I hate to mop. Who doesn’t? While I spot clean when necessary, my kitchen floors haven’t been cleaned in a LONG time; I was thinking of hiring a cleaning person just to avoid the watery, grimey mess of mopping. Then I bought the Europro Shark Steam Mop.

I’ve been wanting one for a while, and when I saw this on sale I pounced. The Europro Shark uses plain water, which is great for environmentally-attuned folks who don’t want to use chemicals and moms who don’t want toxic products sitting around. Just attach the reusable microfiber pad, pour water into the chamber and wait 30 seconds. When it starts to hiss, you’re ready to go. Push (or pull) the mop slowly; unlike manual mopping, there’s no need to use vigorous back-and-forth motions. That’s it! Your floors are sanitized, dirt-free and nearly dry. It’s slim and weighs just 3 pounds, so it’s easy to store, too, and you can toss the cleaning pads into the washing machine.

–Becky Ellis