At a glance
Expert Rating
Benefits
- Improved edge cleaning
- Self-cleaning mode
- Flat roller wastewater scraper for a cleaner, drier finish
Disadvantages
- Exclusive cleaning solution
- Can’t vacuum or mop under low furniture
- You can’t dry vacuum alone
Our verdict
If you’re looking for a way to vacuum and mop in one go, this easy-to-use solution delivers great results at a reasonable price. Keep in mind that you’ll get the most out of it if you have large areas of hard, sealed flooring: the iFloor 5 can’t get into corners, under furniture, or into small spaces like a hand mop can.
Best prices today: Tineco iFloor 5
$239
One of the great things about the new Dyson WashG1 is its ability to vacuum and mop at the same time. That means if you have a lot of sealed hard floors, you can cut your cleaning time in half. And it’s a great cleaner. But at £599.99 in the UK and $699.99 in the US, it’s far from the cheapest option.
Here’s the Tineco iFloor 5: an easy-to-use vacuum cleaner with the same skills. And with a regularly available price of £239.99/$239.99, it’s a much more budget-friendly purchase. You can see our other recommendations in our roundup of the best wet and dry vacuums we’ve tested.
A cordless upright vacuum that both vacuums and mops, the Tineco iFloor 5 promises a perfect, clean finish that will clean both wet and dry messes and easily tackle sticky debris on your sealed hard floors, whether hardwood, tile, marble or laminate.
But is it really the time saving it’s promised? We’re going to find out.
Design and construction
- Wireless
- 500ml cleaning solution included
- Good sized water tanks
In the box you get the black and white device, the insert handle, a 500ml bottle of Tineco cleaning solution, the power adapter, the standing base, a tubular cleaning brush, a replacement brush roller and a replacement dry filter.
The body of the device comes with a brush roller and cover already installed. The brush roller head is impressive: 27 cm wide, 22 cm deep and 6.5 cm high (10.6 x 8.7 x 2.5 inches).
Above, on the main body of the floor cleaner, there is a 0.7 litre dirty water tank at the front and the 0.8 litre clean water tank at the rear; both tanks slot in and clip into place using a flip-up release button.
At the top of the body is a circular LED display. It features six light indicator icons to show whether the self-cleaning mode is on, the brush roll is tangled, the dirty water tank is full, or the clean water tank is empty. There is also a three-bar battery and charge indicator, as well as the maximum power mode. It is easy to see at a glance what exactly is happening with the vacuum.
If the fact that there’s a specific indicator for brush roll tangles sounds worrisome, don’t worry: in testing, we found that hair made its way into the dirty water tank and didn’t need to be cut off the roller.
The insert handle houses the power, self-cleaning and mode buttons.
The square base measures approximately 12 x 12 inches (31 cm x 31 cm) and has two slotted supports on each side. Once the iFloor 5 is assembled, it sits on the base for storage, charging and running the self-cleaning cycle.
Overall it measures 112cm/44in in height, making it a unit that needs a place in a laundry room or in a full-length closet or cabinet.
Performance and features
- Strong forward momentum
- Good suction
- Excellent results in flour tests
Setting up the iFloor 5 is simple: unpack the unit and insert the handle into the base until it clicks into place. Fill the clean water tank with cold water and a capful of cleaning solution. Then plug in the iFloor 5 to charge and turn it on. Unlike some floor cleaners, the power supply doesn’t plug into the base; the plug is located just below the handle.
It’s very simple. Once the device is charged, simply turn it on and tilt the handle back to start cleaning.
There are two cleaning modes: eco and max. Eco mode is for light, wet and dry dirt, as well as everyday cleaning. You should get over 30 minutes of cleaning time with this mode from a full battery.
Max mode is for stubborn stains. You should get about 23 minutes in max mode with a full battery. Fully recharging the iFloor 5 from a dead battery should take about four to five hours.
It’s worth mentioning that the cleaning solution is proprietary. Tineco specifies that you cannot use any other cleaning fluid in the machine. You can purchase the solution from Tineco UK (£24.99 for 1L) and Tineco US ($39.99 for 33.8 fl oz).
