Conair GS4R Compact Fabric Steamer
by Conair
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List Price: Our Price: $29.99 You Save: $10.00 (25%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $19.99 (click here) Category: Home See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Conair GS4R Compact Fabric Steamer
Customer Review: Great Steamer
Summary: 5 Stars
I'll start by saying I am an avid sewer and have been sewing for over 20 years but have never owned a steamer. I love my iron and the extremely crisp look of a nicely ironed garment. Why I finally decided I needed a steamer is because I was making several outfits out of expensive velvet that cannot be safely ironed without potential permanent damage to the velvet. After researching a variety of steamers, I decided upon this Conair Compact Fabric Steamer based mostly on the customer reviews and price. My only real concern was with the reports of the steamer "spitting" but at least one helpful reviewer commented that this problem was easily avoided by following the instructions and raising the hose occasionally to allow condensation to drain back into the tank (this is 100% effective in completely eliminating that issue - my steamer NEVER spits on my garments!)
After reading the instructions and setting my steamer up, the 1st thing I steamed was an old piece of velvet which had be folded and stored in a box for at least 10 years. I didn't expect this fabric to be recovered or restored into any usable condition as it was extremely wrinkled, but after just a few minutes of steaming it was as wrinkle-free and beautiful as the day it was bought.
I steamed many garments that day, cotton, poly, cotton blends, shirts, pants, skirts, etc. and of course, the velvet britches, cape, and dress I was making. I am extremely satisfied and happy with my steamer, it worked better than I hoped or expected on everything I steamed that day, especially the velvet.
On the silk, wool, and velvet garments and sweaters that I would never iron anyway, this steamer is fabulous and, on these types of garments, I would completely recommend the steamer with no reservations.
My only reservation is this...
If you are obsessive and compulsive about your shirts and/or pants being extremely crisp like me, you definitely will not want to abandon your iron. I was not able to get my shirts to look like they had been compulsively ironed and starched, but the wrinkles were removed and they looked nice. One good thing about this is that my teenaged son and daughter do not like the obsessively crisp starched look in their clothes but I don't like the "just rolled out of bed" look, this steamer will give you a nice happy medium - neat but not compulsively so.
Customer Review: Five stars with reasonable expectations
Summary: 5 Stars
As mentioned by some, this will not replace an iron. If you expect it to you need to take your clothes to the dry cleaner. If you want to look presentable for work and hate ironing this was well worth the price.
I wear alot of women's button up shirts and find them to be very difficult to iron and my lack of patience and skill does not help. The steamer on the other hand was very easy to use and functioned to level that made me very presentable for work.
Good:
-I was able to steam all the shirts I own (10-11) and the several skirts and pants in about 30 minutes.
-even and strong steam if used correctly-READ the DIRECTIONS about what to do when the tube sputters and it wont dribble on your shirt or hands
-The pants and skirts were all synthetic material and this is when the steamer functioned at its best, only requiring 1 or 2 passes to look great.
- the shirts were all polyester cotton bends some were very wrinkly and though it did take alot of passes they still looked nice when they were done
-easy set up and clean up
-stores in a very small space
-I only paid $33 for mine at Bed Bath and Beyond with one of those mail coupons they are always sending out
-water reserve was only a little over half gone after may 30 minutes of steaming
Bad-
-makes wrinkly clothes slightly wet with lots of passes (this actually wasn't bad for me I just let them hang on the door knob to dry for 10-15 minutes and then put them away and they look great)--but not for last minute use like in the AM right before you are late for work
-does take a long time to heat up-- 10 minutes for full strong steam
-I burned myself a couple of times with the steam--not seriously-but I wont blame this on the machine as it was usually my fault for holding the garment and then trying to steam too close to my hand
All in all I am very pleased with my purchase especially for the price. I can't speak to the long term durability but I would recommend the purchase even if it only worked 3 or 4 times as my dry cleaning bill would be twice that by then.
Tips for successful use:
-read the directions- I know it sounds stupid but I was much more successful once I did-before that I was less than satisfied with the machines function
Customer Review: Good steamer for the price
Summary: 5 Stars
I got this a few dollars cheaper at Target. Easy to set up, easy to use. The nozzle has a hook on the back so it can hang on the end of the over the door hook while you're taking down one garment and hanging up another. It didn't save me time on my work clothes, but they came out looking a lot better than with an iron. It saves me a LOT of time with casual clothes, though. I read a lot of reviews here about this and other steamers so I was prepared for different problems (holding the nozzle so that the condensation goes back down into the nozzle instead of on my hands, not over-filling, be careful not to steam my fingers, making sure the garment is hanging high so I don't get burned) and it worked out fine.
