My experiment found which type of bathroom floor is easiest to clean – and the right technique killed 94% of germs

BATHROOMS have the filthiest floors of any room in any house, according to research.

The creator of the study revealed the most effective cleaning techniques to make the space hygienic.

Paul Hambidge is the managing director of a UK-based flooring company Floors direct from the factory.

They teamed up with microbiology experts at BioLabTests to analyze nearly 100 swabs taken from home floors.

At least 933 UFCs [colony-forming units] of bacteria were found on the bathroom floor.

Meanwhile, on average, all other rooms had less than 650 CFU.

The alarming findings came despite bathrooms being the “easiest” place to clean in the home.

SMART CLEANING

During the study, researchers looked for the most effective way to reduce germs on bathroom floors.

It has been revealed that vacuuming can reduce bacteria by 99%, steaming by up to 97% and scrubbing by up to 76%.

Although white vinegar and water are often popular among those who want to avoid using harsh chemicals, they only reduced bacteria by 71%.

Baby wipes were shown to be the least effective, as they only reduced 13% of bacteria on the bathroom floor.

“Not all cleaning techniques are created equal when it comes to thoroughly cleaning a bathroom floor,” Hambidge told The US Sun.

“The composition of your floor also makes a big difference in the results.

“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 most effective here.

“This technique eliminated 94% of the germs found on vinyl bathroom floors in our experiment.

“Meanwhile, bathrooms with LVT [luxury vinyl tiles] are better with a vacuum cleaner.

“This reduced germs by 99%, which will be a relief for homeowners looking for a no-scrub cleaning solution for their bathrooms.”

Cleaning tips and tricks

Here are some tips to help you with your next home cleaning:

The findings come after a TikToker went viral for sharing a bathroom cleaning hack.

Hani (@hanicleanwithme) used a broom to mop the floor of his Malaysian home, before washing the dirt down two drains.

She said its floor is “slightly sloped” to facilitate the flow of water and that the country’s hot climate means it dries quickly.

She confessed to being surprised that drains on bathroom floors are not common in other countries.

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