New SX15 tile tool

[Mikey P]

I have proto/beta in my hands and am curious what you owners of the SX 12 did not like about yours

I have not used it yet but I'm liking all the features.


Brush rings comes off sans tools, vac port is easily adjusted, Nice big vac ports, 15 inch head, 2 inch tube shiteatinggrin

 

[Jim Martin]

vac holes are a bit small on the SX-12 and clog easy.......

the brush on it will aerate and makes your chemical foam up a bit

 

[Mikey P]

the vac ports now are very Turbo-ish.


I'll let you know about the foaming action

 

[John Olson]

I've had it for quite awhile. It is 80% there just a couple of tweaks in my opinion. Not 100% sure if any tile tools need 2"' tubing and the 15"'head sounds good in theory but I'm not out in the real world so Im not sure if a bigger head is needed either. Other then that it looks like a winner so far.

 

[Zee]

Yup when the vac slots are just too small that could be a very costly thing.


Example: I was finishing up a 2 day stone polishing job, when I only had to clean the last 40-50 sqft after it was polished. An accidental small piece of grout -or speck of stone from somewhere- got stuck in the vac slot and I didn't realize it as I was working with it. Couldn't feel a thing! as it was dried up you could see exactly which direction the tool was sliding with perfect scratches showing the way.... :shock:

 

[CleanEvo]

I've had my sx-12 for 3 years and there's nothing I don't like about it.... works great and has been reliable. But I haven't used anything else. The vac slots are fine, but I always sweep and vacuum before cleaning with it. The 2" would be nice, right now I still need to carry a 1.5" whip just for the SX-12, so 2" would eliminate that.

 

[dealtimeman]

Any pics of the unit?

 

[sam miller]

I would think bigger would be better for larger area's smaller for small kitchen's

 

[Jim Martin]

SX-12 is to tall to fit under toe kicks........

 

[mirf]

I think they all have a problem fitting under toe kicks.

 

[Jim Martin]

my old turbo fit perfect.......but I hated the the plastic ring.....if you hit a uneven tile it would bounce real hard.....so I retired it to the bone pile in the shed.......

 

[tmdry]

I see steambrite is already carrying it.

Any updates on it?

 

[John Olson]

No they don't have it they just put it on their website. The sx-15 won't be available until the 15th of august.

 

[John Olson]

my old turbo fit perfect.......but I hated the the plastic ring.....if you hit a uneven tile it would bounce real hard.....so I retired it to the bone pile in the shed.......

Jim are are the parts still usable? I will give you $100 in trade and pay the shipping. I get a couple calls a year looking for parts for the original black one. That's why I offer trade as I might or might not ever make any money but having one I can part out to help someone out would be worth way more then the money.

 

[Mike Draper]

sx-12 dislikes:
1.suck down to the floor and I would have to release the vac port in order to get it moving again. Havent ever had that happen with the turbo. The sx-12 sucked to the floor so bad once that the spinner hit the tile and left a nice circle. :shock:
2. couldnt get it to lay down flat to go under chairs and other things like the turbo does.
3. side slots wold get clogged with stuff a lot. Never had a clog with the turbo.

 

[Mikey P]

in the 15 they fixed all that.

 

[Billy]

We have plans on replacing our older Turbo, Geko's etc with newer ones. We still use the original Black Turbo & it still works fine so haven't been in a hurry. The SX-12 just didn't work when we tried it with the BigBearTruck. Planned on getting new Turbo but might take a look at the new SX-15 based on comments & pics.

 

[Ross Buettner]

Well if any of ya don't like it... toss it at me.

I am tired of renting the POS from my franchise.

 

[daniel@procarpet]

sx-12 dislikes:
1.suck down to the floor and I would have to release the vac port in order to get it moving again. Havent ever had that happen with the turbo. The sx-12 sucked to the floor so bad once that the spinner hit the tile and left a nice circle. :shock:
2. couldnt get it to lay down flat to go under chairs and other things like the turbo does.
3. side slots wold get clogged with stuff a lot. Never had a clog with the turbo.

That's because your brush ring is dirty and not letting air flow through. I had the same problem. Just scrape the gunk out or put a new brush skirt on.

My complaint is the airflow sucks. Leaves the floor too wet.

