Mopping — it’s pretty simple, right? And yet, whenever you mop, your floors don’t look as clean as you’d like. Or perhaps mopping is just your least favorite chore, and you’re looking for ways to make it easier. Either way, we have some awesome mopping tips for you. So read these tricks, then grab your favorite mop and cleaner, and get to work!
Mopping Tips for Cleaner Floors
1. An Instant Machine Washable Swiffer Static Cloth
Forget buying those expensive Swiffer pads for mopping that need replacing every several weeks. Instead, replace the disposable pads with one of those ill-fitting chenille socks that are way too hot for your feet. This is also an amazing way to reuse those odd socks and works wonders on most floor surfaces. The sock material generates a little static that keeps the dust trapped on the sock.
2. Make Cleaning A Fun-Filled Family Affair
I love cleaning. I love mopping the floor. If you need your floor mopped, I’m there – Saoirse Ronan
Make cleaning day a fun-filled family affair.
First, clear the room of any tables. Not really necessary though it gives y’all lots of safe space to slip and slide. Sweep the floors clean of all debris and then spray your cleaner on. Have everyone slip on some fuzzy socks to help you mop the floor. These could be socks picked from the dollar store for cleaning day, though those old odd socks work perfectly well. Let the kids at it and they’ll have fun with all the sliding and cleaning!
3. Mopping Tip – Reuse WetJet Bottles With DIY Cleaning Solution
Cleaning shouldn’t be as expensive and wasteful as the Swiffer brand makes it to be. The single-use Swiffer pads and their WetJet cleaning solution that need to be bought every often makes it so.
Speaking of the Swiffer, there’s an easy way to get those bottles open to fill them with your own cleaning solution. By using only boiling water, you can easily open the WetJet bottle cap. Plunge the cap end of the WetJet bottle into hot water, and hold it in for at least 90 seconds. Remove the bottle from the water and while covering the cap with a towel, twist the cap and it should open right away!
4. Easy Dustpan Hack To Funnel Water From Sink
Chances are, your mop bucket won’t fit into your sink and you’ll either have to use another smaller container to fill it up or put it in the tub or shower. But there’s a hack on filling your mop bucket without putting it in the tub or shower. Just use your dustpan to funnel water from the sink into the bucket. It would make MacGyver proud.
5. Pool Noodles Also Can Funnel Water From Sink
Or use a pool noodle to do the same thing. You do have lots of those around since it’s summertime, don’t you? The downside of this hack is that you’ll have to hold the pool noodle till you’re done filling your mop bucket – but isn’t it way better and faster than filling with a container? Any tips to make mopping go easier and faster are always welcome!
6. DIY Multi-Purpose Homemade Floor Cleaner
Tired of using multiple floor cleaners for all the different types of flooring in your home? Here’s a homemade floor cleaner that works for wood, laminate, and tile floors (or just about any surface that’s not waxed). It uses common household ingredients and essential oils, so it’s super simple to make.
You’ll need:
- Water – 2 cups
- Vinegar – 2 cups
- Rubbing Alcohol – 2 cups
- Dishwashing liquid – 6 drops
- Lemon essential oil – 10 drops
- Lavender essential oil – 8 drops
Procedure:
- Mix all ingredients in a bottle and shake to mix well. And that’s all you need to do to make your homemade floor cleaner that works well for all types of floors!
The best part is that no rinsing is necessary because the alcohol will evaporate and the vinegar smell is diluted by the essential oils.
7. Smart and Safe Storage of Mops
So, cleaning is done (until next time) and your mops are dry. Enters the storage problem because you don’t want them to keep falling out every time someone opens the cleaning supplies closet. Here’s an easy solution: Run zip ties through the hole in the mop handle to make it easier to hang on large hooks. Smart and safe!
No more getting hit by those falling mops each time you need to pick something from the supplies closet.
8. Use The Best Cleaner For Your Floor Type
Another mopping tip is to make sure you’re always using the best cleaner for every type of floor you have. Otherwise, you’re in for a frustrating cleaning time. If you’re looking for the best laminate floor cleaner, all you need is Dawn dish soap, white distilled vinegar, and water. Put it all in a spray bottle and you’re good to go.
9. Age-Old Secret Cleaning Trick For Shiny Hardwood Floors
Inexpensively shine hardwood floors naturally with this age-old secret trick: mop them with tea!
Although no one ever thinks about cleaning when they’re having their warm cup of black tea, black tea is an amazing cleaner, especially for hardwood floors. Its acidity helps cut through grease and dust while adding shine to dull hardwood floors and furniture.
10. Surprising Alternative Use For Carpet Cleaner
You’ve probably tried out those DIY grout cleaners spread all over Pinterest. I have too, especially the one made using baking soda, vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, and ammonia. I couldn’t stand it because of the pungent ammonia smell. And then I discovered another amazing hack, using Resolve carpet cleaner.
Bye-bye smelly DIY cleaner because the carpet cleaner worked like magic and is so easy to use. You can now get your grout clean before you mop the rest of the floor and it’s easier than you’d think. Simply spray some Resolve carpet cleaner into the grout lines, scrub with a brush, and wipe it off. Then you’re ready to mop your tile floors!
11. Mop Floors The Right Way For Effective Cleaning – Laminate & Wood
Do you have a problem with your floors not looking as clean as you’d like even after mopping? You may be doing it wrong. I was.
Here’s an easy-to-follow pictorial tutorial on how to mop the right way to eliminate streaks and lackluster floors. (Note: This is a tutorial for tile or laminate floors. Do not try it on wood floors.)
12. Mopping Tip To Easily And Effectively Clean Wood Floors
When mopping wood floors, you want to use as little water as possible to avoid warping the wood. Here’s how to mop wood floors with a dry mop and spray bottle.
First, clear your floors of any debris. Next, cover your dry mop with a microfiber cloth. Spray a wood cleaning solution directly onto the microfiber cloth. Using a back and forth motion, mop your floor and repeat the last step until your floors are clean. You may switch out the cloth (or simply flip it over to the clean side) if you have very dirty floors or lots of space to clean.
Leave your floors to air dry.
13. Multi-Purpose Cleaning Solution
Brighten dingy tile floors with hydrogen peroxide. Mix half a cup of peroxide to one gallon of HOT water for best results. It’s safe and non-toxic, but you may want to test it on an inconspicuous area first to make sure it’s safe for your floors.
Tip: Hydrogen peroxide does more than just cleaning. Use it to also disinfect, sanitize, and deodorize a lot of surfaces and stuff in your home. 
14. Clean Inexpensively With DIY Floor Mop Pads
If a little sewing doesn’t bother you, make yourself a batch of DIY floor mop pads (or give them as a gift). They’re simply rectangular pieces of sewn-together fabric. In the end, they’ll work better than the sock trick (above), but you can wash and reuse them as much as you’d like.
15. More Cleaning Tips For Any Type Of Floors
And, finally, here’s a handy infographic about the proper way to clean any floor like a pro.
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