Which Mop is Best for Hardwood Floors?

Let's be honest, those beautiful hardwood floors are a source of pride in your home. You want to keep them looking their best, but with the assortment of hardwood cleaning products available, you don't know where to start. 

To keep your hardwood floors shining, let's begin with a simple but crucial question: What is the best mop for hardwood floors? 

The answer depends on a few factors, like the type of flooring you have and how clean you want your floors. After all, if you’re going to invest in a mop, you want to make sure it can get any job done. That’s why we’re breaking down different types of mops and which one is best for your home.

Do not use: Steam mop

Steam mops seem like a great solution for cleaning your floors — helpful for anything from small spills to deep cleaning. They use hot water vapor to “clean and sanitize floors,” and have become quite popular over the last few years. However, steam mops are actually one of the most damaging cleaning tools you can use on hardwood or engineered hardwood. 

The high heat, drastic temperature changes, and lingering moisture from the steam can quickly break down the finish and warp the wood. If you have engineered wood floors, vinyl, or laminate, you also run the risk of damaging adhesives and subflooring if you use a steam mop too much. You may even find that the excessive moisture and heat warp your boards or laminate tiles, causing damage that only replacement can fix.

Okay: Traditional mop

While traditional mops are a more affordable and simple option, they’re not the best solution for deep cleaning floors — especially hardwood floors. First, mopheads hold a lot of water and can quickly saturate your floors. As a result, water and solution can seep in between boards or cracks of your hardwoods, causing water damage and warping. There are also a few additional reasons a traditional mop may not be the best choice:

• Mopheads can harbor germs and mildew, defeating the entire purpose of cleaning your floors
• Traditional mops typical require the use of harmful cleaning solutions, which can be toxic for little ones or furry family members
• The cleaning method of using a bucket means reusing dirty water on your floors
• They may require more physical effort to deep clean flooring

Better: Swep Mop

Traditional mops tend to be a bit of a chore (pun intended), which is why a self-wringing mop can be a much better alternative. Our WOCA Swep Mop,

• Can be wrung out with just a twist of the handle
• Is larger than a standard twist mop, so you can cover more square footage faster
• Is machine-washable 
• Has looped fibers, which allows mopping and scrubbing simultaneously
• Simply dunk your Swep Mop into your bucket, wring it out, and start mopping.

Best: Spray mop

One of the best mops for hardwood floors — or any type of floor for that matter — is a spray mop. Spray mops are also wonderful for those who want to clean quickly, or who need a cleaning tool that is easy on their body. There are tons of benefits to using spray mops, including:

• Simple assembly
• Reusable and machine-washable pads
• Less manual labor to clean stains
• Great for everyday and deep cleaning
• Incredibly budget-friendly

As far as our top choice, we are a bit biased! We recommend the WOCA Spray Mop. As one of the most budget-friendly cleaning options for floors, it’s gentle and effective on all types of flooring, like hardwood, tile, laminate, LVT, and vinyl. Even better, our spray mop uses WOCA cleaning solutions, which are all plant-based, environmentally friendly, and completely safe for you and your family.

Even if you don’t choose our spray mop, we do recommend that you find a spray mop that offers non-toxic, wood-friendly cleaning solutions. Most spray mops do come with their proprietary formula, and many of the more common “general” spray mop brands have harsh chemicals and scented solutions that can damage floors and cause trouble for those with sensitive skin and lungs.

Clean your floors safely and effectively with WOCA Woodcare

Finding the best mop for your hardwood floors can be an overwhelming challenge. But with WOCA Woodcare, you can feel confident knowing all of our products are expertly designed specifically for hardwood floors, ensuring a gentle and effective clean every time. Because we’re committed to health and sustainability, you can feel good about cleaning your floors safely, too. Shop the WOCA Spray Mop now!