VX 5000 Steamer

J

Jpostal

Excellence Auto Gallery
I recently bid on a contract for cleaning the fleet of vehicles for a care home/supportive living home (8 cars bi-weekly for wash and vacs with interior wipe down, and 40 units for full details twice a year). Anyway, I got the word today that I won the bid which is great. The problem is that one of my main selling points was the use of steam instead of cleaning chemicals which some of their clients may be sensitive to. I don't currently own a steamer and have been looking at my options. The VX5000 seems to be popular with Autopians, but I'm not sure it is big enough. With this kind of volume would it be worth it to invest in a bigger continual fill system like a Daimer?



Any suggestions from people who have experience with professional grade steamers?



Thanks for the input.
 
I have this machine in my shop and it works great. The downside is it takes a while to heat up before you use it, so it may not be the best for continuous use, but it does have a nice stainless steel boiler, so it is very durable.





John
 
JohnKleven said:
I have this machine in my shop and it works great. The downside is it takes a while to heat up before you use it, so it may not be the best for continuous use, but it does have a nice stainless steel boiler, so it is very durable.





John
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John, you have the VX5000? How many vehicles can you do on a single tank of water? I know the VX5000 is a quality machine, but my main concern is downtime...I don't want to be waiting around for the machine to heat up, then run out of water and have wait to cool down before refilling it and waiting for it to heat up again.
 
Are you going to be using steam for interiors? As in disinfecting using no chemicals that might be irritating to the companies clients? What type of vehicles are you doing? Cars, vans, small buses? I have used a vx5000 and it honestly, sucked. I was hoping for better results but in a situation where you are doing multiple interiors, it's just not big enough of a tank. That and the time it takes to heat up, the fact you have to de-pressurize the tank before you can fill it. It was just not meant for that type of continuous work.



If you want more info on some solutions please PM me and I will give you some ideas. I also have some questions in regards to your bid.
 
I decided to order the VX5000...with the satisfaction guarantee I can always send it back if it is too small. I will give an update once I have had a chance to use it.
 
We have three. Very versatile. You've made a good decision. It will usually do two interiors. We don't do carpets (except stain removal).

Good Luck.
 
I got the VX5000 the other day via UPS (worst customer service ever) and had a chance to try it out today. I had a minivan with very dirty leather seats that would not come clean with a brush and APC so I though I would give them a go with steam. I used the large triangle brush with a terry cloth over it and it worked good except for in the creases of the leather. Also, in some places it seemed to "scuff" the leather or something...it's hard to explain but there were little balls of what I'm guessing was either leather or the leather dye/coating. I had the steamer running on medium and did not let it sit in one place too long...kept it moving. What are the chances of damaging leather with steam?



I was looking at another post on Autopia as well and a guy was cleaning leather seats with the smaller triangle brush with no towel...seems to me the bristles are too stiff? And what about spraying an APC on the leather before steaming???



Thanks for the a advice.



leatherseat.jpg
 
I tried the vx5000 on some leather and quickly found it not too friendly. I used the triangle brush with a towel and the leather seemed like it had turned and different texture. I didn't get the balls or any thing else but it did seem to make the leather feel very dried and almost flat. I broke out the leather cleaner and conditioner and finished it the old fashioned way. Seems leather and hot steam don't mix well.
 
What about steaming headliners? Large triangle attachment with terry cloth on low should be ok from what I have read.
 
advs1 said:
I tried the vx5000 on some leather and quickly found it not too friendly. I used the triangle brush with a towel and the leather seemed like it had turned and different texture. I didn't get the balls or any thing else but it did seem to make the leather feel very dried and almost flat. I broke out the leather cleaner and conditioner and finished it the old fashioned way. Seems leather and hot steam don't mix well.
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I've never had a problem with leather and steam.
 
Steam and leather get along just fine. The deciding factor in whether it should be used depends on the condition of the leather.



Is the leather faded, as in the dye/coloring wearing off? If so then adding ANY type of moisture to it will have adverse effects. It needs to be re-finished then at that point or inform the client that those areas may get worse.....they will be "clean" but the finish may come off even more.



I have been using steam vapor longer than most on these forums and I can say it has never damaged any carpets, vinyl, leather or paint that's in good condition.



