The Cheap Way to Use Your Swifferby Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger 01 Apr 2007 05:55 AM Why spent a lot maintaining those fancy kitchen floor systems? From Clorox to Swiffer, it seems like there is always a new way to clean your kitchen floor. Here is a secret of mine. I love those swiffer wet mops. They are so much easier to use than the traditional bucket and pail, but the cleaning solution and the replacement pads can get pretty expensive. I was buying the supplies by bulk, but I was also going through those supplies pretty quickly. I started to notice that the supplies were affecting our budget, but I didn't want to give up the ease of my swiffer. So I had to find a more frugal solution to all of those swiffer supplies. Here are some very frugal and very easy ways to get your kitchen floor clean enough to eat off of. I can't guarantee it will stay clean if there are children in the house, but at least you know that the kids can eat all of the dropped cheerios that they like without too much panic. Here is a trick I learned from a friend. Get a spray bottle and fill it with a solution of half vinegar and half water. Spray the floor and then use your swiffer to mop! It works like a charm, and there will be no harsh chemicals left on your floor. Or, dilute a regular floor cleaning soap and use that in your spray bottle. You can also attempt to refill the solution container with your vinegar and water solution. I have had mixed results trying to do this, so if you try it and discover an easy way to fill that container, please let me know! To save even more money on your swiffer supplies, use rags (old t-shirts, flannel shirts and flannel sheets work really well) and cut them to size to fit on the swiffer mop. Rubber bands will secure your home made cloths. When the cloths get dirt, simply toss them in your washing machine. I put them in with a load of dish towels. I use dish towels instead of paper towels, so I usually have enough towels to wash a full load. You could also toss the swiffer cloths in with your regular towels and wash them on the hot water setting. Related Articles: Make Your Own Bathroom Cleanser Learn more about Mary Ann Romans  Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat. Relevantfrugal tags User Comments  Valorie Delp (49340) 01 Apr 2007 06:09 AMDid I mention that I love you? What great ideas! I actually use the Clorox mop and the bottles are much easier to fill with your own solution. I never thought about using something else instead of the purchased pads. Do you have an alternative to the Magic Eraser? I have found nothing works as well as that!  Mary Ann Romans (26886) 01 Apr 2007 08:18 AMAh, hugs right back to you! The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser rules! I haven't found anything that works as well, although you can use a regular eraser on scuffed vinyl flooring. I check out the deals blog and forums for ways to get deals on the Magic Eraser and then stock up. Valorie Delp (49340) 01 Apr 2007 06:07 PMYou are as wise as Yoda! Mr. Clean gets marker and crayon off of anything! Or at least anything that my children have accidentally or not so accidentally drawn on. I use it for other things but that's really where I find it invaluable. Mary Ann Romans (26886) 02 Apr 2007 04:36 AMMy husband has to hold me back from "Magic Cleaning" our whole new home right now. It is a mess! I do find that the Magic Erasure will take off a glossy finish from paint if you aren't careful. Instant shabby chic, though!  Linda Hansen (1796) 02 Apr 2007 06:38 AMTo clean those extra tall, unreachable mirrors, put folded papertowels in the holes in the back of the sweeper, spray window cleaner and use the extra long handle to clean the top of the out of reach mirrors or windows. Mary Ann Romans (26886) 02 Apr 2007 09:20 AMLinda, thanks for the tip! I am going to use it this afternoon! khaledamotheroftwo (715) 18 Nov 2007 06:18 PMhi i use lysol disinft wipes in the swiffer holes to wipe the floor . thought would share with you.... thank you all FrugalPhilly (25) 05 Mar 2009 09:07 PMI bought a handy dust mop. it has the little holes built in to attach cleaning clothes. T Shirts that have holes in them are cut and fastened around the dust mop then i spray the floor with a vinegar and water mixture. I also purchased an extra dust mop head and when it gets nasty i take it out side and give it a good shake then just toss it in the wash. I am concidering making my next dust mop heads out of scrap t shirt material it could have an elastic or tie run through to attach it to the handle. FrugalPhilly (25) 05 Mar 2009 09:09 PMI bought a handy dust mop. it has the little holes built in to attach cleaning clothes. T Shirts that have holes in them are cut and fastened around the dust mop then i spray the floor with a vinegar and water mixture. I also purchased an extra dust mop head and when it gets nasty i take it out side and give it a good shake then just toss it in the wash. I am concidering making my next dust mop heads out of scrap t shirt material it could have an elastic or tie run through to attach it to the handle. FrugalPhilly (25) 05 Mar 2009 09:09 PMI bought a handy dust mop. it has the little holes built in to attach cleaning clothes. T Shirts that have holes in them are cut and fastened around the dust mop then i spray the floor with a vinegar and water mixture. I also purchased an extra dust mop head and when it gets nasty i take it out side and give it a good shake then just toss it in the wash. I am concidering making my next dust mop heads out of scrap t shirt material it could have an elastic or tie run through to attach it to the handle. Community Tags Cleaning, frugal, Swiffer Discuss this article
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