kannie Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Help - our iron blew up this morning! And as OH irons one shirt each day, we need a new iron today! Argos has about a million pages of irons - why does it have to be so confusing? I've read the old thread on getting a new iron, and I like the sound of the steam generating ones. I continually have a large pile of stuff I really should iron but can't seem to get round to. Anything that made the task a bit easier would be great: more steam sounds brilliant! But how do the steam generating irons work? Do you have to keep returning the iron to the base plate to re-steam it? Does it heat up the whole tank every time you turn it on? If so it must be very un-ecological. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 er..... are you sure you're in the right forum Christine? No good asking me - I belong to the "fold it nicely and place in a pile" school of (not) ironing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myles Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Yes me too Lesley, it's remarkable what a good flatten with the hands can do, then a neat fold Anne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillfamily Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Ironing THought that's why I invite my mum round for Sunday Dinner when the pile starts to resemble the leaning tower of Pisa Sorry can't offer any advice on these steam iron type things with fancy bases. I've just got a regular Phillips steam iron and that seems to do the trick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Frugal Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 I don't know if it's the same sort of thing but I had one of those cordless irons which sits in a base on your ironing board and I hated it! It didn't stay hot nearly long enough. I've got a cheap iron now and use a plant misting spray with a few drops of lavender oil in to spray tough creases before ironing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paola Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 My ironing lady uses a steam gen iron. They are very good. They cost about £120. Argos do a great selection. OH auntie has one and swears by it and will not go back to a "normal" iron. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kannie Posted November 15, 2006 Author Share Posted November 15, 2006 No good asking me - I belong to the "fold it nicely and place in a pile" school of (not) ironing Me too for most things! But there is a residual pile! I agree about those cordless ones Kate - its one of those that's just packed up! We'd reverted to keeping it plugged in, but it definately wasn't as good as a very simple one in the house we rented on holiday! I'm just longing for something that will make that nasty residual pile easier to tackle. It's just so hard to choose from a picture in a catalogue: I like to handle things before buying - but John Lewis have only got one of the steam generating sort for under £100!! And that takes 8 mins to warm up! Argos have got quite a choice for under £100 but no see before you buy - and certainly no helpful advice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 My ironing lady uses a steam gen iron. They are very good. They cost about £120. Argos do a great selection. OH auntie has one and swears by it and will not go back to a "normal" iron. Good luck I have heard others say this too - but I couldn't afford one. I would always go for a 'professional' type iron as I found the cheaper ones just don't seem to get hot enough. I have a Tefal 500 with 8 programs, with which I am happy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kannie Posted November 15, 2006 Author Share Posted November 15, 2006 Oh thanks Paola - our threads crossed in the ether! Yes people raved about these in the thread last June - thats what tempted me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Argos have got quite a choice for under £100 but no see before you buy - and certainly no helpful advice! You could buy one today and try it. If you don't like it you should be able to take it back easily enough saying that it isn't good enough. Using it for one shirt should be all right - unless you make scorch marks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Argos should also let you see the product before you buy it just go to the customer service desk and ask They also have a 16 day money back guarantee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aunty e Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 If you have a Robert Dyas near you, they have a steam generator on offer at around £30. I would buy one, but I've already got a steam generator iron and I'll NEVER go back to normal ironing. EVER. It's just so much quicker, it's worth the extra money just to be able to vertically steam dresses and coats that have got a bit crumpled but can't be ironed. I love them, love them, love them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
One Man Banned Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 I know what you mean about trying to find the right iron When ours dies a few months ago it was a lenghty process to find a new one as Joe does most of the ironing. He's only got little hands and found most of the irons far too heavy to do a mornings ironing without needing a physio session afterwards! Settled on a nice Philips one (again) from Curry's that does the job just fine without weighing a ton! As Louise said, if you want to view any item at Argos, go to a till and ask for a customer view - they'll bring it down to customer services for you to have a look at - you can get a couple at the same time to compare too. A xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kannie Posted November 15, 2006 Author Share Posted November 15, 2006 Oooh thanks! Off to Robert Dyas and the Argos customer service desks right now! (Well after the tutorial on my dissertation that is! ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
