Home Cleaning Cleaning Hacks 8 Unexpected Ways to Use a Steam Cleaner This versatile tool is even more multipurpose than we realized. By Morgan Noll Morgan Noll Morgan Noll is a digital home editor for Real Simple covering home, real estate, and holidays. Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Published on January 17, 2024 Close Photo: Detry26/Getty Images Every week there's a new cleaning gadget or "miracle" product being sold to us online. But sometimes, we don't need anything new, we may just need to take a look at the tools we already have in a new way. Steam cleaners, which use only water and heat to clean and disinfect, have a wide range of capabilities—and if you have one, chances are, you're probably underutilizing it. While you likely know that steam cleaners are highly effective at removing wrinkles from drapes and upholstery or that they can deep-clean grout, you may not have considered using them for things like, say, removing the sticky label from a jar you're reusing. Below are 10 ways to use a steam cleaner that you may not have considered. The 8 Best Steam Cleaners, According to Our Tests 01 of 08 Remove Wallpaper Traditional wallpaper can be a pain to remove, and there's pretty much no way around that. However, a steam cleaner can make the process a little simpler. Instead of applying a wallpaper remover solution all over the walls, you can run the steamer along the walls and the heat from the steam will loosen the wallpaper glue. 02 of 08 Remove Sticky Residue Wallpaper glue isn't the only sticky residue that a steam cleaner can tackle. Try busting out this powerful machine any time there's stubborn residue you need to remove. Whether you're trying to destroy the evidence of an old sticker, label, or decal, a steam cleaner can get the job done. 03 of 08 Clean Windows Windows are notoriously hard to clean. Even the cleaning products specifically made for the job can still leaves streaks and an imperfect finish behind. Steam cleaning windows, however, requires no chemicals or cleaning products—aside from a squeegee—and is even more efficient at removing grime and fingerprints, without leaving any streaks. (This also applies to glass doors and mirrors.) 04 of 08 Clean Toys That Can't Be Washed If you have young kids or even pets running around the house, then you likely also have a large selection of germ-covered toys scattered all over too. While some plush toys can be thrown in the wash for a quick clean, others can't—and that's where a steam cleaner can really come in handy. At over 212 degrees F, steam cleaners can effectively clean and sanitize toys that can't be thrown in the wash, eliminating more germs from your home (and your baby's mouth). Just be careful with any plastic toys that may melt when exposed to high heat. 05 of 08 Degrease the Range Hood If you've ever made yourself sore by trying to scrape grease buildup from the stovetop or range hood, you'll be happy to know that a steam cleaner can save you a lot of effort on this task. The high heat from a steam cleaner can easily break down and loosen grease—and all you'll need to do afterward is wipe it down. 06 of 08 Sanitize Frequently Touched Surfaces When used correctly, steam cleaners can effectively eliminate bacteria and viruses from surfaces. So this is a great tool to use on any surfaces that are frequently touched by anyone in your home, like doorknobs, faucets, toilet flush handles, countertops, and more—especially if someone in the home is sick. Just avoid any surfaces that could be damaged by the use of steam or that could be unsafe to clean with steam, like light switches. 07 of 08 Defrost a Freezer If your freezer is filled with frost buildup, a steam cleaner may be the easy solution you need. The steam can quickly melt large chunks of ice so that you don't have to wait hours for the ice to melt on its own. Just make sure to have some towels or a bucket on hand so that you don't end up with a bigger mess. 08 of 08 Dust Off Faux Houseplants Dust can quickly make your fake houseplants look even more, well, fake. Instead of dusting off each individual leaf with a cloth and immense patience, though, a steam cleaner can make quick work of the task. Just keep the heat setting on low and do a spot test first to make sure the steam doesn't melt the fake leaves. You can also try this method to dust off your real houseplants, but you'll want to be extra careful to avoid burning the foliage. And once you're done using your steam cleaner for just about anything and everything, don't forget that it'll need cleaned too. Here's how to clean a steamer to keep it from collecting too much buildup. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit