Majjie's Blog

No - don't go away! It has to be said that my answer to that question would be "not often enough". I sweep up the crumbs and I dab at any noxious spots with the floor cloth ... but it's quite rare that I get the squeegee and bucket out, and give it a good clean. Of course, I must point out that I have very forgiving grey tiles and no kids or animals coming in with dirty feet. Those of you with young families and pets probably have to clean a lot more often.

Anyway - regular readers will remember me complaining the other day that kitchen suppliers were a bit behind the times - when it came to using the internet (and bloggers) for spreading information. Here we are, constantly looking for interesting stuff to write about. There they are, with new products, or offers, to promote ... and yet never the twain seem to meet.

Well I must eat my words. I've been sent a free gift! A kitchen product to review on my blog. And what is this lovely free gift? A portable steam oven? A new all singing and dancing microwave?

No. There's no prizes for guessing - after my introductory paragraph - it's a kitchen mop and bucket. Now - I'm not touting for free gifts - all I really want is information and perhaps a few pictures ... but I have to admit to feeling a little underwhelmed by the prospect of trying out a mop.

This particular mop, though, is the new Vileda SuperMocio (you may have seen the tv adverts) and not only that ... it came with the new SuperMocio Power Press Wringer bucket. It claims to be the most technically advanced mop on the market. Here's a piccy (including my aforementioned grey tiles):

The stripey outer strips are supposed to trap dust and small particles, the blue inner strips have absorbent pockets and are made from microfibre, to remove marks, whilst the red strappy bits are non-scratch scourers - to remove those really dried on bits. The head is also shaped to make it easier to get into corners ... and you can remove it and put it in the washing machine.

Right - I thought - I'll give it a real test. So, I didn't bother sweeping the floor first, I just got straight to mopping. It has to be said that the stripey strips will only pick up small particles (as - in fact - it says!). Any large lumps of debris are left on the floor (yes, alright ... I know there shouldn't be any - but I have been very busy recently). They do indeed pick up dust, though ... which tends to gather under any unused chairs or stools. Most of the marks on my floor were easily removed with a quick mop. and one very stubborn mark - which resisted even the red strap - was quite easily removed when I came back round after doing the rest of the floor. It's a lot better than trying to scrape off stubborn bits with the plastic edge of the squeegee.

So - yes - I was quite impressed with the new SuperMocio. I was equally impressed, actually, with the Power Press Wringer bucket ... so get both if you're rushing out to get a mop :

I can remember a metal version of a wringer bucket being used in one of the showrooms I used to work in. The lady who cleaned, used to have one of those mops with the grey dreadlocks (with apologies to anyone who feels that to be a cultural insult). She'd come round the showroom cleaning and - after she'd left - there'd be dirt left all round the plinths of the white kitchen near where I sat ... which hadn't been there before.

The SuperMocio Power Press Wringer is nothing like that. Because it's made from strong plastic it actually flexes as you wring and gets virtually all the water out. I was able to go round very shortly after mopping the floor and sweep up those few offending large lumps.

So will I now mop my floor more regularly? Probably not. But when I need to, I know what I'll be using. For those of you who are a bit more enthusiastic about cleaning, Vileda actually have a blog called The Clever Cleaner