Also note that you cannot turn off the mopping function and just vacuum with the iFloor 5; the two functions work together.
We started with a general test on a sealed hardwood floor. One thing that really impressed us was the iFloor 5’s forward dynamics – it almost pulls away from you, making it easier to use the floor cleaner because you don’t have to push forward.
Regardless, the iFloor 5 is a fairly lightweight machine, weighing in at 5.05kg/11lbs. This weight, combined with the excellent dynamics, makes using the floor cleaner a good choice for anyone who can’t bear a lot of weight on their forearm and wrist, which can be an issue with some cordless floor cleaners.
The iFloor 5 picked up all the scattered flour traces perfectly, without even having to resort to the maximum setting.
It’s also easy to maneuver and doesn’t stop when the handle is in the upright position. However, you’ll have trouble cleaning under low furniture: it can’t be flat enough on the floor.
We covered a large floor area in our first session: about 62 m2 in total, and we only used one power bar without needing to empty or refill the water tanks. We found the suction to be excellent and the scent of the cleaning solution to be subtle.
Some dried debris required switching to maximum mode, but changing speeds is easy because the mode button is within thumb reach while cleaning.
Tineco claims that its flat-edge scraper built into the roller head leaves a better finish than floor scrubbers with a serrated scraper because it removes debris and evacuates dirty water consistently and evenly onto the roller. We found the finish to be excellent after using the iFloor 5.
We didn’t see any difference in finish across different floor surfaces. Our second and third tests were on laminate, tile, and vinyl, and we found the finish to be good on all three.
Thanks to the dual tank system, the floor cleaner always cleans with fresh water and solution, the dirty water tank is fully sealed so there is no risk of leakage, and improved edge cleaning allows precision along skirting boards up to 4mm.
Our final test was the flour test on a wooden floor. We found that the iFloor 5 picked up all the scattered flour traces perfectly, without even having to resort to the maximum setting, leaving clean suction lines in the piles.
One thing to mention is that obviously you can only clean a portion of the floor wider than the roller brush head, so if you have a home with a lot of narrower spaces you’ll have to clean them by hand.
This floor cleaner is ideal for damp dusting or regular cleaning. Occasionally, you may need hot water and soap, but the iFloor 5 will keep everyday messes under control. However, since it doesn’t use hot water or bleach, it can’t sterilize floors.
The iFloor 5 is easy to empty and fill.
Once you’re done cleaning the floor, you’ll need to clean the iFloor 5. Luckily, it has a hands-free self-cleaning cycle that you initiate by pressing the self-cleaning button on the handle while the washer is in the cradle and plugged into the charger.
The program simply feeds clean water and solution to the roller head as it spins, then sucks the waste water into the dirty water tank.
We found that it is really necessary to run this program every time you are finished using the floor cleaner. Otherwise, you may end up with a worn roller. Tineco also provides you with a tubular cleaning brush to clean the dirty water tank, brush chamber, and to help remove dirt and mud from the roller.
Pricing and Availability
The iFloor 5 is one of the most budget-friendly wet and dry vacuums in Tineco’s range, with an introductory price of £299.99/$299.99. However, it’s currently available from Tineco UK and Tineco US for £239.99/$239.99, making it one of the cheapest wet and dry vacuums we’ve tested. Amazon in the US is matching this discount but, at the time of writing, it’s still £299 on Amazon UK.
You can discover more options in our roundup of the best wet and dry vacuums we’ve tested. The guide features pros and cons and quick summaries of each product, as well as links to full reviews and the best prices available.
Should you buy the iFloor 5?
The iFloor 5 is easy to use and delivers excellent everyday cleaning results, provided you have the space to make the most of it. We would definitely say it’s a good buy.
If you’re used to vacuuming and mopping your hard floors separately, this will definitely save you time. But it can’t sterilize floors, and because it can’t get under furniture or clean in small spaces, it won’t be suitable for every home.
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