Hi Just wondering if you can do a test on hard floor cleaners the ones I am thinking about are not steam mops so things like the Karcher FC5, HOOVER FLOORMATE DELUXE HARD FLOOR CLEANER, HOOVER FLOORMATE EDGE HARD FLOOR CLEANER and WERTHEIM QUICK CLEAN HARD FLOOR CLEANER. (godfreys do the hoover and wertheim brands and Karcher is many stores but mainly hardware stores. Bissel Steam & Sweep Mop as found in official Bissel site not sure if you can buy this from a retailer , Bissell Cross Wave Professional Multi-Surface Cleaner 1713F 011120229806 (sold at Harvey Norman) , Bissell Hard Floor Washer and Vacuum Cleaner 2203F .
I also would like to know if you can use things like vinegar, tea tree oil, eucalyptus oil and oil of clove rather than detergent. In steam mops they do not work especially oil of clove. As i have put in vinyl flooring and i know vinyl, laminates, hybrid, tiles are becoming more popular especially with rentals I thought it would be a good time to test. Thanks for your consideration. John
Choice did a review of floor cleaning liquids in 2016 (member content). There are also reviews of steam mops but I cannot see the machines you have listed, perhaps search yourself to be sure.
Thanks, One of the other member has asked for a test of the Karcher and the response was that looked interesting and would be forward to the product test team. I have also asked that the product test crew look at this.
Cheers
John
Would love test including Manufactured wooden floor cleaner ‘Crossfire Super Cleaner’.
We don’t have any of them there fancy gadgets, we just use a bucket and mop to clean our hard floors. What we use us warm water, methylated spirits (helps the floor dry quickly), and eucalyptus oil (only a smidge per bucket) to clean both wood and vinyl floors. If more cleaning power is required, then we add some vinegar. It drys quickly, leaves no streaks, and smells deeelightful.
I have used a Vax Floormate for 4 or 5 years. Since replacing the grout in some tiled floors (kitchen, laundry, bathrooms etc) my aim was to keep the grout looking as good as possible and the Floormate offered an improvement over mopping in so far as less dirty water is left in the grout lines after cleaning compared to mopping. It takes 15 - 20 minutes to wash the floors after vacuuming. I find the heavily trafficked areas still need the grout scrubbed in conjunction with Floormate occasionally like kitchen 12 - 24 months ( I use https://www.bunnings.com.au/dta-australia-long-handled-grout-scrubbing-brush_p6650074 and https://www.groutperfect.com.au/shop/maintain-tile-and-grout-cleaner/ ).
+ves - Most of the water and contaminates ends up in the dirty tank rather than on the floor or in the grout lines. The brushes do agitate the surface to help mobilise stuck on particles. There is little water left on floor so drying time is greatly reduced. I think overall the tiled areas are cleaner compared to mopping.
-ves - The head is not particularly small or agile so I put the chairs on the table to make that area easy. Another bit of kit to store.
Thanks Geoff
Good info. I like you find that mops need to cleaned a lot or they leave a lot of dirt behind and out west in dust even with vacuuming it seems worst and then there is nondrying of the mop head in winter.
Cheers
John
Thanks. I use a flat mop after moping to dry it up quicker and to pick up any dirt left behind as the mop gets less clean. Obviously I already use the natural stuff. As some one who is time poor and who would rather look after my mental health than my floors, with a stressful job I am after something quick. I also have no we but just an I to do everything something which is another reason for the quicker and simpler products for cleaning, 
We don’t use any floor cleaners and avoid any products on our timber floors.
The fellows who polished (applied the two pack polyurethane) warned us that many floor cleaning products contain compounds that leave residues on the floors/in the gaps between the floor boards (e.g silicons or waxes). They indicated that if we ever got the floors redone in the future, there may be problems with adhersion of the polyurethane to areas where residues could not be removed through their own surface preparation (particularly between the boards). They indicated that this would lead to premature lifting/bubbling of the seal over time.
They instead suggested using water only, and if we needed anything else, to use methylated spirits to assist with the evaporation of the water.
This is what we do…a damp microfibre cloth to remove marks/food or oil residues. If we do damp mop the floor (about every 2-3 years), we add a decent slosh of methylated spirits to the water.