Here is how I clean filthy leather seats with steam vapor. First go over the seat with the steamer, usually the triangle head with or without a terry/microfiber towel to warm the seat up. I then spray my cleaner either directly on the seat or on my cleaning pad/brush and start gently agitating the area to be cleaned.



You should notice dirt lifting up and being suspended in the cleaner liquid. Now I take my steamer and once more go over the area I just cleaned. It's now time to wipe up the dirty residue. I inspect the leather seat, especially the crevices where crud hides, and re-clean if necessary.



Many times the stuff you see rolling up or off the seats is grease and oils from things like bodies, lotions, make-up etc. It can also be the finish or coating on really jacked up seats.



Small triangle head wrapped in a towel works great for door panels, console and dash. Larger triangle head wrapped in a towel for headliners.



Place a glass towel over the triangle head and use it to clean glass. Use a dry glass towel to dry the glass.



Use the jet nozzle wrapped in a towel to clean up cup holders and ashtrays, spray with cleaner first. This cuts down on the vapor over spray.



Anthony
 
Anthony Orosco said:
Steam and leather get along just fine. The deciding factor in whether it should be used depends on the condition of the leather.



Is the leather faded, as in the dye/coloring wearing off? If so then adding ANY type of moisture to it will have adverse effects. It needs to be re-finished then at that point or inform the client that those areas may get worse.....they will be "clean" but the finish may come off even more.



I have been using steam vapor longer than most on these forums and I can say it has never damaged any carpets, vinyl, leather or paint that's in good condition.



Here is how I clean filthy leather seats with steam vapor. First go over the seat with the steamer, usually the triangle head with or without a terry/microfiber towel to warm the seat up. I then spray my cleaner either directly on the seat or on my cleaning pad/brush and start gently agitating the area to be cleaned.



You should notice dirt lifting up and being suspended in the cleaner liquid. Now I take my steamer and once more go over the area I just cleaned. It's now time to wipe up the dirty residue. I inspect the leather seat, especially the crevices where crud hides, and re-clean if necessary.



Many times the stuff you see rolling up or off the seats is grease and oils from things like bodies, lotions, make-up etc. It can also be the finish or coating on really jacked up seats.



Small triangle head wrapped in a towel works great for door panels, console and dash. Larger triangle head wrapped in a towel for headliners.



Place a glass towel over the triangle head and use it to clean glass. Use a dry glass towel to dry the glass.



Use the jet nozzle wrapped in a towel to clean up cup holders and ashtrays, spray with cleaner first. This cuts down on the vapor over spray.



Anthony
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Thanks for the info. I find new uses for my steamer everyday, although it does not work as well on some things as I thought it would (ie. removing tar from body panels). On the exterior of the car I do like it for blasting old wax and polish residue from crevices and stuff, but that is about all I have found it useful for on the exterior.
 
Sorry, I have to disagree. I have been using a steamer on leather for a couple of years. I use a low steam setting with two towels wrapped around a non bristled head. Even then I don't think once have I seen the leather return to its normal look. I believe the steam damages the coating. It may be fine once or twice, but I would be concerned about the longevity of the coating after a steaming.



For me, I use it before spraying the leather. It does a great job of getting body oils and such out of the leather.
 
JPostal said:
I recently bid on a contract for cleaning the fleet of vehicles for a care home/supportive living home (8 cars bi-weekly for wash and vacs with interior wipe down, and 40 units for full details twice a year). Anyway, I got the word today that I won the bid which is great. The problem is that one of my main selling points was the use of steam instead of cleaning chemicals which some of their clients may be sensitive to. I don't currently own a steamer and have been looking at my options. The VX5000 seems to be popular with Autopians, but I'm not sure it is big enough. With this kind of volume would it be worth it to invest in a bigger continual fill system like a Daimer?


Any suggestions from people who have experience with professional grade steamers?


Thanks for the input.
Click to expand...


 


Hey man, I know it's been years since you posted this but I was wondering what the result is. I'm in a  similar situation. Did you end up getting the VX5000 or something else? 
 
Post number 7 shows that he got it and was trying it out on the leather seats. On post 13 he talks about using it everyday on interiors. A lot of people vouch for these, seemed to be pretty good. 
 
VX5K will work great, just be aware user knowledge/carefulness is the most important aspect.
 
A *good* steamer can be very userful, but IME (I have a Daimer 1500C) it's not a cure-all machine either. And you do have to be somewhat careful, it's not just a matter of any dangers being intuitively obvious.
 
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