How to Access the Cleanliness of Your Floor
The Paper Towel Cleanliness Test: What It Tells You About Your Floors After a Deep Clean
Ever finish cleaning your floors and still find a bit of grime on a wet paper towel when you wipe across them? You’re not imagining things—it’s a real and useful trick, and we call it the paper towel cleanliness test. At One Source Cleaning, we use it ourselves to check how much deeply embedded dirt is still hanging around after a mopping session. Here’s what you should know about what it means—and why one round of mopping sometimes just isn’t enough.
What Is the Paper Towel Test?
It’s simple: wet a white paper towel and wipe it across the floor after it’s been cleaned. If the paper towel comes up gray or dirty, there’s still grime in the pores and texture of the surface. Even if the floor looks clean, you might still find residue that only shows up on a paper towel.
“I Just Had My House Cleaned, But the Paper Towel Isn’t Clean…”
Here’s a visual example of what we mean:
- Left: Before mopping
- Middle: After mopping once
- Right: After mopping twice
Even after multiple passes, you might almost pass the paper towel cleanliness test—but not completely. That’s because true paper towel perfection depends on more than just mopping.
To fully pass the test, you’d need to:
- Never wear shoes in the home
- Avoid going outside barefoot
- Have no indoor/outdoor pets
- Eliminate dust and dirt being tracked in from any source
In real life, that’s not always realistic. That’s why even after 3 or 4 mops, a faint trace may still show up. We’re always happy to mop as many times as you’d like, but keep in mind: more time = more cost. We’ll always be up front about that so you can make the call.
Why One Mopping Isn’t Always Enough
The first mop lifts most of the surface grime. But depending on how much buildup is in the floors, it might take a few more rounds to really get everything up. Think of it like washing a super dirty dish—it might take a couple scrubs to get it totally clean.
We want to give you floors that feel clean and test clean. If passing the paper towel cleanliness test is important to you, we can build in multiple mop passes to make it happen.
Bottom Line
The paper towel cleanliness test doesn’t lie—and neither do we. If you’re seeing less grime with each wipe, your floors are getting better and better. Whether you want a basic deep clean or the “no-gray-on-the-towel” level, we’re here to help. Just let us know your goals, and we’ll make sure your floors shine—no surprises, just honest cleaning.
One Source Cleaning Can’t Wait to Meet You!
For immediate assistance, call us at (970)283-7723, visit our Facebook Page, or check out our Contact Us page for more details. Need service now? Book an Appointment today.
