Want to know the best mopping formula solutions for your O-Cedar Spin Mop? This post reviews popular cleaners like Tide powder, Fabuloso, bleach, dishwasher pods, and more.
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It all started with a new mop.
Last fall, I bought the O-Cedar Spin Mop that had been all the rage on social media. I wasn't sure my current floor cleaning routine was cutting it and wanted to give this method a try.
Let it suffice to say that I was right.
After I posted this video on Tik Tok, it went viral almost immediately. I'm currently sitting at over 15 million views between two posting of this video on my account – that's crazy to me!
This led to me making 5 separate videos where I tried different mopping formulas for my new mop. I genuinely wanted to see which one worked best, since I was fairly new to mopping this way. So, each Thursday (on my Journey to Clean vacuum/mop day), I tested 3 formulas to see what I really loved. I showed “the pour” in each example to see just how much dirt that formula took off the floor and ranked the formulas based off of my experience. Those have been super popular as well…from those, I've gotten a lot of requests to make one big post of which formulas I thought were best. Ask and you shall receive!
I've got all 15 mopping formulas I tried on my LVP flooring ranked below. These range from literal plain water to some more interesting combinations that were recommended by viewers. (If you saw these on Tik Tok, some of the ratings did change a little, mostly because of hindsight and experience after I made the video.) If you want to see the original videos, they're on my Tik Tok (labeled “favorite mopping formulas”).
Affiliate links used in this post. Read more about my link usage here.
The Best O-Cedar Mopping Formula Solutions
15. Vinegar, rubbing alcohol, Fabuloso (1/2 cup each)
- (This one was a viewer request.)
- Smelled absolutely terrible – those scents don't mix well at all!
- Didn't really dry any faster
- Worst cleaning combo I tried
Rating 2/10
14. 1/3 cup Murphy's Oil Soap
- Smelled kind of funky (almost waxy)
- Ok cleaning – nothing special
- Left a little bit of residue on the floor
Rating 4/10
13. 1 cup white vinegar
- Seemed to make floors overly streaky
- Smelled awful, even an hour later
- One of the worst cleaning results
Rating: 4.5/10
12. 1/2 cup bleach
- Didn't clean as well as I expected
- I was paranoid the whole time I'd get it on a rug or clothing
- Had to go back over with water to make sure I didn't bleach anything
- Amazing at killing almost anything on your floor!
- Shouldn't be mixed with most chemicals, can cause a toxic reaction.
Rating: 4.5/10
11. 1/2 cup Pine Sol
- Cleaned ok I guess? Nothing special.
- Not a strong smell
- Anti-microbial and antibacterial
Rating 5/10
10. Generous squirt of Dish Soap (I used Mrs. Meyers)
- Smelled great
- Cleaned well
- Left a lot of residue/streakiness
Rating 5/10
9. 1/4 cup Totally Awesome and a Cascade Dishwasher Tab
- Cleaned really well
- Took forever to dry (humidity could have also been an issue)
- Left some residue
Rating 5.5/10
8. 1/2 cup Odoban
- Kills bacteria (as a concentrate, not as powerful when diluted)
- Smelled nice
- No residue!
Rating 6/10
7. 2 tbsp each of Tide powder and purple Fabuloso
- Smells amazing
- Floors are clean, but not as clean as with just water
- Small amount of residue leftover
Rating: 6.5/10
6. 1/4 cup (about a scoop) powdered Oxi Clean
- No real smell
- Cleaned really well
- Doesn't disinfect
Rating 7/10
5. 1/2 cup Windex
- Cleaned incredibly well
- No residue
- Slow drying (I was surprised!)
Rating 7/10
4. 1/2 cup Mrs. Meyer's Lavender Concentrate
- Smelled great
- Cleaned well – got a little sudsy (which I like)
- Tiniest bit of residue (I probably could have used less and still cleaned effectively)
Rating 7/10
3. Plain Hot Water
- Basically free
- Actually pretty effective
- O-Cedar claims their mop removes 99% of germs and bacteria with just water
Rating: 7.5/10
2. 1/4 cup Totally Awesome cleaner
- Neutral smell (clean, not overpowering)
- Cleaned incredibly well – one of the best I tried!)
- Super inexpensive
- Doesn't disinfect though
Rating 8/10
1. 1/2 cup Mr. Clean
- Cleans so well
- Disinfects
- Smells amazing
- No residue
Rating 9/10
So, we can sum up this whole 3-month mopping formula experiment with a recommendation of one of the oldest cleaning products on the shelves. 🙂 I would 100% recommend Mr. Clean as your mopping formula solution – that's what I've used since the experiment ended! But, rest assured, in a pinch you can use most of the combinations on this list with great results.
Another huge recommendation with mopping is consistency – don't let that dirt build up! If you're in need of a free cleaning schedule to keep up with this, I've got you covered – you can grab my long-time favorite schedule here.
See more of my cleaning posts here. You can also click here to see my latest LVP floor cleaning routine.
