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When I was growing up, every Saturday was cleaning day. I was tasked with mopping the floors. But reader, there’s a caveat: We did not own a mop. An old T-shirt torn into rags, our emptied trash can with some dish soap, and my bare hands were the weapons of mass disinfection. It was a difficult chore. I scooted around our Moscow apartment with this scrappy setup, bent in a perpetual forward fold and constantly rinsing and wringing the T-shirt mop, which didn’t pick up much dirt at all.
Now, as an adult living on my own, I still clean every weekend. It grounds me and connects me with my space on a deeper level; it’s self-care and routine that guides the rest of my week. However, I’ve mostly ended up just ignoring the floors (and the bottoms of my white socks). The rag-and-trash-bucket method no longer works for me—my back is not what it used to be, and who wants to deal with the inconvenience of washing and drying their trash can?
“I don’t have to live like this,” I told myself recently. So I looked into mops. I tried the Swiffer mop with disposable pads, but it was expensive and wasteful. Plus it couldn’t absorb a spill. Then I bought a mop that had a flat, rectangular, removable microfiber head. It was advertised as super absorbent, able to penetrate cracks and crevices to pick up dirt, and machine washable. But it ended up pushing the water and debris around the floor instead of soaking it up. After that, I got a mop with a sponge bottom and a squeeze mechanism, touted for easy wringing. While that was an improvement, it also got very soapy because of its porous material. I’d have to go over the floors twice with fresh water so they weren’t sticky. On top of that, it was very clunky and hard to maneuver into tighter spaces. “Actually, maybe I can live like this,” I convinced myself, as I put out my mop collection onto the street with a sign reading “FREE.” I switched over to black socks.
I genuinely thought I’d never wash the floors again until I discovered #CleanTok on TikTok. While hypnotized by the satisfying videos of folks cleaning their homes or providing organizational services, I noticed accounts showcasing the O-Cedar EasyWring Spin Mop & Bucket System. Many viewers echoed the sentiment of one commenter, who posted “Can you please share the name brand of that mop!? I see it all over TT.”
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The O-Cedar spin-mop-and-bucket combo is a simple contraption: The bucket features a foot pedal that spins a built-in wringer, giving us the gift of hands-free squeezing and moisture control. The mop has an extendable pole, which is easy to tuck away and can be adjusted to different sizes as needed. The microfiber mop head is triangle-shaped, making it a breeze to steer and clean hard-to-reach corners. It’s also detachable and machine washable so you can reuse it again and again—a win for the planet, my wallet, and my sanity.
Gabrielle Vigneault, known as @cleaningwithgabie on TikTok, is a stay-at-home mom who’s become a full-time cleaning and organizational content creator with 1.3 million followers and 6.6 million likes. Like myself, she was struggling with cleaning motivation until she came across #CleanTok—and this viral mop. “This is my favorite mop for many reasons: The microfiber mop head is the ideal material—it cleans so well—and you can also remove it and put it directly into the washing machine,” she says. But the most standout feature to her is “the mechanism that spins the mop, allowing it to remove the excess water.”
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When my own mop and bucket arrived, I was hopeful. “Hello darkness, my old friend,” I whispered to the kitchen floor. I’ve now become an unofficial mop expert, and here’s what I’ve learned to get the most out of your O-Cedar EasyWring Spin Mop & Bucket System. You want your mop to be moist, but not dripping, for an effective clean. Wash the floors along the grain. And when dry, the mop can sweep dust and pet fur or be employed for wiping down tall, tough-to-reach spots, like cabinets and ceiling fans. The #CleanTok girlies even wash their walls with it.
I’d never thought I’d say I love my mop, but I truly do love my mop. The ease of using it motivates me to clean the floors, so I have a comforting, spotless home. The dog days of the rag and bucket are behind me. In the words of one TikTok commenter, “And now I wanna go mop my house.”
By Bon Appétit Contributor
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