Ironing Reviews

The good: Hanger setup on product is helpful. Irons very light fabrics well - when it's working properly. Easy to refill. Wheels make portability good. Easy to put together.

The bad: I could steam my clothes more efficiently if I held them above a boiling teapot. The velocity of the steam coming out in inconsistent, uncontrollable, and quite lacking. The water unit overflows onto the floor for no particular reason (and yes I followed all the instructions to the letter)sometimes - but you never know when it will! The handle that is supposed to hold the nozzle up only does so for an instant, then it falls to the floor. Easy to twist the hose which prevents the steam from being released- especially when you steam the back of something. The unit stops steam production often to build up more steam but never know when it will happen- so often stuck in the middle of an item, waiting...waiting. The handheld is fairly useless unless you are ironing a VERY light thin fabric. You definitely get what you pay for with this. Please take my advice..save up, wait and buy a GOOD garment steamer.

On the positive side...Amazon was fabulous with handling the return. And it certainly isn't their fault that Conair made a shoddy product...

While browsing through my roommate's Sharper image catalog, I came across an invention that was never even on my radar. A fabric steamer? What the hell was that?

It advertised that I need not worry about an iron. A coincidence! I hadn't worried about that iron in 4 years. Since its disastrous bout with a certain dress shirt that currently serves as a dish rag.

Anyways, I bought this thing, hoping I wouldn't ruin another shirt.

The box came, ponderous and 26 pounds. Inside I found the steamer, misunderstood hoses and attachments and an instruction booklet that was exceptionally uninformative.

I guestimated a few times, seeking the picture of the steamer on the box for advice.

Eventually, I created something that spewed water onto the floor and scolded me a few times for my lack of common sense. I banished the stupid thing in the bathtub, counted to twenty and began to understand the steamer better.

I have to say, the bathroom location seems to work. The water spillage from the base of the machine seems inevitable (another amazon reviewer mentioned this quirk, so I resigned myself to this). In addition, the shower curtain rod makes for an efficient place to keep all the clothes on its hanger so it can be steamed. I have to say, barring some flaws to this, it seems to work pretty well. Is it worth the $135 in retail price? No. $69 that Amazon is listing? Probably not. But it came in a ponderously large box. I'm not lugging that back to the post office.

Yummy! I just received my steamer today, put it together in minutes and have completed all of my ironing! It heats up in one minute and shuts off even quicker so I do not waste steam and energy between shirts.

The attachments include (among other things) brush and lint covers for the steam output handle. I used the latter and it worked well. There is an extension wand for use on curtains and the reservoir indicates approximately how much steam time remains (lines with printed times).

It is not heavy and moves well, but it also has locking wheels to hold it stationary. It also collapses neatly for storage. I have not even unwrapped the hand-held/travel steamer, but the full-size unit can handle even small jobs so I do not know when (or if) I will ever unwrap it.

I cannot address the long-term reliability, but it does come with a one-year warranty. The only item that prevents me from giving this item a "5" is that the hanger at the top of the telescoping rod holds shirts nicely, but it would be better if it opened into a "shirt" shape so that it is not necessary to hold the bottom of the shirt taught while steaming.

My only dilemma now is trying to decide how many of these to buy as gifts for the holidays! It is a great time-saver and a product I will be sure to recommend.

(I think I might have to hold on to my iron, though. My son saw the commercial for the guy using it to make grilled cheese sandwiches and he might want to take it to college!)