Polti Vaporetto Pocket Steam Cleaner July 2011

The Vaporetto Pocket comes with a range of attachments including a steam gun for tough stains and dirt, curved and straight lances for getting into cracks and corners, large and small brushes for surfaces, a couple of cleaning cloths and a window cleaning tool.

The Pocket can tackle more cleaning jobs and costs less than the Black & Decker and the Shark steam mops we’ve recently reviewed. It costs around £75 and is available at Currys, Dixons and John Lewis. We asked one of our researchers to try it out to bring you this First Look review.

Easy to get started

The instructions were easy to follow. Important safety warnings were highlighted, though our researcher thought it was hard to find the information you need to check beforehand on how suitable different surfaces around the home are for steam cleaning.

Setting the steamer up is straightforward, and the boiler tank is easy to fill thanks to the provided funnel and jug. The manufacturer says you should allow 10 minutes or so prep time, but when we tried the cleaner it was ready in about half that time. An indicator light shows when it’s ready to go, and one tank lasted just over half an hour before it needed refilling.

The Vaporetto Pocket doesn’t have wheels so it comes with a shoulder strap. This wasn’t a problem when cleaning a small kitchen and bathroom. A flexible brush made floor cleaning easier, though the lightweight extension tubes wiggled about and didn’t feel very secure during use.

The Pocket has a safety cap to stop hot pressurised water being released before it has cooled

Steam clean and tidy

Cleaning with the Pocket was a lot less effort than doing it by hand. Vinyl floors were left extremely clean, and not having to rinse off detergent residue was a timesaver. Tiles were left gleaming without rinsing or buffing, and the attachments coped with awkward and small areas.

The Pocket made short work of built-up grease on painted kitchen walls. Ground-in dirt on stair treads didn’t last long, and particularly tough stains gave in when treated with the steam gun.

The Pocket has a safety cap on the unit, which prevents the boiler tank being opened while there’s still pressure inside, and you must wait for any leftover water to cool before pouring it away. 

The Pocket’s compact size means it doesn’t take up much space when stored, but that also means there’s no room to store attachments inside. The cable can be wound round the body to keep it tidier.

Compact cleaning

The Vaporetto Pocket would suit people who fancy a steam cleaner but don’t have a lot of storage space, particularly flat dwellers who have smaller areas to clean, and at £75 it costs a lot less than full-sized steam cleaners.

Which? hasn’t fully tested steam cleaners, but for more information on what to look for if you’re thinking of getting one, see our guide to buying a steam cleaner.

Pros: Compact and light, can tackle a range of cleaning jobs around the home.
Cons: Extension tubes could be stiffer, its small size and shoulder strap may not be convenient when cleaning very large areas.