Mop Frequently High-traffic areas, like kitchens, bathrooms, hallways, and entryways, require weekly mopping. Infrequently used rooms, such as formal living areas or guest rooms, can be mopped every other week, or even once a month, so long as they're vacuumed once every seven days to remove dust and grit.
But as a rule of thumb, you should mop your floors at least once a week—especially in areas that are more likely to get stains from drips and spills, like the kitchen and bathroom. “Of course, you need to vacuum or sweep the floor before mopping,” explains Leiva.
Apply a heavy concentrated solution of floor soap and hot tap water. After soaking, scrub up dirt with your motorized scrubbing tool. Remove dirt-filled water with wet vacuum or mop. Mop floor again with fresh hot tap water to rinse residual soil and soap.
When debris builds up on the floor over time, they accumulate and can cause tiny scratches in your floor, which might become permanent and eventually become an ugly blemish.
The best way to clean hardwood floors and keep them in shape is to stick to a regular schedule of maintenance. Sweep, dust or dry mop daily. Vacuum weekly. Clean heavy-traffic areas with a damp mop twice a month.
"Over-mopping can wear down your floor's seal, causing lasting damage," explains Declan. “The most common mistake when mopping is using too much water. If your mop is too wet you run the risk of smearing any debris instead of actually cleaning it away.
Manufacturers and industry experts advise against cleaning hardwood floors with water because wood naturally expands when it's wet and can cause your floor to crack or splinter.
Sweeping at night is bad luck
Nitish, a lifestyle and fitness blogger and personal trainer from India, says sweeping at night can bring bad luck.
Rinse the mixture from the mop until the water runs completely clear. Allow the mop to completely dry. To prevent bacteria growth make sure the mophead is dry before storing it away. To do this, start by wringing the mop out as much as you can.
Mopping with dirty water usually causes that buildup and dirty appearance, even though it was just mopped. Dirt is added to a mop bucket each time the mop is dunked into the water, if you don't change the water you are just transferring the dirt and grime around the floors through the dirty water.
Daily: Flush your toilet every day (even if it's not in use) to discourage the growth of bacteria. Weekly: Deep-clean your toilet once a week or biweekly—this includes the toilet bowl, exterior and toilet seat. Yearly: Clean your toilet tank twice a year.
Mop around the edges first, then move to the middle of the floor, using overlapping, figure-eight strokes. When one side of the mop gets dirty, turn the mop over to the clean side. When both sides are dirty, wash the mop in the bucket; otherwise, you'll be spreading dirt around instead of removing it.
Mop Frequently
High-traffic areas, like kitchens, bathrooms, hallways, and entryways, require weekly mopping. Infrequently used rooms, such as formal living areas or guest rooms, can be mopped every other week, or even once a month, so long as they're vacuumed once every seven days to remove dust and grit.
How Often You Should Wash Your Sheets (And How to Get Them Really Clean) Experts recommend washing or changing sheets once a week.
You should keep mops and brooms in the northwest or west corner of your home. You should not keep them in the northeast or the southeast direction or in the puja room. You should not use broken or old brooms.
Air It Out
Wait 10 minutes, then rinse and wring out the excess water. Never leave your mop sitting in the bucket to dry, or you'll risk the formation of bacteria and mold in the leftover moisture.
Technically, it's not harmful to mop your floors every day. Most finished flooring is coated to protect against water damage, especially if it's not standing water. However, wet mopping daily isn't necessary, whereas dry mopping is more natural.
Many people think you need to mop with boiling water to thoroughly clean your floors. This, however, is a myth – rather than always giving you a better clean, the temperature of the water can actually have a negative effect.
Many professional cleaners suggest vacuuming first before mopping. Especially if your interior floor is hard surfaces, vacuuming will make it easier for you to sweep and mop later. Some would instead follow the process of dusting, sweeping, and vacuuming first before cleaning.
A steam cleaner does to stubborn dirt which a regular mop can never do without cleaning products. Since a steam mop uses water, it makes the grime and dirt loosen before the mop head absorbs it. Also, steam dries quicker than water, so you don't have to worry about mold regrowth after you clean.
You can clean an unfinished floor with a mop or Swifter which won't leave as much liquid behind or soak your floorboards. Just make sure that you change your pads as needed to make sure you're soaking up all the excess water.
DON'T: Clean with hot water. If letting water stand on real wood flooring is bad, using hot water to clean does the same amount of damage. Hot water can dissolve over time the luster of your floors finish and penetrates the wood a lot easier than cold.