Thanks. On my way home today I stopped at yet another Walgreens and found that they are now carrying a steamer under a new name, "Living Solutions". Is it any good? Well, I intend to find out since I just bought one. I have a few more things to gather up before I attempt to cook my first LP. Stay tuned. |
I just bought a Shark today. I plan to compare it to the "new" Walgreens steamer tomorrow. Just from a cursory once-over, I'm thinking they both came from the same factory in China. We'll see what happens at the face-off... Depending on how things turn out, I may take you up on your offer to ship, SOJ (hope you don't mind the abbreviation). You may have access to some of the last of the Perfection line. According to Walgreens website, the item has been deactivated. |
OK, here's a mini review of the new Walgreens Living Solutions steamer vs. the Shark Hard Surface Steam Cleaner. Physically, the steamers are very similar, leading me to conclude that they were either built in the same factory or factory A stole the plans from factory B. Hey, it could happen. Anyway, from external appearances and features, the Walgreens (WG henceforth) unit is a bit better built. It has a torque limiting filler cap, the Shark does not. The o-ring on the WG cap is Viton, which is chemical and heat resistant. All o-rings on the Shark are standard issue. The WG's attachment point on the basic, straight cone shaped nozzle (where the elbow attachment would slip on) has double o-rings (not Viton); the Shark has only one. On the other hand, the Shark's heating element is rated at 1000W, the WG at 900W. The power light doubles as a ready light on the WG, turning off when operating temperature is reached. The Shark light is always on. The WG has a 2 year warranty, the Shark 1 year. The Shark's accessories are made of gray plastic, the WG accessories are black. The difference goes deeper than the color. In the original steamer thread, some concern was raised about the burning vinyl smell emitted by the Perfection steamer, and some troubling worries about lead were voiced. The WG unit's attachments emited a distinct odor, which I describe as a burning tire smell. The Shark's accessories emitted no detectable odor, or at least none that could override the smell from the WG. I was using them side-by-side, but I held each cone attachment up to my nose after the second run and there was nothing offensive given off by the Shark. If there are any lead warnings on either unit, they are not prominent. I have not examined every word of the manuals nor every inch of the units, however. Now on to performance. Both units were filled with approx. 200ml of water and allowed to warm up for 10 minutes. The WG light turned off well before then, but Crem says he lets his steamer warm up quite a bit, so I decided to do the same. Holding one steamer in each hand with no attachments of any sort, I depressed the triggers simultaneously and aimed into the double kitchen sink. The Shark produced a greater volume of steam and the duration of usable steam lasted 2-3 seconds longer than the WG, using the count-it-off-in-my-head timing method. Attaching the straight cone, or "concentrator", (the design of which makes either attachment fit either steamer) the test was repeated. Again, the apparent volume of steam from the Shark was greater and it seemed more consistent with less spitting. Steam "on" time was again slightly in favor of the Shark. Attaching the elbow and repeating the test yielded essentially the same results. Note that no actual cleaning was done in these tests, and the steamers weren't used until the water was exhausted, so cleaning time is unresolved. I did hold my hand about 1 foot away from each unit as it was in operation and there is no danger of scalding at that distance. One did not seem to be any hotter than the other. I don't know if anyone will find this exercise useful, but as for me, I think I'll keep the Shark. |
NOTE: I attempted to post this yesterday and was informed that I am restricted to a 750 word limit. I then posted a truncated version (three words) which apparently failed to amuse the moderator. So here, once more, is the full version. If it cuts of mid-sentence, so be it. Here are my first impressions of steam cleaning with the steamer currently sold by Walgeens. Remember that I have nothing to compare the steamer's performance to except the videos I've seen and testimonials I've read. First, the steamer: Walgreens Living Solutions, item #W14A8006 The steamer holds 220ml of water, which doesn't go very far (at least using it the way I did). Using the angled attachment and starting with the grooves nearest the label, I held the steamer about 3-4 inches above the record and moved in an expanding circular pattern. I could make about 2 laps around the LP before the steam velocity decreased noticeably and the Not Ready light came on. As I moved farther out, with the diameter becoming progressively larger, I found that I could not make one complete lap before having to wait for the steamer to catch up. Evaluation I am disappointed with the performance of this unit and suspect that it is sub-par when compared with steamers used by others. Cleaning Results I started on albums that I owned in high school (graduated in '72) which had be previously played to death on one of those ubiquitous BSR turntables with the tonearm that held that little "needle" that you flipped over to play 78s. On these specimens, no miracles were observed. Once I was sure I could do this operation without melting the vinyl, I moved on to records with a better history of care and found that surface noise was in fact reduced, sometimes dramatically. I should point out that my process consisted of 1. using 1 dedicated micro fiber cloth for pre-cleaning 2. steaming 3. using 2 more micro fibers to blot up the water and wipe dry.* Conclusion I think that steaming holds promise, provided the right equipment and techniques are used (thanks to the pioneering efforts of many others, I don't have to re-invent the wheel). With the addition of a cleaning solution to pre clean (paired with a VIP or DD brush), a better steamer and perhaps a vacuuming of the surface with a homemade attachment to finish up, I should get more consistent results and a sparkling clean record collection. *the micro fiber cloths I used, something made in China and purchased from Lowe's, proved to be a poor choice judging from the tumbleweeds that were wrapped around my stylus after playing about 4 album sides. |
