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I have a shedding dog. The good thing is that she is an excellent vacuum cleaner for all of the food that is dropped on the kitchen floor. The bad news is that there is dog hair everywhere. My cleaning routine used to include a dry Swiffer for a quick floor sweep to get all that hair and for dusting. Then I used a wet Swiffer for mopping. That would usually mean I was tossing 2 to 3 cloths into the garbage in one day. Did you know that Swiffer and other similar cloths are made from plastic? Yes indeed, they are made from polyester and polypropylene which are both plastic. I was surprised when I found this out. At first, I felt guilty about all that plastic that I sent to the landfill in the past, but as Maya Angelou said, “When you know better, do better”. So now, I’ve adjusted my cleaning routine, and you can too! There are other easy tools out there that are not single use and work just as effectively.
Today’s Challenge: Use and reuse those Swiffer-like cloths that you already have until you can use them no more. Then, readjust your sweeping, mopping, and dusting routines to avoid single use cleaning cloths.
Sweeping: You could go back to the old broom and dust pan, but that can be a hassle. I’ve found that you can still use the Swiffer mop tool, but instead of the single use Swiffer cloths, I grab a rag from my rag basket (see yesterday’s challenge) and attach that. It works great for a quick sweep. Then I can shake it out outside and reuse it. I also have a mop similar to this one that can be used wet or dry, but please see my note from yesterday about microfiber cleaning cloths. Washcloths/towels or other rags can fit on this mop too. Another easy substitute is a vacuum that can go from carpet to hard surfaces. This is what I primarily use now because it is really effective at quickly getting all the dirt and hair.
Mopping: For wet mopping you can still reuse the Swiffer mop head (minus the disposable pads) or the same mop I mentioned above with your own reusable rag. But I don’t recommend using the Swiffer cleaning solution and if you take a look at the ingredients you will know why, they are not very healthy for your home. Instead, grab a spray bottle of your all-purpose vinegar cleaner that we made earlier in the week and spray down an area. Mop over it with a dry or wet rag and repeat until the whole floor is done. It is so much easier than getting a mop and bucket or getting on your hands and knees to scrub.
Dusting: Get a reusable feather duster. I’ve found that these actually work better than the Swiffer to grab the dust without just pushing it around. You can shake it outside to release the dusties and then continue on to the next area. You also can grab a rag from your basket and use that to wipe off dusty surfaces.
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