Making my Swiffer WetJet more cost effective

Recently I scored a great deal on a Swiffer WetJet Starter Pack at Albertsons. It normally sells for $25 but was marked down to $19.99. I had a $5.00 off coupon and they were having a promotion where you got $5.00 towards your next purchase when you bought a Swiffer. So all in all I paid $10.00. Score!

But then I realized that the starter pack only comes with two pads and a small bottle of cleaner. Of course the replacements for these are pretty spendy and would need to be purchased on a fairly regular basis. I saw some Albertsons brand replacement pads that were considerably cheaper but I just knew there had to be a better way.

So I got home and put my mop together and realized that anything that would stick to the velcro on the bottom would make an acceptable replacement. Then I remembered that I had a handful of Sham Wow cloths that hadn't been put to use. So I took a small one, measured it against the mop and after some cutting was able to get 3 cleaning pads out of it.

I stuck one to the bottom to test it out and it held strong. I mopped my kitchen floor to test it out and it not only continued to stick but it did a great job cleaning the floor. The best part is that when I was done I peeled it off and threw it in the washing machine. Hello reusable pads!

Now onto the tiny rip-off cleaning bottle. Thanks to this article on eHow I was easily able to refill my cleaning solution bottle (despite the fact the label says not to). Trust me, this took such little time and is going to cost you pennies!

Here's what you need:

- Your empty Swiffer bottle, some Distilled White Vinegar, a bowl, water and some measuring utensils (essential oil if you prefer a certain smell, but totally optional)

Let's get to work:
1. First you have to loosen the cap so boil some water and pour it into a bowl. Then hold the cap of the bottle in the hot water for about a minute. Using a towel for grip, you should be able to twist it right off.

2. Now to add new cleaning solution. Feel free to fill with your favorite floor cleaning solution. If you are looking for something natural and cheap, you can just use vinegar and water. This bottle holds a little over 2 cups so you'll want to mix 2 Tbsp of Distilled White Vinegar with 2 cups of water. Then pour it straight into the bottle.

3. At this point I added in a few drops of Orange essential oil but that is optional. After that I screwed on the cap and that was that.

There you have it, a simple way to save some money when cleaning your home!