Should You Ditch Mopping Bathroom Floors? Here's When You Should Try Manually Scrubbing

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A little mental conflict isn't uncommon when it's time for the weekly bathroom cleaning. On the one hand, you definitely want to breeze through this dirty chore as fast as possible. At the same time, if there's one area deserving close attention to detail, this is it. Demonstrating why you should put in the extra effort when tidying the bathroom floor, TikTok housekeeper @vanesamaro91 explains that ditching the floor mop for a deep dive with spray cleaner and paper towels is the only way to ensure you get all the grime. Plus, it keeps your mop from becoming overly dirty.

Now, if you're going to get down on your hands and knees to clean the bathroom floor, you first need to know it's worth it. Should you really ditch the mop, or can we chalk that advice up as overkill and continue taking the easy way out? To help us decide, we reached out to DIY cleaning influencer Alissa Schow (@home.and.chaos on Instagram) for an exclusive House Digest look at whether manual scrubbing makes the most sense.

According to Schow, the right choice primarily depends on the location. The toilet, for instance, is one area where you should definitely forgo the mop and manually wipe down the area. "Bathroom floors are gross — it's just a fact. In the toilet closet, I always use a spray and paper towels," she explained, detailing how she ensures spectacular results.

It's awful to know you're probably not cleaning your bathroom floor often enough. And it gets worse when you find you've been doing it incorrectly. As Schow described in her exclusive House Digest interview, the results when cleaning the bathroom floor depend on your approach and equipment. "Around the base of the toilet, I use a spray cleaner," she said, explaining her method that incorporates an active enzyme solution. As some of the best cleaners for tackling poop and vomit messes, enzyme cleaners consist of active bacteria and enzymes that break down organic messes, pretty much everything you'd expect around a toilet. They're safe to use around people and pets and won't damage hard bathroom flooring, tile, or anything else.

As far as products go, Schow leans on ACTIVE Pet Odor & Stain Eliminator. "This Active enzyme spray is my go-to because it's powerful," she said, noting its benefits beyond the bathroom. "I use it on all the gross stuff in my house (disposal, garbage bins, toilets, stains, accidents, pets, etc.)." For wiping down the spray, Schow relies on the speed and convenience of disposables rather than reusable materials to clean later. "I use paper towels and toss them," she stated, showing solidarity with @vanesamaro91.

Getting down to manually scrub around the toilet is no one's idea of fun. Fortunately, Schow asserted that a smart process can keep things pleasantly efficient and get you past this part a bit quicker. "I do the base of the toilet while I'm doing the floor," she said in her exclusive House Digest chat. "If you spray the base, it all runs down, and you can wipe it all away while you're doing that section."

The floor-cleaning process gets much more relaxed once you get past the toilet, letting you lean on convenient tools to get the job done. "For the rest of the bathroom floor, I use a spin mop," Schow stated, pointing to the FozsKeylf Spin Mop and Bucket as her weapon of choice. For the floor-cleaning solution, though, Schow skips the store-bought stuff. Her go-to cleaning substitute to get the job done instead relies on everyday materials you likely have around the home. "Hot water, a tsp of Tide powder detergent, and [a] splash of bleach," she explained. With this, she can tackle the rest of the floor while making sure to keep the bathroom nastiness contained. "I always do my bathroom floors separate from the rest of the floors," Schow stated. "It just makes me feel better than to wonder if I'm spreading bathroom germs all over!"