'I've used this Shark Mop for 6 months - my floors have never look cleaner'
'My floors have never looked more sparkling' - The Shark Steam Mop Tech Commerce Editor Harriet uses at home is now on sale
Gone are the days of a mop and bucket, steaming hot appliances have swiftly become the go-to in many households to get the floors gleaming while banishing germs at the same time. Often dubbed a 'must-have' brand, Dyson has its washG1, an all-in-one vacuum and mop which sucks up dirt and mops floors but at £499 the price is certainly eyewatering - I use one of Shark's rival products and not only does it cut cleaning times it's £400 cheaper.
The Shark Kick n' Flip Automatic Steam Mop uses hot steam instead of the traditional bucket of soapy water, and because of the heat there's no need for chemical-infused cleaning products. Usually £139.99 it's now on sale for £99 - hundreds cheaper than Dyson's much pricier alternative.
Unlike Dyson's model this doesn't have a vacuum, so that's a huge feature it's missing, but when it comes to mopping this nimble device has been game-changing. I swapped to the Shark Kick n' Flip at the beginning of the year, my floors are less grubby, the bathroom tiles come up shiny, and it can cover my whole flat in about 10 minutes.
It's simple to use, all I do is fill up the container with water and choose the steam setting - I personally always go for 'hi'. There's the choice of three options; low, medium, and 'hi.'
These can be used on a variety of different floors like the wooden laminate in my living room kitchen and tiles in my bathrooms. Looking at the size of the Shark pads, they also seem more nimble than other options.
For example, this cheaper Steam Fresh Combi from Vax (now £79.99) has a bigger triangle-like mop head which may be slightly bigger but looks trickier to get under furniture.
Shark Kick n' Flip
Product Description
If there's a particular mark or spot then the steam blast technology is great for this - in homage to its 'kick n' flip' name all I do is flop over the mop head with my foot and press down on the handle, which blasts out concentrated, high power amount of steam to help get rid of stubborn stains.
Once done with cleaning, the dirt pad (or mop head) can be released with a click of a button, which releases it from the mop. It goes face down, meaning I don't have to touch any of the grime, just chuck it straight into the washing machine on a warm wash.
The only thing that I've found is it's worth buying more of the detachable mop heads than what comes free with purchase (two) as this is good for switching up between the kitchen and bathrooms. I've used the Shark Steam Mop for nearly six months and not run into any major problems.
It's still working as well as the first time I unboxed it, which is why I decided to flag a product I've bought with my own money, instead of it being something I've been sent to review. I'd recommend it to anyone in need of an affordable cleaning upgrade.
Shoppers online have also shared their delight with it, and especially like the unique steam sprayer. As one person said: "Brilliant love this so easy to use. Does a great job of cleaning my floors, love the option to trigger more steam which is simple to do .
"Only four-stars as the cord is not long enough and water tank could do with been a little bigger so less refills however wouldn't put me off getting another one."
Another shopper said: "This is our third purchase of this steam mop because it really is the best we have found of its kind. it does not remain upright unless propped or held up. It is really easy to knock or pull over when switching plug sockets which may damage it."
Like the above shopper, I've also come into the same issue with it not being able to stand on its own, but I personally don't mind this. Instead of propping it up I make sure to lay it flat, and no water has ever leaked out of it when doing this.
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Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) AM I really looking forward to cleaning? Dyson has achieved two impossible feats: making me thrilled about the idea of tidying the floor, and inventing the world's slimmest vacuum. I'm not sure which is more impressive. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 10 I tried out the impossibly thin PencilVac at Dyson's Malmesbury labs Credit: Sean Keach 10 Dyson mocked up a miniature assault course for PencilVac testing Credit: Sean Keach 10 The Sun's tech editor Sean Keach was decked out in proper testing gear for the occasion Credit: Sean Keach It's called the PencilVac, and I've had a go with it behind closed doors at Dyson's Oxfordshire labs. Before I even grabbed the thing, I was blown away. Surely this is just a broom in disguise? Is Sir James Dyson having me on? It measures a frankly ludicrous 38mm across. That's about three Dairy Milk bars stacked on top of each other. 