Thanks Crem, your unselfish sharing of your experiences led me to try what would have been unimaginable (to me, anyway) only a few short weeks ago. I lament the passing of the Perfection steamer, but I am going to give Walgreens new offering (Living Solutions) another shot. I think I was moving around the record much too slowly on my first attempts. After watching the YouTube video and rereading these threads, I am sure I need to modify my method. FWIW, I tried a Shark "steam bottle" and have mixed emotions about it. It's designed with a trigger pump, not unlike a Windex bottle. You squeeze the trigger a few times to start the steam rolling. Then, you have to keep squeezing the trigger at certain intervals to keep the steam flowing. Too few pumps and the steam stops; too many and it starts spitting. Overall, even though the steam output seems better than the Walgreens unit, I can't help but wonder how long that trigger pump will last... I've had spray bottles wear out relatively quickly. Another thing I don't care for is that the filler cap is on the *bottom* of the unit. But, if you aren't bothered by either of those factors, the heating element is rated at 1500w and it only needs to heat up for about a minute. And, as I said, the steam output is pretty good. I may try another steamer or two, using the Walgreens steamer as the control or baseline model. If I find something better, I'll let you all know. |
Speaking of which... After having some really bad lint issues with microfiber cloths I bought at Lowes, I've been on the lookout for something else. So, I was in Walmart on Sunday and I found this https://www.cleantools.net/WebSite/productDesc.aspx?pid=3 It's called the Absorber and it's a synthetic chamois. I bought one and used it when I steamed about a dozen records this morning. I used one side for the initial steaming and the other side for the finish steaming. It works very well at picking up moisture and is about as lint free as anything could be. Anyone ever tried this product? Any potential downside? |
In the quest for an affordable rinse agent, I found this http://www.expressmedicalsupplies.com/nerl-high-purity-water-p-28364.html It's a step below the NERL REAGENT GRADE WATER, but the cost is less than half. An analysis can be found here http://www.nerl.com/support/sample.aspx?id=9805 Does this look like a step up from garden variety distilled water? |
Sorry Tvad, I don't mean to be argumentative or difficult, I'm just asking the the general population here whether they think that water from a single distillation process is inferior or equal to a lower tier reagent grade RO water. Crem, there are no Pep Boys outlets near me. I suppose I could have some shipped, but I've read about the sediment/mold issue too. I guess I could check into whether the water carries any kind of expiration or packaging date. |
I tried a Shark Steam Bottle which also utilized a trigger to pump water into the heating chamber. I personally did not care for this added requirement, much preferring to simply hold down the trigger on a Perfection-like model (also a Shark brand,) for continuous steam. Another concern was the quality of the pump. I've had bottle sprayers quit relatively quickly. I guess the other advantages of the MC might make it worth considering if I were starting from scratch... but for now I'll keep the Shark. |
Glass Plus has been hailed as a good cleaner in some forums. I have used it as a pre-treat (cut with water, 1:1) prior to steaming some particularly cruddy albums. I can't say that the results were superior, but my technique at the time did not involve a brush or a vacuum so I may not have achieved optimum results. |
Hi Kipdent, Look in Walgreen's small appliance section. Some seem to stock them, some don't. I recently found (but did not buy) the old Perfection steamer in one WG, so try more than one store. As an option, consider the Shark from Kmart. I auditioned both the Lifestyles steamer and the Shark. From what I can tell, they both come from the same factory in China. Both perform in a similar fashion. The biggest difference is a sensory one. The Lifestyles steamer comes with black accessories, the Shark with gray. However, the difference goes deeper than the color. When using the Lifestyles steamer with accessories, a strong "burning tire" smell has to be contended with. The Shark's attachments emit no such odor. That, coupled with my perception that the Shark performed marginally better, was enough to convince me to keep the Shark. There is also the Shark Bottle sprayer, which I tried and returned. It apparently operates similarly to the McCullough steamer in that you must pump water with a trigger (think spray mist bottle) periodically in order to keep the steam flowing. I never really mastered the technique of pumping at the right intervals to keep the steam flowing. I distrusted the pump for longevity reasons as well. Good luck. |
Tvad, Without examining the ASTM specification and knowing more about the properties of vinyl, it's impossible for me to know much about its absorptive action, i.e. the rate of absorption. I can hazard a guess, however, that it's probably not constant over time. It may soak up the largest percentage of water in the first minutes of exposure. Even if this is true, to what extent this hydration does or does not benefit the listening experience is unknown to me. |
