Few chores expose your dirty secrets like sweeping and mopping. These are rarely happy tasks and seldom filled with sweet reunions.
While unable to improve the quality of your muck, one product tries to ease the cleaning drudgery by combining two chores into one.
The aptly-named Sweep n’ Mop might cut your cleaning time in half, but don’t throw out your dustpan just yet.
Sweep n’ Mop is great for most mopping emergencies: muddy tracks, spilled beverages, slopped pasta sauce and the like. It’s lightweight and boasts a super-absorbent purple ribbed sponge head. Small ridges along the bottom of the sponge trap grime and debris, while tiny pockets inside the head corral excess water.
But the head gets stiff when it’s dry and requires time to soak before each use. That extra prep time can slow down the response to an emergency mess. And unless the Sweep n’ Mop is presoaked, it is useless as a broom.
To its credit, the sponge-head is easy to clean under a faucet. But is it wise to put your broom’s gunk into your plumbing system? Not really. Hair, sand and broken glass are best directed to a trash can.
Once comparisons to the old-fashioned broom are gone and this product is judged solely on its merit as a mop, it is hard to beat the job it can do for the price.
One last word of caution to consumers: Several users have written online complaints about Sweep n’ Mop. These critics suggest pricing on the product is best when it’s purchased from a brick- and-mortar retailer, perhaps the reason the product has become difficult to find online.
The Sweep n’ Mop is $9.99 at select Bed Bath and Beyond stores.