We usually only clean the floor by dry means, a static mop which is terrific on timber floors and vaccuum.
Thanks I use natural products etc two but since i have a vinyl floor I have now issue with water and to kill some of the bacteria left by my bachelor lifestyle is the idea of using something, haha. Lots of these products use very little water the karcher has only got 400ml for the tank for a whole average house for instance so similar to your damp cloth in consistency I would imagine 
NONE OF THESE ARE STEAM MOPS PLEASE STUDY THE FACTS AND NOT FAKE NEWS☺. All have dual tanks for fresh and dirty water. Some have dry and wet vacuum functions and some have a shot of steam such as used from an iron but all use some form of scrubbers not like a steam mop at all. I think the best is the karcher using microfibre cloth on a roller that gets squeezed dry while the others seem to use scrubbers similar to the polishers in shopping centres or the big cleaners that clean gutters at night. This is the truth but would be good if Choice could give more info and a proper test to give us all clarity and the true specs and how they work.
I thought the whole idea of hard floors was to choose the colour according to the colour of the resident dirt and clean once a year whether it needs it or not 
I note new TV advertisements for another vacuum washer for hard floors. Bissell Crosswave Pet. RRP price $449
True for the city folks, but us country people surrounded by nature and the drought and all! I have a cm of dust/dirt/b…dust after a month in the house! Good for growing weeds though. Not to mention the animals doing their business in the house! Need a machine for assistance AND NOT FROM A STEAM MOP! not sure if that has got through yet and there is no test for hard floor cleaners that are not steam mops in Choice. I checked it out as a voting member of Choice and user of choice for 15 years Bunnings are pushing the Karcher at the moment in Country stores at least.
I’m 1500 km from the nearest city - no steam mops here - if I had the choice, my floor would be the same colour as red sand … as it stands, its a little darker than that. As for droughts - that’s normal here … since there was an inland sea at least …
So many options?
We use a wet and dry industrial style vac for our timber verandah floors. Unsealed weathered grey black finish! Very traditional farm house style. Stiff millet broom for a spruce up.
Yet to find a recommendation that says steam or any form of wet mops are genuinely safe for internal timber floors. Moisture and heat are the enemy of timber?
Inside the water based poly seal over hoop pine or Cyprus or in the past box brush responded well to a simple vac followed by a light rub over with an anti static head soft fibre broad mop. Dash of metho with water an optional extra.
Steam mops are death to timber and weak grout in tiled floors might sum up our experiences! They don’t use much water if you have good tiles and reliable grouting, or any other hot water safe flooring?
Ha ha thanks for the geography and history lesson lol … at last your on a similar page I do not want a steam mop either if you looked at the product I am after… Choice may help with getting the exact red coloured laminate you want or floor tiles or what ever your opinion is that you need just ask… as they say opinions are like… and I think we just differ on what we want and why…that is the great thing about this big beautiful country that is about drought and floods… the sea and the desert sands… the plains and the mountains…and the people … and we are free to make such choices that affect no one else. Good luck on spreading your opinion:)
Total agree with you Mark but I do not have timber floors or tiles … and once again do not want a steam mop either…the home scrubbers or the karcher squeegee 2 in 1 mop is what I am after a test of… none use steam or heat (except one that has a shot of steam)… the Karcher uses 400ml of water for a house sounds like steam to you? think the super sopper at the cricket and you half way to how the system operates . The rest are scrubber types similar to the old hand push bissel except all also vacuum system as well (hence 2 in 1) and add a bit of water to heads …the water gets sucked to a separate tank, so there is manly clean water on the head all the time… I want a test for my vinyl floor but as one gent here has said he found his great on tiles… bonus is I i get a bacterial wash as well could even be used on some timber floors I reckon…
I’ve often wondered how it might work to go out for a trailer load of red sand and mix it with some kind of bonding agent then a clear coat over the top … maybe like a Western Desert Terrazzo 
Is this the one?
It appears to be a damp mop/cloth and vaccuum in one…interesting to see if it works…especially in high dust rural areas.
How about a static mop instead? No water needed.
