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The Kitchen Table

Question re. the Swiffer covers.....

11 years ago

I am a huge fan of the Swiffer dusting system, but have to admit that those cloths are hard on the budget, so this could be a great idea. Does it work as well though?? There seems to be something about the Swiffer cloths that attracts and holds the dust. Wouldn't the terry cloth ones just push the dust around? You couldn't really spray anything like Pledge on them, since that would make the floors slippery. Thanks.

Elisabeth

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Comments (8)

FlamingO in AR
11 years ago
I use pieces of fleece, no sewing, I just cut them to size. They grab hair and dust beautifully. Wash with regular laundry with no fabric softener.

I got this idea here at the KT, but many, many years ago. I forget who suggested it, was it Auntie Jodi, maybe?
lindaohnowga
11 years ago
You could try one of those microfiber cloths. Dust clings to them. They are washable.
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I couldn't live without my dry swiffer sheets for quick cleaning. They slide under my sleigh bed and all my furniture that is low to the floor. I slant it on my baseboards and it removes a lot of dust and lint. If the floor seems extra gritty (dry mud carried in DH's boots) I will sweep with a soft bristled Old Cedar broom before swiffering. That is usually just in the mud-room and kitchen. Who am I kidding?? He can manage to make his way half-way through the house before he takes his boots off :). When I am deep/thorough cleaning (two or three times a year) I use the hard floor attachment on my Rainbow. It can be a PITA, but I know all the dust and grit get pulled out of the crevices. Refuse to use the wet swiffer systems on my wood floors. Only use microfleece pads and vinegar water. Plan on getting the Bona in the future after hearing such good things about it I do keep a box of wet swiffer sheets for when I am in a hurry and need to mop linoleum in laundry room and one bath. I am not overly concerned about any damage here as these floors will be replaced this year.
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Confession: I do not clean my floor. However, my cleaning people do this which I have never seen other than them. They have been cleaning for me for more than a decade. They do 3 bedrooms, L/D/K rather quickly with this system. My cleaning people clean the floor by vacuuming and then using an old wet towel wrapped around a broom which they use as a makeshift mop. They use a rubber band to wrap the towel around the broom head when the broom head attaches to the broom stick so the towel does not fall off. They put a bit of osmo cleaning solution in the water since that is what I have on my floor. They rinse the towel as needed and wring out the towel quite a bit so that it is not dripping as many mops can be. It also has enough surface area so that the job is quick. I once asked them why they don't use a mop and they said it works better. I am also thinking that a bit of "mass" on the broom head helps rub off the sticky bits that may be on the floor. This is what they do with all their houses. I am guessing that speed is of essence. I am not sure if this helps but I thought I would toss it in since speed too maybe of essence to the poster.
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The link below may help you out. The Tip Nut has a number of Swiffer Cloth Patterns you may be interested in as well - http://tipnut.com/make-your-own-swiffer-cloths/ I would like to give you another option that might suit your needs even better. Have you thought about switching to a steam mop? Several years ago we received a hand held steam cleaner as a gift, which was great in the bathroom and kitchen for cleaning all surfaces and those hard-to-get-to areas, and I liked the chemical-free cleaning so much we purchased a Shark Canister Steam Cleaner, followed a few years later by a Shark Steam Pocket Mop (which is especially nice for a quick job on the floors). Benefits... No expensive refills. You rinse the reusable mop heads in water to clean them. NO sticky cleaner residue left on your floors. Chemical-free! The only thing I make sure I do is to use distilled or reverse osmosis water in my steam cleaners so they don't get hard water residue in them, which could cause them to plug up. We make our own distilled water, but I can get reverse osmosis water for 35-cents a gallon (fill-your-own bottles) at most of the grocery stores, Wal-Mart, and a little water shack that only dispenses reverse osmosis water. We not only use the steam cleaners to mop floors, but we steam our beds, pillows, curtains, window blinds, carpets, and it's even great to use on windows. Steam cleaning destroys germs, viruses, molds, bacteria and dust mites. So everything is not only clean, but also sanitized. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: Instructables
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Click on the link below. That is all you need and it pays for itself in the end. I absolutely LOVE the dust mop. For one thing, it's long, unlike a Swiffer. It picks up a lot of dust & easily goes under sofas, etc. I generally shake out the dust in a little pile then use my dustpan. If company is coming over, you can dust a large area within a few minutes. Hardly ever needs washing. The blue pad is for wet-mopping. Here is a link that might be useful: Bona Mops-Money and time saving!
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ILoveRed
11 years ago
Turn the cloths over and use both sides before you dispose of them. Each side works equally as well.

Learned this trick from my frugal mother.
sheesh
11 years ago
The washcloths work well at collecting dust, hair, etc. Before I toss them in the washer I always pick off all the crud, or brush them over the trash with a small wisk broom. My friend mists them lightly with water, but I don't.

When I was using swiffers I always turned them over, too, but you can't beat washcloths for being cheap. And a lot more swiffer cloths and boxes go into the landfill than washcloths. Good all around. My
emma
11 years ago
They are to expensive for me to dust with and I can afford them, I just think it's a waste. I use a small feather duster a couple of times, then do a thorough dusting with a soft cloth with a little pledge or whatever on it. I felt the same way about the swiffer mops until I decided to use an old thin wash cloth instead of the sheets swiffer sells. Works great and they go in the laundry.
sheilajoyce_gw
11 years ago
I dust with a slightly dampened cloth--wet my hands, wipe them on the cloth, and then dust. You can also use Endust and not end up waxing anything that way or use a microfiber cloth.
elisabeth_rose
Original Author
11 years ago
Thank you for your suggestions. I bought a pack of cheap, thin terry washcloths today, and I will try those after I have used up my box of Swiffers. I have never thought of turning them around, but that is an excellent suggestion!

Elisabeth
graywings123
11 years ago
A single sheet of paper towel works pretty well in place of the dry swiffer sheet. I like Bounty towels best.

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