Shark VACMOP Cordless Hard Floor Vacuum Mop w/ 2 Disposable Pads & 12-Oz Cleaner $49 + Free Shipping

Its an ok item. Suction is so-so. You have to do the vacuum with it first & the. Do the mopping. The concept of this is not that great. As you are doing the vacuum, those disposable pads are getting dirty in the meantime while getting scrubbed against the floor. And when you start mopping, the same dirty pad goes over the wet floor making it even bad. Idea is good, but not well executed in this small appliance. Needs few improvements. I wasted my money on this. An insight has been provided by a user who has used this device for a year+

I've had this for about 3 years now. It lasted this long only because I was able to maintain it well beyond it's life span. This vacmop, even though the concept may not be great but still does wonders if you know some tricks beating around the flaw.

1. This lasted almost close to a year before it stopped charging. Took it apart to figure out what was going on. There are two wires (positive and negative) that connect to the ends behind the charging plate. I can't remember which wire it was but I remember seeing the black wire was burnt. Yes, you heard that right, burnt. I soldered the wire back on properly sleeved with heat shrink. This helped bring back the charging. This may have been an isolated incident but it's better you know incase you wonder why it's not charging. Has been working great since then. Charging is still going strong to this day.

2. Biggest issue I've had with this is the nozzle spray will get clogged over time especially if you try to use different cleaning products for which ever floor you are trying to clean. Depending on which chemical cleaner you are using (depending on their chemical composition), can clog up the mechanism where the nozzle is. It is annoying but it can be cleaned. I used a wood floor cleaner and I'm sure most cleaners will clog up but I have a theory (I'll explain later).

The most easiest method to do before going over to opening the unit is the nozzle spray. If you are noticing loss of pressure or no spray at all. You can remedy this by using a needle (I used a sewing needle) and jammed it in the nozzle spray port until you can't push it in any further (use back and forth motion) and that port will open up The size of the needle was the same if not smaller than the hole and made it easier. I would advise against using larger sewing needles. The thinnest possible you can use. Test the spray and if it starts working, then you are done. This shouldn't take you no more than a minute to do. Just perform a warm water system flush and let the warm water break up the deposits and clean the system (descaling). If the spray nozzle still doesn't spray then proceed further.

Unfortunately you will have to open up the vacmop to do this but not entirely as we need to remove the top cover just to access the grey mechanism. It's super easy to do as there are 6 Philips screws (use a longer length one as they are in there). Remove the screws and if you look over above the "Shark" logo, there is a cap or cover where the handle rod meets the body of the vacmop. You can pry the cap off with a flat head and move it up the handle and away from the working area. This will allow you to remove the top cover of the vacmop. The small grey cap is located near the nozzle area and just above it. You will notice a small hole on top of the grey cap. Inspect the area. This is the mechanism that gets clogged as well as the nozzle spray port. Grey cap can be removed as it's clipped on, just have to push hard (I use flat head to move the clips from the grooves). Clean thoroughly including buildup from the chemical cleaner used. Put back as you took it off. This may sound like a lot but all this takes 5-10 minutes to do. Run the spray and watch the build up from the nozzle spray out. Perform descaling with warm water to flush the system.

One thing to note, the grey cap has a rubber gasket, be sure to keep an eye on it as sometimes the pressure of the nozzle deteriorates over time due to the gasket leaking and losing pressure (due to the chemical cleaner build up) and thus it is recommended to clean out the mechanism and spray port once or twice every month (if heavy use) by simply descaling by using warm water even if scaling is not present. Fill the tank reservoir and clean out the cleaner from the system just by activating the nozzle spray. Any chemical that remains will be rinsed out. If you you have pesky build up that warm water isn't working, use boiling water and run it through the system. Guaranteed build up removal. If you're feeling even more OCD, use a descaler powder or descaling chemical in boiling water and running through the system for that squeaky clean result. This helps prevent build up for a long time. If you need to replace the rubber gasket, find any size rubber, cut it to size and replace and no leaks.

My theory is that if you don't use the sprayer for a while and let the chemical sit in the system, it gets "dried up" and builds chemical deposits causing clog. So if you use it constantly, it should be fine to just rinse out with warm water. But if you let the chemical sit in place and not rinse out the system or don't use it as often, it will build up and will require you to do the cleaning process as I mentioned above. This vacmop is going strong to this day if you know how to properly maintain it's definitely worth the price of $49. I bought this for $129 when it wasn't on sale but at $49, it's a steal.

3. To avoid getting the floor dirty from the mop after vacuum use (if wood flooring), when you are vacuuming the floor, put a paper towel over the pad section (do not block the vacuum port, just fold the paper towel), and now every time you vacuum, the pads will not get dirty. This will pick up pre-dirt or whatever is on the floor while you vacuum. It will make mopping better with no streaks. Simply throw the paper towel out and spray the floor and mop away! I'm sure you can do this for all flooring types.

Keep note, this isn't a full fledge vacuum replacement, it's suction is enough to pick up small debris from floors. Should have no problem picking up human or pet hair or food particulates etc. Just keep in mind as pet hair are shed more often, if pet hair is all you're trying to suction, it will be fine until the disposable pad can't store any more and no suction remains. This means that the pad is full. You don't necessarily need to replace the pad right away you can keep using it for mop use for a longer period of time with the trick I mentioned with paper towel or until it gets too saturated. Cheaper replacement pads can be had by 3rd party as they are the same just not by Shark.


TLDR;
Just properly maintain the vacmop. If using regularly, once in a while use warm water (I recommend boiling water) to descale the system from build up and you should have no problem. If you are not going to be using it regularly, descale the system with warm water before storing it as the chemical is still in the system and will clog up as it dries out from no use of the sprayer system in a while. Use a paper towel under the mop pad when vacuuming and throw away paper towel and use mop feature as intended. For $49, it's a steal!

My wife saw these at our local Walmart for $38.

Tldr that's a lot of writing for a $50 mop that stopped working after a year

Tldr that's a lot of writing for a $50 mop that stopped working after a year