Thursday, November 3, 2011

Attention clean freaks

Attention clean freaks..
you know who you are.

I need your help.
Because although I wish I were more like you
I am not.
Not at all.

And our lovely new place has hardwood floors that I thought I would love
but am learning to hate
because they are dirty
all. the. time.
(like our feet our black. it's gross. i know.)
And I feel like I have to sweep multiple times a day which is a big deal for this non cleaning kind of girl.

So...help!
Is this just normal with hardwood floors?
What kind of cleaning devices do you use?
Swiffer? Something else?
I borrowed (A.K.A. sole) a Haan floor sanitizer from my Mom which I haven't figured out how to use yet. Anyone have one of those?

Thanks for your advice!
Our black feet and my cleanly husband really appreciate it!

10 comments:

seven thirty three said...

I have hardwood floors throughout my first floor. My favorite everyday sanitizer is my Shark Steam Mop - retails for around $100 and just uses water. But it keeps the floors clean and sanitized for those little ones playing on them. I also use a product by Pledge that is made specifically for Hardwood floors once a week. Another good purchase would be a small vacuum made for hardwood floors that you can store in a closet. SO much easier to pull it out and quickly clean up rather than sweeping... I recommend the Dyson Stick which is cordless and is small and can convert to a handvac!

Tina said...

Hi Kristin,

I love wood floors, but yes, they do show dirt (dust) and need regular cleaning! I would recommend Swiffer (or maybe the new Swiffer-esque mop/duster that has a machine washable pad. Otherwise, buying all those Swiffer pads can get expensive.) With a wood floor (and kids!) you probably will need to damp mop the floor once a day.

Once you set your mind that this is part of your daily routine, just like making breakfast or brushing the girls hair, it won't seem so bad. You can whip out that mop and run it over the floors really quickly. That's the beauty of the Swiffer.

Hope that helps!
Tina

Kacie Gilmartin said...

Hi Kristin,

We Also have the Shark Steam Mop and love it. Worth the investment :)

Kacie

Mommy2Sophia said...

I use a swifter vac (dry)on my hardwood several times a day to justvpick up the dirt and crumbs. We have hardwood in the kitchen and hall. For wet cleaning, I use a Bruce hardwood cleaner, it comes in a green spray bottle at home depot. They also have a "mop" there too that u can buy. It has a removable terry cloth cleaning pad on the bottom so u can wash it. It has a really nice big surface, so it cleans pretty quick. I just spray the floor, then go over it with the mop. I am very please with how it works, hope this helps!

M Mommy to 4 said...

Thrifty Decor Chick just talked about this. She said that she had used too many cleaning products on her old floors and the build up actually made it dirtier. Their new floor guy recommend steam mops for it. She's doing a giveaway for a Shark Steam Mop if you want to check out over there. www.thriftydecorchick.com. (I'm just passing on info! I have nothing to do with her or her site!)

Cecilia said...

We had wood laminate in our old house and used Bruce floor cleaner. My Sis in law has old hardwoods and uses a steam mop. Good luck!

Lena K. said...

I love my steam mop, too. I did a lot of research and didn't go with the Shark brand because a lot of people had problems with plastic pieces breaking, etc. (you could buy it at Costco and return it, if necessary.) I was undecided between the HAAN and the Eureka EnviroSteamer. I went with the Eureka because it gets hotter. I've been using it for over 2 years now, and I LOVE IT! No more dirty feet, and no chemicals! I wish I would have had it when my daughter was crawling. (I worried about the cleaning products I used, and her knees were always dirty from the floor anyway). I love that I can throw the cleaning pads in the wash, and I'll often put it up on my counters to sanitize them before I do my floors. It woks really well near the toilet where boys "miss" (gross).

Cora Anne Designs said...

I used to use the Swiffer Wet Jet on our hardwood floors, but I found it left a bit of a film. Now I use the dry Swiffers for the dust and dirt, and then the Shark Steam Mop which uses just water to clean them. It works awesome! Everyone always thinks hardwood floors are so easy, but they do require some work! Good luck!

The Snodgrass Family said...

I use the Bissell Steam and Sweep. It has the steamer, like the Shark mop, but it also can vacuum up small particles while mopping. I like this feature because no matter how much I sweep, I always leave behind little pieces of dirt and this grabs up those stray pieces. But to be clear, I don't exclusively rely on that sweeper, I do sweep with a broom beforehand. Then to shine things up, I use the Bona brand hardwood cleaner, and I only do that occasionally. We have Bamboo, so that is what works well for us. Like you, I was tired of dirty socks and not feeling like the floor was getting clean, and the steamer remedied that problem.

BeckyJo606 said...

Just to join in on the chorus of people who love their Shark Steam mop, I thought I'd add in my two cents! We've had one for about a year--it was gifted to us for our wedding. It is so truly a lifesaver. We don't have kids yet, but we do have several pets so I was worried about using chemicals. One tip I didn't realize for quite some time is that if your floors have a lot of dirt or spills that have dried, you can just add water to them and go over them with the mop. It cleans up so well!!