the right way to use a swiffer

Genius Swiffer Hacks

How to Clean Floors Without Really Trying

You probably already have one, but if you don’t, you either have dirty floors or you're mopping the hard way! We bought our first Swiffer in 2000, almost a year after they first came out. I tried to resist getting one because that lime green is an eyesore, but after damp-mopping my way through Y2K, I succumbed, bought the Swiffer, and never looked back! Nobody likes to sweep or mop, but all mostly love clean floors, so I'll admit that a disposable cloth at the end of a swivel stick is pure genius! But the venerable Swiffer stick has some major drawbacks (besides the tacky lime green). Those disposable wipes are expensive and wasteful. And since they've added Febreze "scent” to everything, they are almost too nauseating to use.  

 15% OFF FLOOR CLEANER CONCENTRATE

How to Hack Your Swiffer:

DON’T BE WET: 

I bought the "Wet-Jet" when it first came out. In fact, I bought two. The first one broke within a month, and the second one broke when I tried to remove the floor cleaner reservoir to refill it with a better floor cleaner. They make it nearly impossible because they want you to buy their nasty chemical version. That’s when I realized that: 

  1. The wet wipes work with the Original Swiffer Sweeper stick. And…  
  2. You don’t need the Wet Wipes anyway!  

FLIP IT UP AND REVERSE IT: 

Once you make that first hairy pass on your floors, you can remove the sweeper cloth, shake the loose stuff off and use the other side. Both sides of the Swiffer Sweeper cloth work to attract dust and hair, so why not use both? This trick works on the Swiffer Wet refill pads, too. Congratulations! You just doubled your refills. 

GET GENERIC: 

You can pick up both dry and wet versions of the disposable cloths to fit your Swiffer Sweeper stick. Search for “Wet Sweeper Cloths” from the dollar store or Amazon. The biggest plus for me is that they are UNSCENTED. They’re also far less expensive than the Swiffer branded versions.  

THE REUSABLE OPTION: 

You can wrap pretty much anything onto a Swiffer sweeper head. If you can’t poke your fabric into the little plastic keepers, get a couple of bull clips to secure it at the top. Sometimes, I use a stray sock, old cloth diapers, or a dingy dishtowel, shake them out, and rewash them. Or toss.  

BUY SOME MICROFIBER CLOTHS: 

I personally don’t like them, but you can get those super durable Microfiber cloths and reuse them ad nauseam. I hear they're good for dusting down TV screens and electronics. Still don't like them. 

BOTTOM LINE? 

I love my Swiffer, but not the refill cloth or cheap synthetic fragrance situation. For my floors, I like to sweep first with a generic, disposable cloth and then damp mop by spraying the floor with a good, plant-based cleaner and an old T-shirt. #cleaniseasy 

2022 UPDATE: I replaced my ugly Swiffer with this guy! It comes with a real wooden pole instead of that ugly lime green situation. So. Much. Better.  

Happy Swiffering!

xmk