounds of replacing/repairing my Mcculloch steamer.

With all the money put towards that, I could have already purchased a more expensive steamer. Of course I don’t have $899+ lying around sometimes when I need other things for the business.

But I said to myself the next time it dies...done-zo! I’ll be for sure buying a quality steamer next time. That’s a guarantee.
 
I was in the same boat. I bought two McCulloch Steamers, cheap plastic ones, for cleaning interiors. Worst idea. They both died within a few months.

I found Chief Steamer on this forum and checked out their Chief Steamer Mini 65. Unlike the other Chief Steamers, the Mini 65 didn't have as many videos and action videos showing the steam. Again, like you I wanted something cheap but realized that buying cheap plastic steamers to do work that it wasn't built for wasn't cheap either. I called Chief Steamers number, spoke with Kevin who I read great things about, and decided to buy the Mini 65. Been using it for two weeks and I love it. It's steelcase, heats up very quickly and feels like a commercial steamer even though they are saying its a residential steamer.

I may get an upgrade with Chief Steamer, looking at the 75 Single, if the business grows and things are less hectic at the house but for now, the Mini 65 is doing work and making me money!!

It's $439, but I used coupon code "10bucksonus" to get 10 bucks off. If you are going to use steam to clean cars, learn from my mistake, just spend the extra money, get a Chief Steamer Mini 65 and save in the long run. The cheap ones will always break and fast! They arent built for what we are using them for.
 
UpStateDetailer said:
How much steaming time do you get with the Chief Steamer 75???

Did you get the 75 Refill or the 75 Single??
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I didn't know they had a 75 refill unit. Whichever one you get I would always recommend a machine that can be refilled on the fly without needing to wait for it to cool down. With that being said the 75 will normally get us through a sedan interior in average condition... but it really sucks to have to stop, let it cool down, refill, heat back up when you're right in the middle of a nasty interior that's already taking longer then expected.
 
UpStateDetailer said:
I was in the same boat. I bought two McCulloch Steamers, cheap plastic ones, for cleaning interiors. Worst idea. They both died within a few months.

I found Chief Steamer on this forum and checked out their Chief Steamer Mini 65. Unlike the other Chief Steamers, the Mini 65 didn't have as many videos and action videos showing the steam. Again, like you I wanted something cheap but realized that buying cheap plastic steamers to do work that it wasn't built for wasn't cheap either. I called Chief Steamers number, spoke with Kevin who I read great things about, and decided to buy the Mini 65. Been using it for two weeks and I love it. It's steelcase, heats up very quickly and feels like a commercial steamer even though they are saying its a residential steamer.

I may get an upgrade with Chief Steamer, looking at the 75 Single, if the business grows and things are less hectic at the house but for now, the Mini 65 is doing work and making me money!!

It's $439, but I used coupon code "10bucksonus" to get 10 bucks off. If you are going to use steam to clean cars, learn from my mistake, just spend the extra money, get a Chief Steamer Mini 65 and save in the long run. The cheap ones will always break and fast! They arent built for what we are using them for.
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Thanks for mentioning the mini 65. I just reviewed it and bought it. They had it for $399 and a free hat and gloves offer. It arrives next week. My McCullough is getting worn. Looking forward to getting the mini 65.
 
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