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The 5 Best Mops For Hardwood Floors
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If you have ever installed, treated, repaired, or sealed hardwood floors in your home, you know how expensive it can get. The last thing you want to do is ruin your expensive wood floors with an inferior cleaning product. The best mops for hardwood floors will clean your floors without risk of damaging them in the process — and some models even work double duty cleaning other surfaces.
But what is the best type of mop for hardwood floors? There are a few good options for cleaning hardwood floors, but a microfiber mop is probably your best bet. “When it comes to hardwood floors, the key to selecting the right mop is water management,” Melissa Homer, chief cleaning officer at MaidPro, tells Bustle. “Wood floors cannot handle excessive water for extended periods of time, as small scratches and gaps in the floor boards will eventually allow water to absorb in past the polyurethane finish to cause damage. For this reason, mops that absorb well and don’t require a ton of water to clean are your safest bet. Professionals rely on microfiber flat mops to clean hardwood floors and laminate floors because the microfiber lifts and holds onto dirt and water so much better than cotton that you can use a lot less water to mop the floor and still get a brilliant shine.”
The shape of the microfiber is the secret to why it’s so effective: Microfiber mops work like a squeegee that picks up dirt and other messes and holds onto it instead of dragging it around. That being said, if you have the money to invest in a mop, there are higher tech electric mops that take the arm work out of lifting dirt and grime and can leave your floors looking polished.
It should also be noted that the cleaning agent you use while mopping hardwood floors is equally important, and it’s best to stay away from harsh chemicals and choose more natural cleaning methods. Wood floors should be damp-mopped only — it’s important to avoid saturating the floor with excess water. As far as cleaning agents go, make sure you read labels carefully and only select cleaners that are made for sealed wood. When in doubt, a little white vinegar diluted in water works like a charm.
These five hardwood floor mops will take some of the stress out of cleaning and protecting your flooring.
1The Best Mop & Bucket For Hardwood
- Also available on Home Depot, $33
The best thing you can do for your hardwood floors is keep harsh chemicals, soap, and excessive amounts of water as far away from them as possible. This is easier to do when you use a microfiber mop that has electrostatic properties and can attract dirt and grime without serious detergents.
This mop and bucket system boasts more than 100,000 positive ratings on Amazon — and at under $35, it won’t break the bank. The mop has a built-in wringer, and the bucket has features a foot pedal that allows you to remove excess water from the mop without using your hands. Depending on how much water you wring out, you can mop hardwood floors with nothing more than a damp microfiber pad, which is safer for sealed wood. The bucket even has a splash guard to keep water from spilling out onto floors. Another unique feature this mop offer is its triangular head that reaches deep into corners. Plus, it’s designed with a 360-degree rotation so you can easily slide it under furniture.
One shopper raved: “I love this mop and I never knew how easy it was to mop my whole house. I love the fact that all you have to do is put the mop on and spin it now how easy is that. The best part is that it doesn’t leave streaks in my hard wood floors.”
2The Best For Wet & Dry Mopping On Hardwood Floors
- Also available on Walmart, $24
Considering how much grime and bacteria your mop comes into contact with every time you clean, there’s something comforting about this microfiber mop, which has removable and washable cloths that you can use over and over again and has 3,500 positive Amazon ratings and counting. The mop cloth also conveniently comes in a pack of four, so you’ll never be without a fresh one. This mop also comes with one dirt removal scrubbing pad that’s great for stubborn caked-on messes. And its 360-degree swivel pole adjusts to different heights and makes cleaning in tight spots a lot easier.
One shopper raved: “I have always used the popular duster for my hardwood floors. This floor mop works so much better on cat and dog hair, dust and dirt. I have black slate flooring in my kitchen ( the popular duster doesn’t work at all on my slate floor) the wide thick pads work great for dusting but even better when I sprayed cleaner and used it wet. I washed and dried the pad, it came out of the dryer like new. Great product!”
3Editor’s Pick: An Affordable Spray Mop For Hardwood Floors
- Also available on Lowe's, $42, Walmart, $40, and Bed Bath & Beyond, $40
This affordable spray mop offers a 16.5-inch-wide mop head for tackling more surface area in less time and a refillable cartridge so you can simply push a button, deliver cleaning fluid to hardwood floors, and wipe them clean. It comes with a machine-washable microfiber cleaning pad and is safe on most wood floors including waxed, unoiled, and polyurethane floors. Bustle editor Anna Anderson counts it as a favorite and says: “I love a good bargain, and the Bona fits the bill. But it’s not just its affordability that’s great. The extra-wide mop head covers a large amount of surface area, and since it’s flexible, you can get right up against the baseboards. Unlike pre-dampened pads, you can use the spray trigger to apply as much — or as little — cleaning formula as you like, which is especially helpful for hardwood.”
One shopper raved: “I have tried so many different types of mops & cleaners on my hardwood floors and was not happy with any of them and would end up throwing them away. It was back to scrubbing the floors on my hands & knees. I saw this mop & thought I would give it a try. WOW was I surprised & happy with the results. I love it. I’m so disappointed that I hadn’t found it sooner. It makes cleaning sooo much easier!”
4The Best Mop & Vacuum Hybrid For Hardwood Floors
This luxury — and seriously fancy — hybrid mop is for you if your motto while mopping your floors is: the less you have to do, the better. It eliminates the need to vacuum (or sweep) first and then mop, because it cleans everything from sealed hard floors to rugs. It’s cordless and can run on a single charge for 30 minutes. It even has a self-cleaning cycle so you don’t have to deal with cleaning the mop head (because that can be the most tedious task of all!). It’s capable of picking up pet hair with ease, and there’s a special filter inside for catching the hair so it doesn’t mix with the dirty water.
One shopper raved: “We have mostly hardwood floors with area rugs. We also have two cats so we clean the floors often to vacuum fur and clean any hairballs or other pet messes. This works well on both the hardwood and the rugs, it switches easily back and forth between the two surfaces. Does a nice job vacuuming and cleaning up any messes you run into as you go. The cordless feature allows you to easily clean your whole house without having to recharge. It’s also really easy to clean the roller and empty the dirty water.”
5The Best Steam Mop For Hardwood Floors
Steam mops can be polarizing — either you love using one or you find them cumbersome. If you consider yourself a member of the first group, give this steam mop a try on your wood flooring. It has more than 3,000 five-star ratings on Amazon and is safe for a variety of surfaces, including sealed hardwood, vinyl, marble, ceramic, and laminate flooring. What’s more, this nifty household tool comes with accessories that help you steam garments, furniture, and even carpets.
The advantage of using a steam mop is you don’t need cleaners that contain chemicals and can ruin your wood floors. Steam alone can eliminate 99.9% of bacteria and germs. But make sure you only use this steam mop on sealed hardwood floors — steam can damage bamboo floors and wood floors that have only been pre-sealed or factory sealed.
One shopper raved: “I used this on tile floors and it did a perfect job cleaning. Then I used on hardwood and it was perfect on that surface as well. Then I wanted to try out all the attachments so I stared cleaning dust off of forced hot air vents, cleaning the walls and even the benches around my breakfast nook. It took off, dirt grease and some stains that had been on the benches for years from the kids doing crafts! I even used on the arm of my couch and was so happy. [...] Can’t wait to wash the pads and clean more!”
Experts:
Melissa Homer, chief cleaning officer at MaidPro.
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