Mrs wants a window vac to clean windows and avoid streaks. Any good or just another useless gadget. Also other makes vs Karcher. Thanks in advance.

TBH we use ours mostly for getting rid of condensation!

It’s very good for that job…. Apparently good at cleaning windows also!

They pick up most of the water on the glass but do leave streaks. At least mine does.

We use ours a lot for condensation removal and cleaning. 1st one broke in warranty and was replaced without question. 2nd one jammed out of warranty but was easy enough to take apart and free up.
Screwfix used to do a titan one.

Pretty good and in Lidl for £35 at the moment.

TBH we use ours mostly for getting rid of condensation!

Us too.
They’re also good for cleaning the shower tiles/glass of water after use.

Or farmfoods for £30

I’d say yes if you have lots of condensation on your windows and squeegeeing with a plain squeegee would result in water in a place you don’t want it. From memory the karcher one needs to be upright and doesn’t work overly well sideways and not at all upside down(squeegee at the bottom, motor and tank at the top), which can make getting condensation at the foot of a window tricky. 

Thanks for input, appreciated. Fortunately no condensation on windows, just want them clean. Good to know karcher not so good on its side, that would rule it out.

Yeah they’re great. No issues using sideways for me.

Good to know karcher not so good on its side, that would rule it out.

Got a karcher recently for condensation duties, works fine on it’s side and upside down without leaking

I got a Karcher _because_ it works well on it’s side, even upside down, to remove condensation.

I bought one years ago when it was on offer (WV 5?), & it’s still going strong, it made me more likely to wash the windows… Not that it happens that often, but it dead easy with one of these.

I find their cleaning fluid is really very good, but no doubt a home made version can be rustled up by the STW geeksquad. Having both size blades helps lots too.

Again it lives in the bathrooms otherwise, to clear up condensation

I’ve had a Karcher for many years and it works any way up. Used mostly for condensation on windows and shower cleaning. For actual window cleaning I use E-cloths from Lakeland and some other outlets, brilliant!

Yes, have had one for a few years; performs well.
I always use scrunched up newspaper to remove any streaks and to properly get into the corners.

As others have mentioned,  I too use mine for condensation…but also the condensation on my van in the mornings…oh and cleaning windows

Work very well for cleaning and yes for condensation if you get some. 

Should be in the thread on things that are shit but aren’t. Removes the dog prints from our bifold patio doors and leaves few streaks when used properly. Recommended. 

We have one. For cleaning windows it’s nowhere near as good as the steam mop with the window cleaner attachment we bought recently. And the steam mop is chuffing great on tiled and laminate floors, and indeed carpeted floors, into the bargain.

In fact, if you’re anywhere near Disley you can have the Karcher for nowt if you want it, cos it’s never getting used again.

Ours works OK for window cleaning, but you need to get the glass clean to avoid streaks. Great for removing condensation from the camper van windscreen.

If there’s any water in the tank you can’t use it on its side (or it draws the water into the fan and spits it out of the side).

Another positive user here. There is a bit of a technique (which I haven’t mastered yet) to keep from leaving the odd streak. But it rubs straight our with a microfribre cloth, which is needed to quickly run around the edges.
As with others, also used for cleaning the shower, getting condensation off the inside of windscreen, cleaning the inside of windscreen, cleaning the glass top of the hob if I want it to look extra clean.
I thought it was a bit of a gimmick when the wife wanted one, but it is worth it. Had ours about 3 years now and no issues.

Do these work for the interior of windows only, or are we talking exterior too?

Naive question – what do you mean when you say “cleaning windows”?  It’s basically a squeegee with a vacuum, right? So do you mean you use it to clean off the soapy water (or whatever) you use to clean the windows? Or have I got completely the wrong end of the stick?

The vac itself is essentialy a squeegy with a vacuum to suck up the water. So perfectly good for any flat surface (ie. glass) that you want to suck water off and leave minimal streaking.
The cleaning (in my case) is done by the other bit that came in the pack which is a spray bottle with a wide, flat microfibre head attached. Spray the cleaning liquid, fairy liquid and water will do, scrub around with the head. Then use the vacuum to clear it all off.

