Presenter Vernon Kay reveals the mopping tip he swears by for pristine floors

The unlikely cleaning sensation shares his mopping hack from his caretaker days

We love a cleaning tip, however, the latest hack hitting our Instagram feed has come from an unusual source - Vernon Kay. The presenter has become an unlikely cleaning sensation with his figure of 8 mopping technique.

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According to the star, many of us have been mopping our floors all wrong, and should instead be opting for a 'figure of 8' method. Vernon Kay picked up the technique from his days as a caretaker for Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council. 

He revealed his cleaning expertise while staring on I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here earlier this year. He shared the skill with fellow contestant Jordan North and recently posted the method in a video on his Instagram. 

'Life 101: Ever since @imacelebrity several people have mentioned they now mop the floor using the “figure of 8” ♾ !!,' wrote Vernon. 'Well, here goes, the best way to mop a floor... (Courtesy of Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council!). You’re welcome...😂😂 .'

'Be careful when mixing cleaning products. I only use very small capful of bleach and washing up liquid in safe quantities!' he warned fans.

How to do the figure of 8 mopping technique

In the video, he described the perfect way to get your floor sparkling.

'Step 1, you've got to prepare your bucket, add some hot water and your favourite floor cleaner,' he explained. 

cleaning material with wooden table and modern mop and bucket

(Image credit: Future PLC/Polly Eltes)

'Step 2 prepare your mop, once you’ve got it nice and wet you give it a good old wringing out and then throw it on the floor making sure that all the tentacles are all spread out,' he continues.

'Step 3, the most important step of all, the figure of 8! Before you start mopping you need to prepare a frame for the area in which you’re going to mop.'

'The figure of 8 when on its side has two rounded edges, so that area doesn’t get missed, we create a frame around the figure of 8 so no area is left untouched! There we go – once you start mopping the head of the mop is scooping up all the hard particles and keeping the dirt at the front of the mop, and there you have it!'

Related: Lynsey Crombie share her genius hack to dry clothes faster in winter

This cleaning tip even came with a bonus extra. We're eternally grateful to Vernon Kay for introducing us to the term mop 'tentacle'!  Will you be trying the figure of 8 mopping method at home?

Rebecca Knight
Deputy Editor, Digital

Rebecca Knight has been the Deputy Editor on the Ideal Home Website since 2022. She graduated with a Masters degree in magazine journalism from City, University of London in 2018, before starting her journalism career as a staff writer on women's weekly magazines. She fell into the world of homes and interiors after joining the Ideal Home website team in 2019 as a Digital Writer. In 2020 she moved into position of Homes News Editor working across Homes & Gardens, LivingEtc, Real Homes, Gardeningetc and Ideal Home covering everything from the latest viral cleaning hack to the next big interior trend.