Mop vs. Swifter for Hardwood Floors

Swiffers are meant for quick touch ups but not worth crap for heavy duty. As a college student, after every party a swiffer won't work so great to clean the whole floor. Mops work way better for major spills in the house. Better than using decent bath towels if you just have a swiffer.

No matter if you use a swiffer or a mop, whichever tickles your fancy, do not, I repeat, do NOT do as kjreynolds suggests and use even the slightest amount of paint thinner on you hardwood floors!!!!!! It is the worst thing you can do for your floors, it ruins the finish, and can lead to more dust, dirt and grime build up!! There is a product called BONA and they have a hardwood refresher that works wonders on hardwood floors and can give you a mirror like shine!

Swiffers are good for 'quick' pick up; however, I find that the Ocello Mop with the microfiber cloth is the BEST for really picking up dirt/dust. My entire house is hardwood and tile....so I have to do a combination. Do not put a WET mop to your hardwoods....but a 'damp' mop. After mopping my tile with a wet swiffer...the cloth is almost dry...I then run it over the hardwood floor which picks up remaining dust/prints/etc....drying immediately. For a WONDERFUL shine, I keep old tshirts cut to fit the swiffer head (punch them in the little holes as you would a cloth) and I keep a spray bottle of paint thinner....which was used to clean the floors when they were orig installed. Litely spray the tshirt (microfiber cloths work well too) and mop your wood floors....incredible shine and removes prints, spots, residue. Odor disolves quickly. And then you toss the used tshirt in the trash.

Swiffers are good for 'quick' pick up; however, I find that the Ocello Mop with the microfiber cloth is the BEST for really picking up dirt/dust. My entire house is hardwood and tile....so I have to do a combination. Do not put a WET mop to your hardwoods....but a 'damp' mop. After mopping my tile with a wet swiffer...the cloth is almost dry...I then run it over the hardwood floor which picks up remaining dust/prints/etc....drying immediately. For a WONDERFUL shine, I keep old tshirts cut to fit the swiffer head (punch them in the little holes as you would a cloth) and I keep a spray bottle of paint thinner....which was used to clean the floors when they were orig installed. Litely spray the tshirt (microfiber cloths work well too) and mop your wood floors....incredible shine and removes prints, spots, residue. Odor disolves quickly. And then you toss the used tshirt in the trash.

I bought and use the SHARK steam cleaner with the steam pocket. It has a rewashable mop head and the steam cleans, and disinfects my hardwood. Dries super fast too. I have used the swiffer wet jet, but find that it is better for touch ups. It seems to leave streaks on my hardwood, and my tile. The only thing I keep it around for is the bathrooms. My two boys have bad aim, and it's nice to mop, and throw that away! After stripping all the chemicals from my hardwood floor, I only use the steam pocket, and have never worried about streaks or paw prints since.

yeah,mops are great if you like washing your floors w/dirty water and a mop full of germs. I prefer a clean home over saving the environment.

I agree that the cleaning pads creates more waste for our landfills... but what about all the water that is being wasted and not to mention polluted when using a mop with some sort of soap? Both are equally damaging

What about Laminated floors, does anyone have anything to clean these floors, ???

Did you just use plain water to clean them or a water and vinegar solution. I had my hardwood floors refinished in a house I bought in March and am not sure what to do about cleaning them besides using a duster on them.

Thanks very much, I tried it and it works just great. No streaks at all. Brilliant

Use a mop. Swiffers are a rip-off as they require you to continually purchase the cleaning pads that go with them. (Not to mention that this creates more waste for our landfills. Think about it!) Every time I read this site there is a tip about what you can use as a substitute for Swiffer cleaning pads, everything from dryer sheets to old nylon stockings. What's the point? Mops can be used over and over with no replacement parts! They have worked fine for centuries now! Don't fall for the Swiffer gimmick!