That and the holes would clog.

Also it does not fit under toe kicks.

With that said the gecko is by far the biggest pos tile tool ever.

 

[Jim Martin]

John Olson" data-source="" class="bbCodeBlock bbCodeBlock--expandable bbCodeBlock--quote js-expandWatch">

[quote="Jim Martin":10reiw5t]my old turbo fit perfect.......but I hated the the plastic ring.....if you hit a uneven tile it would bounce real hard.....so I retired it to the bone pile in the shed.......

Jim are are the parts still usable? I will give you $100 in trade and pay the shipping. I get a couple calls a year looking for parts for the original black one. That's why I offer trade as I might or might not ever make any money but having one I can part out to help someone out would be worth way more then the money.[/quote:10reiw5t]

If you remind me before connections.....I will bring it and you can have it...

 

[John Olson]

Cool thanks Jim.

 

[Jim Martin]

no problem..it has just been sitting in my storage getting in my way and collecting dust.....bearings are still good..it free spins real smooth....the head is in good shape and the teflon ring has a lot of life still in it...personally I would remove the ring and see if someone could duplicate it..from what I understand they don't make them anymore and I know there are still a bunch that are being used out there....some guy needed the trigger valve and handle so I gave it to him..so the head is all I have for you........

and you don't need to give me any credit....I really don't buy enough stuff to worry about it..

 

[rwcarpet]

sx-12 dislikes:
1.suck down to the floor and I would have to release the vac port in order to get it moving again. Havent ever had that happen with the turbo. The sx-12 sucked to the floor so bad once that the spinner hit the tile and left a nice circle. :shock:
2. couldnt get it to lay down flat to go under chairs and other things like the turbo does.
3. side slots wold get clogged with stuff a lot. Never had a clog with the turbo.

That's because your brush ring is dirty and not letting air flow through. I had the same problem. Just scrape the gunk out or put a new brush skirt on.

My complaint is the airflow sucks. Leaves the floor too wet.

That and the holes would clog.

Also it does not fit under toe kicks.

With that said the gecko is by far the biggest pos tile tool ever.

I'm with Daniel on this one. leaves the floor too wet on some jobs. I always have good airflow. I cleaned a 1300 sf limestone floor on Monday, and brought a new mop and ringer bucket to help dry the floor quickly, along with a fan.

It would be a great help if they could get this tool to clean closer to the wall, like within 1/4" or so.

 

[John Olson]

You can make a tool clean right up to the wall but it you would have to remove the vacuum capabilities. That right there is the million dollar question.

 

[Mike Draper]

Daniel, the gecko has its place. How do you clean edges and corners?

 

[rwcarpet]

John Olson" data-source="" class="bbCodeBlock bbCodeBlock--expandable bbCodeBlock--quote js-expandWatch">

You can make a tool clean right up to the wall but it you would have to remove the vacuum capabilities. That right there is the million dollar question.

What's needed, John, is an offset brush stiff enough to clean that boarder around a tile floor....mounted on a broom stick......that a cleaner can use to scrub the edges. Most brushes have the bristles directly under the head, and makes it a bitch to scrub that 2" line without scrapping the baseboard. I do it by hand on my knees with my spotting brush, and the grout lines with the grout brush on a long handle.

Maybe there is a tool for that. I haven't found it. I did convert my carpet crevase power tool for the edges. I mounted the plastic boot that HydroForce offers to it with silicone. It works pretty well.

 

[GeneMiller]

i drilled the holes to a larger size , no more problem. fits under all cabinets here unless they lay stone over some tile. it also lays nice and flat. Did you guys buy from the reject pile?

gene

 

[Total_Rookie]

Just picked up a improved from flex sx 15. Really like the turbo force from the good reviews but decided to give this mofo a try.

 

[Out of Character - 0]

They missed the mark by 1/2 on this tool. The cleaning path is like 11.9" On a 12 tile having a 12.5 or 13" path would save time by covering 2 grout joints at once. For refernce a 12" turbo will leave a 10" clean line. Anyone know what a 15" turbo will do?

 

[KevinL]

Why do they need the 2 handles? Seems like they would get in the way around corners and doorways. I use a turbo but far from loving it. The gekko is needed in tight areas.