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Watch Sir James Dyson unveil secret PencilVac, world's slimmest vacuum cleaner 10 You'd think the PencilVac was a broom if you squinted Credit: Dyson 10 The bin for dust and debris is built right into the handle's lower half Credit: Dyson It's feathery light and easy to manoeuvre. Dyson has built a kind of vacuum cleaning assault course for me that I whizz along effortlessly. I suspect my success is down to the gadget's hi-tech design and not my own cleaning skill – but they don't crush my dreams. This course has straights and hairpin bends – the Nürburgring of vacuuming. And at the end is a low shelf that I drop straight under. This thing lays almost flat – which is no surprise, given that is pretty much is flat. DYSON PENCILVAC – THE TECH SPECS Here's what you need to know... Size: 38mm x 226mm x 1,160mm (W x L x H) Weight: 1.8 kilos Motor: Dyson Hyperdymium 140k motor Motor RPM: 140,000 Filtration: Up to 99.99% (dow to 0.3 microns) Runtime: Up to 30 minutes Charge time: Four hours Cleaner Head: Fluffycones cleaner head (for detangling long hair and to-edge cleaning) Accessories: Rotating combi-crevice tool / conical hair screw for mattresses and stairs / magnetic floor-charging dock Picture Credit: Dyson 10 There's even room for a computer system with a built-in display Credit: Sean Keach 10 The PencilVac is built for manoeuvrability – and it really works Credit: Sean Keach It feels like a tactical weapon: the sort of thing that SAS squaddies would use if dust mites were the baddies. Helping this image is a built-in laser that exposes dirt and debris. It's the vacuuming equivalent of night vision goggles and a red-dot sight. I dart between objects with stunning agility. I was born to do this. The room fades away. I daydream about running off with it, and living out my days as a kind of vacuuming sensei, cleaning the most complicated floor-spaces I can find. But I can't become Dyson's Mr Miyagi just yet, because the PencilVac isn't out until 2026, and still doesn't have a UK price. SIR JAMES DYSON SPEAKS TO THE SUN Here's what famed British inventor Sir James Dyson told The Sun's Sean Keach... Does PencilVac mark the beginning of a whole new era for vacuum cleaner design? Yes, it's a reinvention of the format of the vacuum cleaner – our third reinvention in fact! We started off by removing the bag to ensure vacuums didn't lose suction. Then we pioneered the simplicity and ease of cleaning with really powerful battery-powered cordless vacuums, which were lighter and much easier to use. Now, with the Dyson PencilVac, we're taking it a stage further, pioneering a new way to clean. All the technology is contained in a very slim handle that is just 38mm in diameter. The new Fluffycones cleaner head floats across floors making it very manoeuvrable as you clean; all while it detangles long hair, so you don't have to worry about that. A vacuum cleaner this thin must have seemed impossible for years – when did you first realise it was possible to actually manufacture a working device like this? When something seems impossible, it makes us as engineers want to solve it all the more! Especially if people say, 'It can't be done.' I've wanted to make a vacuum like the Dyson PencilVac for many years. But it required us to miniaturise everything about the product – which is a huge task. The diameter of our hair tools was the inspiration. Through lots of research, we realised that 38mm is the optimal size for most people to hold, and so this was the diameter chosen for our hair tools like the Supersonic hair dryer and Airwrap multi-styler and dryer. In order to fit it in the handle of the machine, we had to reengineer every component of the motor – down to the micron – while increasing its speed to 140,000RPM and maximising its power density for high-performance. It was clear that we couldn't use cyclones for the dust separation, because they were too big for the 38mm diameter, so we had to develop something entirely new. The new slim, in-line format meant we could use dust compression technology in a small diameter, but over a long area to maximise the bin capacity, all while ensuring effective filtration performance and no loss of suction. What was the biggest challenge to overcome in building the PencilVac? Developing the new Fluffycones cleaner head was perhaps the greatest challenge we faced – but also the most rewarding! We wanted to develop a cleaner head that would detangle hair, clean right up to skirting boards, and pick up dust and debris in all directions – a cleaner head that would solve many frustrations with existing cleaner heads. The new Fluffycones cleaner head features four conical brush bars. The challenge was engineering the drive system to ensure that all four cones, which are powered by two motors and four epicyclic gear boxes, spin at the same, consistent speed while maintaining its 7.5-degree angle for optimal pick-up performance. I'm delighted not only that we managed this, but in doing so made a vacuum cleaner which is a joy to use. Who do you see PencilVac being the perfect vacuum cleaner for? Once you've used it, and felt it float effortlessly across the floor, you'll realise it's unlike anything that has come before. It may be the only vacuum cleaner you need! Picture Credit: Dyson 10 The new Fluffycones head has a conical shape that pushes long hairs off to the side so they can be sucked back up immediately – so you don't have to cut them out manually with scissors CLEAN-UP TIME It's a thrilling bit of kit, which might be the first time that's ever been said about a vacuum cleaner. This thing is easy to use, takes up very little space, and gets into difficult nooks and crannies. It feels purpose-built for British homes. It'll make cleaning under and around the dining table an absolute breeze. A treat, even. It really is the SAS of cleaning gear: it's light and agile for tactical cleaning operations, it dispatches long hairs with ruthless efficiency, and it has whole-house endurance with a 30-minute runtime. I can already see myself arguing with my wife over who gets to use the PencilVac – but no matter who does, everyone's a winner. Maybe that's the real Dyson magic. 10 I was one of the first Brits to test out the Dyson PencilVac Credit: Sean Keach 10 Dual lasers allow you to easily see dirt and debris on your floor Credit: Sean Keach Read iconic British inventor Sir James Dyson's exclusive comment piece for The Sun here.
