Although I’ve always had a good relationship with my maids, I find that keeping a maid is troubling in many ways. Either the work is shoddy or the personality of the maid is not in harmony with that of the employer. Most maids do fantastic work on the first day and, gradually, the quality of work goes down.
It is natural. Housework like sweeping, mopping, washing dishes and clothes is exhausting, whatever anyone may say to the contrary. Here, where I stay in Pune, the maids walk from where they live, a good half hour, at least, one way, to the houses in which they work. To make a living they have to work in several houses. It is just about impossible for them to do the work decently. And I hate to express disapproval to them as I understand how terrible it is to slog like this for a living.
But doing our own housework in many places in India can be time consuming and tiring. The usual “jhadu”, “pocha” can take up a lot of time and leave one exhausted. Previously, I had a microfiber flat mop but it got lost in transit when we shifted(thanks to Adhunik Packers and Movers). I bought a flat mop of the kind I saw being used in Reliance and offices and such places. It is ok but I used to end up using the jhadu after using it.
So, finally, I chose the Scotch-Brite® Flat Mop. It has made cleaning so much easier. The mop consists of a height adjustable handle which can be increased or decreased as required. The mop part is made of cloth treated with “Scotchgard(TM) which not only enhances water absorption but also prevents dirt and dust from seeping into cloth.” The handle is light. So as you “sweep” with it(push it around), it picks up all the dirt and the floor feels clean to the naked soles of the feet. After this “dry” cleaning, you can sprinkle water on the floor and push your mop around on it and you will have mopped the floor. I spilled a good amount of water to test it and it sucked up all the liquid and gave the floor a good cleaning. The “360 degree rotating head that goes under furniture easily, also cleans your ceilings and fans” and walls. So it has many advantages. After you finish the dry sweeping, there is a scraper which is used to scrape the dust off the mop. It can be clipped onto the handle.
Website https://scotch-brite.co.in/wps/portal/3M/en_IN/Scotch-BriteBrand-APAC/Scotch-Brite/Products/Product-Catalog/~/Scotch-Brite-Flat-Mop?N=4337+3294467376+3294529200&rt=rud
You can buy it on line after seeing the prices on various sites. I bought it at Reliance but it seems to be cheaper on pepperfry.