Review - BOSCH TDS2220 steam generator

Features:

• 200g PulseSteam
• 2400W
• 5 bar steam pressure
• 2 minute heat up time
• Palladium-glissée ceramic soleplate for better glideability
•  2 m cord with storage facility
•  Large 1.3 l permanent refill water tank
• Removable non-slip iron pad
• 1.8 m steam hose between base station and iron
•  Variable Steam Regulation
•  'Tank empty' and 'steam ready' indicators
• Calc'n clean feature: anti-scale opening for easy maintenance
• Calc'n clean advanced
• Steam and dry ironing 
• Auto shut-off feature

I've been a proud owner of this Bosch steam generator for two weeks now. Got it on sale for 189€.

To be honest I had my doubts about it. And I was undecided for a day or two, but the need for new iron hurried me along and the "auto shut-off" feature on Bosch TDS2220 sealed the deal. You see, I'm a air-head.

The iron and the steam generator weigh about 4.5 kg together.

Water tank is located at the front and it is pretty easy to fill up. Sadly the "max" marking on the water tank is poorly visible so there is a danger of over filling your tank. That's why I measure out my 1.3 l of water in a pitcher beforehand. Normal tap water can be used. Operating instructions suggest to prolong the optimum steam function, mixing tap water with distilled water, either 1:1 or 1:2, depending how hard the tap water is in your district. I've used1:2 mix so far. 

The "refill" light turns on when there's about 1.5 cm water left in the tank and the generator will stop giving out steam.

The steam generator makes a bit of noise when it starts pumping water in and heating it up, but nothing that bad. Industrial Veit steam generators make twice as much noise.

"Steam ready" indicator turns on within 2 minutes, but sadly, it's a bit off. I suggest to wait for at least a minute or two more. I set my steam for minimum and iron temperature to two the day I got my Bosch, and the only time I've turned steam up was when ironing washed denim.

So far, denim is the heaviest fabric I've ironed/pressed with it. I will most likely report back how it does on wool coatings and etc. in the fall.

Iron itself is rather small in size, a bit unusual for home iron in my opinion but over the two weeks I've gotten used to it.
Steam flow is nice and even. I really like that there is no steam when you do not press the button for it. One thing that keeps happening is that at some point the iron will give three puffs of steam in a row. I have no idea how I trigger it, but I know that it is in fact a "feature", it says so in the manual.

So far, I've cleaned the steam tank each time I've ran out of water.The TDS2220 comes with Calc'n Clean Advance.

The "Clean" cap has a sponge like thing behind it, which according to the manual should gather most of residues and limescale. As you can see, you should wash it.
The manual also gives you clear instructions how to clean the tank with limescale remover and how often it should be done.

I've read blog posts about steam generators for home use (mostly on Rowenta steam generators), and almost always people have complained about water dripping from the iron. I haven't encountered that problem with Bosch TDS2220. I also have not tried to steam iron anything with the irons heat set below two.

One thing that bothers me is that there is no way to empty the water tank after use if there is some water left in it. And I wish the steam hose was a bit longer. But other than those two minor flaws, I am very impressed by the new appliance in my sewing room and above average happy that I bought it.


Image credits: www.bosch-home.ro, www.bosch-home.pl, www.bosch-home.ru