One Man Banned Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 (Well after the tutorial on my dissertation that is! ) Well I think I'd rather do the ironing!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 I have a steam generating Iron. It's a Tefal compact. It is excellent and halves the ironing time. Takes about 6 mins to heat up and then will Iron for about 45mins before it needs a refill. I can't praise it highly enough. No, you dont have to keep returning it to the base as with a cordless. Cost £99 at Sainsb**ys a bit back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Is this the one http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=311&storeId=91&productId=23309&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=12054&parents_parent_category_rn=12051&top_category_rn=10351&showSubCategory=yes&top=Y&cache_entry=-1 Wish I could master the short links Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 It's a bit ugly isn't it? But an amazing price! I bought a new iron at the time of the last thread, but I want one of those. I'll be back here girls in a few year's time for advice on where to get the cheapest! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harveypup Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Would check if you can return it if it has been used!!!! There was a lady in front of me in Argos the other day and they refused to give her a refund "just because she didn't like it" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harveypup Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 "It" too was an iron by the way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Interesting! I took one back to Argos because it didn't get hot enough. Maybe not liking it is not a sufficient reason? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chelsea Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 er..... are you sure you're in the right forum Christine? No good asking me - I belong to the "fold it nicely and place in a pile" school of (not) ironing glad im not the only one.. i confess i dont iron either (why bother!) i have a tumble dryer....once dried i fold the clothes immediately and then straight back into the wardrobe/airing cupboard. the only time i will iron is if for an "occasion" where we have to wear smart shirts etc....everything else we own are t-shirts/jumpers/fleeces and dont need ironing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kannie Posted November 15, 2006 Author Share Posted November 15, 2006 Thanks for the advice: I've followed nearly all of it! The Dyas iron took 7 mins to heat up, which is far too long for OH to wait each morning! In Argos I got them to get 3 irons out for me to inspect - which I don't think made me very popular, but never mind! Actually the woman who 'supervised' me in Argos (with my bounty of 3 irons!) was really helpful! It emerged that she did ironing for several people, and so was probably a greater ironing expert than anyone in John Lewis! She told me straight away not to bother with one iron which was 'useless' , and told me about a far cheaper one she'd used which was really good. I ended up getting one she hadn't used but said sounded brilliant (and it had come top in the Good Housekeeping tests!) It's not one of the steam generating ones, which is a bit disappointing, but they were huge!!! (It wasn't any of the three I'd asked to view either!!) But I've just tried it out and it works really well, though it has left the fabric a bit shiny... Oh the other thing about the steam generating ones is that they heat up the whole tank of water each time you turn them on, which seemed pretty unecological when OH insists on ironing just one shirt a day!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Louise asks: Is this the one http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=311&storeId=91&productId=23309&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=12054&parents_parent_category_rn=12051&top_category_rn=10351&showSubCategory=yes&top=Y&cache_entry=-1 Heavens!! No!! That one looks like something from the 1930's. No, Mines purple!! Its this one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000GJI9UI/pricegracom-21/ref=nosim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lindy Loo Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 I also have a Tefal Steam Generating Iron - Tefal Pro Express and I wouldn't be without it. Sometimes I feel like I'm ironing for Great Britain and it just makes life SO much easier. On mine the reservoir is removable and I fill it up say every 30-40 minutes. They are well worth the extra money - I've had one for years and had to send it back after about 2 years to get it re-corded as with constant wear and tear the cord had become frayed. The company who does the repairs also sells the irons at much reduced prices so it may well be worth trying them. From memory they are Wykes (maybe Wykes Electrical) and are based in Birmingham. They do have a website but it is not particularly good so calling them would be the best bet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
