Steam cleaners are incredibly useful, but one thing that’s easy to overlook is how differently materials react to heat and moisture.

Something that works perfectly on tile or glass can be risky on natural leather, fabric upholstery, painted furniture or certain wood finishes. Using steam on the wrong material can damage the finish, affect the color, dry out leather or cause wood to swell or warp.

I made a short video showing how steam affects 10 different household surfaces — where it works well, where you need to be careful, and where it’s better avoided:

https://youtu.be/vlquermvBXY

I’d love to hear other people’s experiences. Have you found any surfaces that handled steam particularly well — or anything you wish you’d never steam-cleaned?