I believe it does shorten the lifespan, no matter how often I clean my iron eventually it has a calcium build up and I only use bottle water. When it starts to spit, which they always do, you get some hard white residue that will come out. I have tried vinegar and let it just steam and steam, it helps but does not get it all out.
Originally Posted by feline fanatic
I think mine is B&D. I bought it a couple of years ago when my old iron gave out. I could not justify spending the big bucks on a Rowenta. I searched and searched for a reasonably priced ($50 or less) iron that wasn't made in China and could not find so I got a made in China one at Walmart for around $20, may have been $30. The steam feature quit working and it leaks water like crazy if I try to put water in. I just use it with no water and keep a spritzy bottle in my sewing room. I can't help but wonder if using steam features and putting water in an iron shorten's their lifespan. Also I am pretty sure the auto shutoff doesn't work any more either because it always seems to be hot whenever it is turned on but that is fine by me. I found it annoying as well but when it did work it only seemed to take a minute or so to get up to heat. This thread makes me want to go out and buy a backup though.