Karcher FC5 Hard Floor Cleaner Reviews

First of all I have to say I really like this karcher hard floor washer and I would recommend it. I was very excited about the idea of making cleaning much faster and easier, about vacuuming and moping at the same time. I had big hopes and expected a lot. The set up was very easy, very straightforward, using it is very simple. I had a look at users manual but everything is quite clear even without it, I only had to attach the handle when it was delivered and it was ready to go. Water tanks are very easy to remove, fill, empty, clean, all of that is very easily done. It moves by itself just needs to be held up and directed. It was said that it cannot pick up anything bigger but from my experience it does pick up some smaller pieces of cat food, cat litter, things like that. And it does great with dust and cat’s hair, there’s always a pile of hair in the dirty water tank. You might still need to use a regular vacuum cleaner from time to time or sweep the floor because it cannot pick up something bigger really. The cord is too short for my liking, it’s quite annoying that I have to plug and unplug it a few times every time I clean, it has to be longer or it needs to go cordless. Also it would be great if it could vacuum just about anything but I would imagine it’s not very realistic having in my what kind of cleaner it is. It cannot reach that well under the furniture. And a spare set of rollers might be useful but they last long I imagine so not an issue. But it does clean well, does a splendid job, the amount of cat hair it picks up is unbelievable, dust also, our floors are so much cleaner now, I used a spin mop before and a steam mop and this karcher machine cleans many times better and also the floor dries in no time. Our all downstairs are hard floored, we have tiles and laminate and it cleans both very well. I am happy with it and don’t want to part with it.

I have been using the Karcher FC5 floor cleaner for a couple of weeks, and so far have been very impressed with its cleaning power. The unit itself is solidly built, and weighs roughly the same as an average upright vacuum cleaner. However, with its twin motorised rollers propelling the unit forward, only minimal steering is required to manoeuvre the FC5 around the floor when cleaning. Also, as it has a pivoting head, negotiating around obstacles like table legs or corners is effortless. The low profile of the cleaning head means it fits easily under the kitchen units right up to the kickboards. When it comes to the cleaning performance, it's the best floor cleaner I've ever owned. We have two young daughters and a cockapoo puppy, all of which love playing in the garden, which invariably means they are tracking dirt into the home, meaning the floors need almost daily cleaning. As a test, I cleaned the floor with our popular brand of steam cleaner then cleaned again using the FC5. I was amazed at how dirty the water was after washing the "clean" floor, and how little water was needed to do the job. I didn't sweep before the initial clean, and despite the floor being damp from the steam cleaning, the FC5 did a decent job of vacuuming up the smaller debris. It took me approximately 4 minutes to vacuumclean the kitchen floor, and together with the 3 minutes drying time, the whole "chore" including filling and emptying the tanks, took less than 10 minutes. A big timesaver is that it can clean multiple hard floor surfaces using the same multipurpose detergent. I can clean the porcelain kitchen tiles then move seamlessly into the hallway to clean the wooden floor. Plus, with the FC5 having a very long power cord (7m) I don't even need to switch power outlet. The only inconvenience of the FC5 is the weight compared to a steam cleaner, and the storage space needed given it is vacuum cleaner sized. However, if you have the storage space, the cleaning results from the Karcher FC5 are more than worth it. Highly recommended

I was over the moon to be chosen to test the Karcher FC5, having most of the floors, especially the ground floor of our house with hard floors and finding the whole business of vacuuming first before mopping to clean them an absolute chore. The large box duly arrived and I looked forward to giving it a trial.. Assembling was easy and setting it up for use was child's play. The quick instructions were clear and the water container was easy to take off. I decided to put warm tap water in the tank with a few drops of the detergent and agitate slightly to mix. I think the detergent bottle should come with a small nozzle as putting in a few drops was not easy. I liked the stand, a simple idea which works and makes the appliance easy to store, plus easy to fill with water and rotate the rollers in ready for use. First impression: streamlined so takes up little room, good cord length which is easy to coil, very solid and sturdy, basically a smart piece of kit in the Karcher colours. Using it was easy-peasy as the motor pulls it along and the weightsuction keeps it in constant contact to the floor, great cleaning power. The onoff button was very stiff and I didn't realise that if you pressed it hard, it would stay on. Of course once I discovered this half-way through doing the kitchen floor which is ceramic tiled the job became even easier. The rollers didn't quite go up as close to the edges or if they did, they didn't get the floor as clean there. I also noticed that if I went horizontally across the floor the rollers caught on the grout lines or uneven tiles so it was obviously best to follow the line of the ceramic planks and grout lines. Cord length was good and I did the whole of the kitchen using about a third of the clean water. Another good test was our cat has a habit of taking her food from her bowl and eating it off the floor, so there is a often a congealed mess of cat food left behind where she has finished which normally needs a good scrub to remove, It took about 5 seconds of going over it back and forth to clear it completely with no sticky residue left behind. Total drying time was more like 8 minutes, this was with the kitchen being warm and sunny. I also did the white tissue paper test which because I keep the floor relatively clean, didn't show up much difference, however emptying the dirty water container was a revelation. Absolutely brilliant, finding out that what the Karcher FC5 is doing is cleaning up the dirt you CANNOT see!

I've just tried the Karcher FC5 for the first time today so here are my initial thoughts... I'm sure it would save you time when it comes to vacuuming and washing the floor with some practice. The first trot out for any new gadget will always take some getting used to. The machine itself is very well put together but it is heavy. The machine washable SmartRollers have been very effective at the cleaning process. Evident in the dirty water tank when emptying! Just thinking about all that dirty water going back onto the floor with a mop and bucket.... YUK! We have two Labradors and a cat who seem to malt continuously but the FC5 had no problem with this until it came to a second pass over the entire floor (our floor area is around 40sq metres!) A quick check in the manual lead us to unclogging the suction head which was effortless and quite eye opening considering how much dog hair it had already procured! Despite it's heavy weight, the FC5 is a powerful machine and easy to manoeuvre due to the self propelling rollers. Agile around corners and tight into the skirting boards. The initial filling process by removal of the clean water tank was OK and was stiff but this is to be expected for a brand new out of the box product. I'm sure as the FC5 gets more use the process will become easier. Even after just a single use my number one tip would be is to make sure all the parts are rinsed with clean water before putting it away until next time, especially if you have animals. All in all, so far I am happy with the Karcher FC5 and look forward to it's next outing!