Strategies for Mopping the Floor

Your floors attract all of the food, dirt, and dust that doesn’t get to the bin, so it’s important to clean them regularly – especially in your kitchen. Kitchen floors require the most attention because they’re frequently soiled by food. Vacuuming and mopping are the key parts to this process, so below you’ll find some strategies for using floor cleaning mops.

Check out this video to help get your floors spotless:

Essential Floor Mopping Products

• A vacuum or broom, and a dustpan and brush
• Rubber gloves
• A sponge mop or rag mop
• A mop bucket
• Floor cleaner solution and water

How to Mop a Tile Floor

1. First, vacuum or sweep the floor to remove any food or dirt particles, and give it a general tidy-up.
2. For safety, slip into some rubber gloves and carefully read the instructions on the label of your cleaning product.
3. Mix hot water with your floor cleaning solution in a mop bucket, following the directions on the product label.
4. Plunge the mop in the water, wring it out and get to work!
5. Give the floor a rinse – especially if you have kids or pets. You can do this by either washing out the mop you’ve used or using a separate rinsing mop. Just go over the area again with plain water.

Mopping Tips

• If you’re using a rag mop, mopping in a tight horizontal figure eight works best because it doesn’t leave behind any bits you might have missed in the initial vacuum or sweep.
• Shake your rag mop out periodically over a bin if you need to.
• With a sponge mop, try to clean in vertical lines like you would with a vacuum.
• If you encounter trouble spots that the mop won’t clean, just leave them to be dealt with later with a cloth.

Floor Cleaning Safety

If you have kids or pets, you’ll probably need to clean your floors more often than most – and you’ll need to be careful about which products and methods you choose. Because pets and toddlers are prone to laying on the ground with bare skin – or even eat off the floor – it’s important to keep them clean using the least toxic products possible. A lot of floor cleaning products will kill off grime, but can cause irritation to the skin. Make sure you check the product labels, and if they advise to use gloves when handling it, it’s probably now great for your pets or kids to walk on. This is also why it’s important to rinse floors thoroughly after you mop.