Introduction: Baseboard Cleaning Tool

I hate cleaning.  I also hate having to squat down on the floor.  Therefore, cleaning baseboards is not high on my list of fun things to do.  So, one day I decided to make a baseboard cleaning tool that would be easy to use, not require much effort, and let me do this dirty deed while standing up.  What I came up with is simple, can be made in less than 20 minutes, and is so easy to use you can clean baseboards about as fast as you can walk!

To make one of these, take a household sponge and cut about an inch off one end.  Glue this piece to the remainder of the sponge as shown in the 1st photo.  I used a silicone adhesive, and it worked like a charm.

When the glue has cured, glue the back side of this sponge assembly to a piece of scrap plywood as shown in the 2nd photo.  Again, I used a silicone adhesive.

Next, take an old metal broom or mop handle, squeeze or hammer one end flat for a couple of inches, bend it at a slight angle, and bolt this to the sponge/plywood assembly as shown in the 2nd photo.  Just drill a hole through the sponge/plywood assembly and the flattened part of the mop handle, and bolt everything together.  Tighten the bolt so that the sponge unit is fairly snug, but still can be rotated.  This rotation is important, because you will need to rotate its position, depending on whether you are cleaning baseboards on your right or your left.

The ledge formed at the top of the sponge allows you to clean the top of the baseboard and the face of the baseboard in one pass.  Simply dampen the sponge, wring it out, and clean your baseboards as fast as you walk (see photos 3 & 4).  When the sponge is dirty, rinse it, wring it out, and clean some more.

No longer will you have to get on your hands and knees to clean baseboards!  You will be the envy of all your friends, the life of the party, people will stand in line to get your autograph, puppies and kittens will love you, and fame will follow you everywhere you go!  Well, maybe that's an exageration, but at least you won't have to get down on the floor to clean baseboards ever again!

Spring Cleaning Contest

Participated in the
Spring Cleaning Contest