Like this:

DrJ
Full Member
Naive question – what do you mean when you say “cleaning windows”? It’s basically a squeegee with a vacuum, right? So do you mean you use it to clean off the soapy water (or whatever) you use to clean the windows? Or have I got completely the wrong end of the stick?

You used to be able to get a spray bottle with a microfibre ‘scrub’ head on it to actually wash/wipe the windows, the vacuum then removes the remaining moisture

Could one of these things be used to remove condensation from bathroom walls too?

We’ve got one – brilliant product. Far better cleaning than the ‘professional window cleaners who did that touchless washing with fancy water through a long lance from ground level (which was crap).

what do you mean when you say “cleaning windows”? It’s basically a squeegee with a vacuum, right? So do you mean you use it to clean off the soapy water (or whatever) you use to clean the windows?

I use mine similar to that: more to remove the soapy water from the glass than actual cleaning. I use the Karcher cleaner stuff diluted in a spray bottle, a few squirts per window then wiped over with a sponge from a bucket of warm water (no other soap/cleaning stuff), then clear the water off with the window vac. That method works for me.

I’ve found wiping the blade with a microfibre cloth between each ‘wipe’ of the window helps it collect all water from the top edge of the window.

They’re also robust buggers. Lost grip on ours cleaning the dormer windows once. Slid down roof and fell one storey onto monoblocks. Unharmed apart from one of the tabs holding bottle in place snapped, but a bit of tape fixed that.

@johndoh I use mine mainly for condensation- our bathroom walls are Mermaid aqua panels and it cleans them lovely. I can’t understand the comments above about it not working properly on its side, if the rubber bung is in correctly it even works to do the ceiling! It does have to be emptied periodically of course which is perhaps why some people have problems?

I’ve had it over ten years now and only had to replace the rubber- available from E – spares.

Just get a decent squeegee. I bought a metal one with replaceable rubber strip from an online window cleaning supply company and it is great for finishing the windows streak free after cleaning. We also use it daily as a shower scraper as we’re in a hard water area. 

I use mine mainly for condensation- our bathroom walls are Mermaid aqua panels and it cleans them lovely.

We just have painted walls / tiled areas – I assume one should be okay for them? The hammering the bathroom now gets (having three teenagers using it) is dreadful – I just repainted the bathroom a few months ago (using bathroom-specific Johnstone’s trade paint) and it is starting with black mould spots and bubbling already.

They are great for cleaning condensation.

They are a bit of a faff for cleaning windows as opposed to a normal rubber scraper and a cloth.

They are good for various unexpected tasks which require stuff cleaning off flat surfaces.

Ours ended up at the back of the cupboard as it was more often easier just to grab a tea towel and wipe stuff.

Hmm, painted bathroom walls you say, maybe ours won’t get binned after all…

removes condensation well. leaves streaks.

A simple rubber wiper livers in our bathroom for the shower screen and tiles/painted wall. All the water scraped down into the bath.
Again. Karcher might work better but slower and moreof a faff

A simple rubber wiper livers in our bathroom for the shower screen and tiles/painted wall. All the water scraped down into the bath.

Yeah, ours is quite a large family bathroom so lots of the surface area isn’t over the bath so it’s a real hassle to try to dry it all off sufficiently.

In our smaller en-suite I just use a squeegee as it’s all tiled and it’s dead easy to just whizz it over.

the satisfaction on using one on condensation covered windows is right up there next to a one wipe poo

The single best window cleaning tool I ever had, sadly now long gone, was a windscreen wiper I liberated from a mk1 Ford Fiesta. I’m of the opinion that

Just get a decent squeegee

is the right answer here.

We use ours for condensation in the house and campervan. It works well

Any good for cleaning up standing water off hard floors? Like the tiles or lino under a clothes airer after you’ve put rinsed biking waterpoof on there to dry?

As long as there’s not much of it. They work better on vertical surfaces but still work decently on horizontal ones