For pants, I hang them upside down by the cuff and steam them that way. I don't get a razor-sharp crease like I do with an iron, but this is much gentler on my clothes and the crease I get is good enough for civilian life.
I recommend this for steamer for household use. It's a good product.
*edit*
I got the Whirlpool Fabric Freshener at a steep discount for a market research study. It usually sells for $200, but I prefer the this Con-Air steamer. It's not as cool looking as the Whirlpool gadget, but it gets the wrinkles out, is easier to store, and you don't have to buy replacement parts on a regular basis. (Whirlpool recommends buying $20 water cups for the Freshener every 6 months.) I'm sticking with the Con-Air model.
To be fair, clothes do come out smelling a lot fresher from the Whirlpool product than the Con-Air, but the Whirlpool product requires distilled water and steams in an eclosed space (heavy-duty canvas) and the Con-Air doesn't. I'm sure if I started using distilled water in the Con-Air product and steaming in an enclosed space, the Con-Air would make the fabric fresher, too.
I recommend this product because it's functional, convenient, and well within my budget.
Customer Review: Awesome! The perfect steamer at the perfect price!
Summary: 5 Stars
I spent several months researching garment steamers and could not decide which one I wanted - price vs. quality and which brand was best etc. So I decided to buy an inexpensive one and see if I liked it. Well... I love it and I'm so happy I didn't spend $200 on one either!
I took my 20% off coupon to Linens and Things and was able to compare several models side by side and CAUTION!!! the much more expensive Sharper Image model is the EXACT same as this one just a different color! As far as I could tell, this table top model was the same as the pro models but without the extension pole and with a smaller water tank - I mean, how long are you going to be steaming anyway?
When I got it home, it was easy to assemble - just stick the hose in, fill it up with water and turn it on. It took a few minutes - actually I realized I hadn't been paying attention and filled it way past the max fill line - ooops - but it still never overflowed or leaked. As soon as the water started boiling, it began to put out a lot of very hot steam. I was a bit worried that the hose was too stiff but once the steam started flowing, it became very flexible.
For all the people that did not like the short poles on the more expensive models, the over the door hanger was perfect. The steam handle hangs on it and it is a much better design for long pants or dresses.
I steamed a pair of curtains, a bed skirt, my comforter (still on the bed), a shower curtain, and a pilgrim outfit. I ran the steamer for about 30 min. and when I stopped, the water level had just made it down to the max line. My biggest problem was that I ran out of things to steam! I was having so much fun watching the wrinkles disappear from all my stuff!! I did steam my hand once or twice at first but I quickly figured out how to stop doing that!
I got this steamer for just under $25 and I couldn't be happier!
Customer Review: A Big Fat Joke & A Waste Of Money
Summary: 1 Stars
I am a trained research assistant; therefore, I try to research products before I purchase them. In the case of this purchase, I saw the item during an early bird sale at Kohls, so I grabbed it. I owned a professional steamer that was purchased at a store that was going out of buisness, but it is really bulky, so I thought that the compact steamer would be a great choice. On the contrary, it was a big waste of time trying to dewrinkle a blouse, and although it was on sale, it was a waste of money. The problems I had were:
1. The cord is too short: directions instruct user to hang nozzle on the door hook which hangs over the top of any door. The nozzle would not reach to the top of the door, and I live in a mobile home, so it is not like I have the tallest doors in a home.
2. The most important thing in steaming a garment, for me, is to avoid the garment getting wet. I did not fill the steamer to the maximum line, because I know from past experience that this could sometime cause the spitting affect. After 2 minutes of waiting for the steam, I began to try it out on a silk blouse, and what a big mistake I made. The water spat out on the material. I thought that I should not hold the nozzle so close, but it did not matter, because water continued to spit out on the blouse.
3. The steam pressure would not dewrinkle the blouse. The is not a case where the material was so hard to dewrinkle; it is silk, not that hard of a material.
I have read other reviews, and if this machine worked for them, I don't know how, but I can attest to the operation of the steamer that I purchased. I dabble in selling clothing on another website, and I have owned my other steamer since 2002, and I will continue to use it; I will just have to deal with space that it takes up in my home. Conair GS4 Compact is a bust.