Chief Steamer 125 PSI Versus The Vapor Rino

Let us begin with some comparisons.

• Power cord length – Both the vapor Rino and the Chief Steamer 125 have a 13 foot power cord
• Heater wattage – Both the vapor Rino and Chief Steamer 125 use a 1750 watt heater which is the maximum you can have on a 15 amp circuit at 120 volts.
• Heater type – The Vapor Rino uses an internal dual coiled heater. The Chief Steamer 125 uses an “EXTERNAL” heater which never touches water and heats extremely evenly and efficiently. Both work well but we prefer external
• Injection – The vapor Rino and the Chief Steamer 125 use an injection system that comes from a separate tank and bypasses the boiler. Vapor Rino claims “hot water injection”. Sounds cool doesn’t it? Well the truth is with ANY injection system it will be “hot” as your water or chemical is mixed with super heated steam that automatically turns your chemical or water hot and aids in cleaning. So, yes we also have “hot water injection” as well as them

• Steam volume control – Both the Vapor Rino and Chief Steamer 125 have a steam volume knob which can be adjusted from almost nothing to full blast.
• Extra injection tank and free shipping – The vapor Rino ships free. We charge a straight $15 to the continental lower 48 Ok, so far it looks like a push. Both of these machines are very similar. Of course, they are manufactured by different Italian companies but had the same goal in mind. Both will get the job done and they have done a great job with theirs.
• Pressure – The Vapor Rino has 145 PSI. The Chief Steamer 125 is now 135 PSI. We hope their extra 10 PSI will not sway you.

Does the pressure difference matter? They have produced 145 PSI in the boiler and you will see it on the gage. Sure, 145 is a better starting pressure. Its always nice to have more pressure. But more pressure does not necessarily mean better steam volume. We think their steam volume is good, but not better than ours. This is just our opinion. If steam volume is comparable, then added pressure does not help too much. Our 125  has very good pressure (now 10 PSI higher at 135) and excellent volume of steam. You want, and need, good steam volume and delivery, as well as pressure. Pressure is not the only thing to consider.

Pressure drop and recovery time- Any electric steam cleaner, especially at 120 volts will have a pressure drop as soon as the trigger is pulled. The Chief Steamer 125 is no different. In engineering this machine, we tried numerous size boilers to see what heated fast but still gave us good steam volume and delivery. A bigger boiler is not always better. A smaller boiler will heat faster but have a fast pressure drop. It will recover faster, but you will also have a limited amount of time for great steam delivery. We worked very hard on the size and shape of our boiler. We also engineered it specifically for use with our external 1750 watt heater We tried using smaller restrictors to limit pressure drop and aid in recovery time. We did not like them. It limited steam volume and delivery. Sure, we could claim a great recovery time and hardly any pressure drop, but if the machine performs like a smaller steam cleaner at half the price, you will not be happy. We used the largest restrictor we could to keep pressure drop at a minimum but steam flow at a maximum. . The Chief Steamer Recovery time is very quick. Even when used at wide open volume, it will bounce back quickly. We do not push you into a 240 volt machine. A 240 volt steamer will always perform better than its 120 volt counterpart. But here in North America, most customers need a 120 volt machine, so we worked on getting that one as good as possible. We do not know if the Vapor Rino uses any kind of restrictor, and we do not know how fast their pressure may drop or recovers. They have an excellent machine, made by a reputable manufacturer and Rino knows what they are doing. But we also know what we are doing and use a steam cleaner manufacturer with 30 years experience. You wont go wrong either way, and we are not saying we are “better” at all. Its too neck and neck to claim victory. We just want to do a fair comparison, have you look closer at us, may talk to us or exchange emails, then decide.

Is the Chief Steamer 125 sexy? Nope, it’s not. We do not have fancy decals. We do have our logo on the front but it’s small and understated. We do not use extremely large wheels. We feel they are not needed. We do have casters and locking wheels on the rear but they are not huge. They are still heavy duty. We also purposely made the body a little smaller. We wanted it a little lighter and easier to ship. We know how the carriers treat large and heavy boxes. We do not want damage. We also want you to be able to move it easily and pick it up if needed. Sorry, we do not have the tray to hold brushes and attachments. We wanted to keep the handle smaller. We want the box to be as small as possible. Our smaller body 125 steamer still has similar specs and attachments as the Rino. And we still have the same size tanks. Its just a little smaller body. Dont let our size fool you

Steam know how- customer service and repair-We know the Vapor Rino folks are very knowledgeable and know their product very well. They will surely stand behind it. We are sure that it’s a very good unit and should be trouble free. But we also know the same about the Chief Steamer 125. We engineered this machine and tested various proto types and took them apart and put them back together.  So if something does go wrong with the Chief Steamer 125, we almost take it personally and will do everything we can to repair it fast. In most cases if you give us a good description of what is going on, we can figure it out over the phone and send you the part to replace. Generally, most things are easy to repair and the accessibility to the inside of the machine is easy. We rarely need to take one back to repair here. But in the event we need it back, we generally have it fixed in a day or 2 and promptly return it.  We stock every part here in New Jersey. There is no waiting for parts to come from Italy. You will not go wrong if you purchase either unit. But we want you to know there is another option here and it’s the Chief Steamer 125. Still have questions? Call us @ 201-261-7497.  If you’re ready, simply click on the button below.