As a mom of four kids, I want things to be easy. I was introduced to the Shark Steam Mops by my Mom. They are a great way to be able to clean your floors and not worry about what is on the floor as your kids (or pets) crawl/walk/run over said floor. You fill them with water, it heats it, and then you use it much like a regular mop.

Sometime before we moved, I caught an infomercial for the new Shark Steam Mop. Oh, it was beautiful… and it had a two-sided head to mop with… clean with one side, turn the mop over and keep going with a clean mop. AND they showed it cleaning hardwood floors, which we have several in the new house. The desire began…

Once we were safely in our new place, I ventured out (with gift card and coupon in hand) to Bed Bath & Beyond and purchased the object of my desire. Once home I couldn’t wait to mop my new floors. I didn’t have a lot of time, but I wanted to play with my new toy… and my dinning room floor needed cleaning. Once done, it looked good. I went off to do what ever was the task for the moment and came back through my newly cleaned dinning room… and really didn’t like what I heard…

Yes, heard. My floor sounded like something very sticky was all over it. And it was more hazy then it had been. I was not happy. I began to wonder why. I reread the instructions – wondered if there was an issue with my water and purchased a jug of distilled water. Then mopped the floor again.

Again it dried sticky. I read up on the web. One thing I ran across was where some people were complaining about the finish or damage caused by cleaning products with wax in them, and how to remove the wax build-up. My best guess is the previous owners used one of these cleaners, and as I steamed my floor, it was just enough to soften the wax.

I purchased some ammonia and began cleaning my floor on my hands and knees. It took me two days (I am pregnant, you know… I just can’t do that kind of work for very long). The stickiness was gone. When I use the steam mop now, things are not nearly as bad… it’s going to take me a while to get the floor totally rid of whatever they used. Fun.

But I am excited to know I should be able to use my steam mop soon… easy is so much better!