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Is Mr Clean is as good as Lysol?
From my experience, they’re really about the same – I’m just able to find Mr. Clean more readily in stores lately.
If water worked great and the o’ceder mop claims it pick us 99% of the bacteria, why spend money on a cleaner? Not to mention they all contain toxic chemicals…when it isn’t necessary? Is it for the smell?
Smell, faster drying, sanitizing, cleaning tougher messes – there are lots of reasons. While the mop might pick up 99% of bacteria, there are still times when you might need to sanitize a floor.
So what was the one you recommend (love) the most. I read everything and I can’t find it. Lol
Mr Clean!
Mr Clean has always been my favorite for mopping.
Mr clean
So I’m kinda weird about mopping bathroom floors with the same mop as the rest of the house. Any suggestions on disinfecting the mop itself? Maybe a bath of Mr Clean after each use??
I’d suggest having a few mop heads – you can buy them pretty inexpensively from Amazon. That way, you can just change out as needed!
I soak my mop head in a bleach and water combo for about 20 minutes after using it and then rinse it really well. People don’t realize that the mop itself get tons of bacteria
I use a separate mop and bucket for the bathroom, and I use bleach and tide liquid, just for the bathroom
Is this for hardwood floors only or for ALl floors?
I have LVP (vinyl) flooring, so I can’t speak to all flooring – I know it works for mine, and I’ve had a lot of comments that many of these work for hardwood.
How pet friendly are these chemicals? Esp when they lick their paws? I have a dog and two cats inside. I use dawn, vinegar and baking soda with hot water. I’ll change and will use peroxide instead of vinegar occasionally. I have this same mop and totally love it!!! Great post!
You definitely want to research on if your hardwoods were sealed or not. If they are sealed, the type of sealer will decide what you can use without stripping the sealant. If not, you want to use Murphy’s Oil Soap and I suggest turning on a floor fan to dry quicker to avoid damaging the floors. Hardwoods are so beautiful and extremely expensive so a mistake on products could ruin them.
I use starfiber mops (Bona) but not their floor cleaning products. I find Thomasville cream the best. Wood floors are shiny and a little dirt resistant.
Just to clarify, when you say 1/2 cup of something (like Mr. Clean) you are adding that to 1 gallon of water (hot)?
Yes – I think the capacity of the OCedar bucket is closer to 3 gallons, so I’d say between 2-3 gallons of water. And yes, hot water!
Love all your advice! Thank you! After you use Mr Clean and water on yout Luxury vinyl do you rinse it with just water?
Thanks! I typically don’t rinse unless it’s a harsher chemical (like bleach).
Ok I love Mr Clean and just bought the OCedar Spin Mop. Evidently, the people that lived here before didn’t mop or disinfect very often. What do you suggest to do first? Thanks!
I think consistency is your best bet! Just set a schedule to mop once a week (Journey to Clean day is Thursday) and stick to it – the water will be incredibly dirty at first, but I’ve noticed mine getting better and better as I stay on a consistent schedule.
Murphys Wood Oil soap is a specialty product for real wood, so I wouldn’t use it for other types of flooring. Th as his for theist.
Having issues with my mopping , so your post is a life saver . I want to try Windex I’m guessing you combine water with Windex right ?
Yes! All of this goes in mop water (2-3 gallons).
Hi, I still think you should try actual Pin Sol. It works good, the smell at least to me yummy! Lol! And sometimes I add a little bleach.
I definitely will, but please don’t add bleach to Pine Sol – it can create a toxic gas.
Never, ever, use bleach on luxury vinyl plank. Bleach is acidic and will cause damage over time.
Most of these suggestions I would never use on a solid wood floor. Murpheys oil is okay for wood followed by mop and glow spread by a flat mop.
Just a couple tips from a house cleaner. 😊
What products would you recommend for hardwood floors?
I can’t speak to hardwood floors, mine are LVP. Maybe somebody in the comments can help!
So on the reel on Facebook it showed dish Soap, Laundry Soap and something else. Was that a different test? Did it work like the Mr. Clean?
That was the first time I used the mop; I didn’t love that combo. Mr. Clean is much better in my opinion!
what mixture ratio would you recommend for the ocedar spray mop and mr clean?
I mix 1/2 cup into about 2 gallons of water.
Sadly some people just scan thru and miss a lot of your information.
You keep WARNING people to be very careful when mixing most floor cleaners with bleach!
You have told us that some products when mixed will create TOXIC FUMES that can make you seriously SICK or even poison & KILL YOU!
A basic science principle tells you that you CANNOT mix bleach with any product that contains ammonia. Read the ingredients on your products. Most floor cleaners are made up mostly of ammonia. Those two chemicals when mixed together create POISONOUS, TOXIC FUMES. What’s not clear about that?
YES! Sent me to the ER because I couldn’t breathe & having chest pain, then transported by Ambulance to another Hospital where I was admitted for 3 days and had a very LARGE BILL. $$$ to pay off! It’s NO JOKE!