My experiment found which bathroom floor type is easiest to clean – and the right technique blasted 94% of germs
BATHROOMS have the filthiest floors out of all the other rooms in any house, according to research.
The mastermind behind the study revealed the most effective cleaning techniques for making the space hygienic.
Paul Hambidge is the managing director at UK-based flooring company Factory Direct Flooring.
They teamed up with the microbiology experts at BioLabTests to analyze around 100 swabs taken from domestic floors.
At least 933 CFUs [colony-forming units] of bacteria were found on bathroom floors.
Meanwhile, on average every other room had less than 650 CFUs.
The alarming findings came despite bathrooms being the “easiest” place to clean in the home.
CLEVER CLEANING
During the study, the researchers looked for the most effective way to reduce germs on bathroom floors.
It was revealed that vacuuming can reduce bacteria by 99%, steaming by up to 97%, and mopping by up to 76%.
Despite white vinegar and water often proving popular with those who want to avoid using harsh chemicals, it only reduced bacteria by 71%.
Floor wipes were shown to be the least effective as they only reduced bacteria by 13% on bathroom floors.
"Not all cleaning techniques are equal when it comes to thoroughly cleaning a bathroom floor,” Hambidge told The U.S. Sun.
“What your floor is made of has a big difference on results, too.
“For example, we found that vinyl bathroom floors are among the easiest to clean, and in the case of a bathroom, using white vinegar and water was the most effective here.
“This technique blasted 94% of germs found on vinyl bathroom floors in our experiment.
“Meanwhile, bathrooms with LVT [luxury vinyl tiles] are better with a vacuum cleaner.
“This cut germs by 99%, which will be a relief to homeowners looking for a no-scrub cleaning solution for their bathroom."
Cleaning hacks and tips
Here are some tips to help you when you clean your home next:
- How to clean your shower to ensure it's always sparkling
- What to do to get rid of nasty odors in your home
- Here's how to get your home smelling like fresh laundry
- You're cleaning your pots and pans all wrong - here's a trick to remove the residue
- These are five hacks to ensure your kitchen is spotless
- What you need to know when cleaning your bathroom
- This trick will ensure your washing machine is clean and smells great
- This cheap, easy trick will remove your mold from grout without scrubbing
- These simple items will make your carpet clean and look brand new
- This 'lazy' hack will ensure your oven is clean for pennies
The findings come after a TikToker went viral for sharing a bathroom cleaning hack.
Hani (@hanicleanwithme) used a broom to scrub the floor of her home in Malaysia, before washing the dirt down two drains.
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She said her floor is “slightly slanted” to help the water flow and the hot weather in the country makes it dry quickly.
She confessed to being surprised that drains in bathroom floors aren’t common in other countries.
