August 15, 2008

Frankenswiffer

Mwahahahaha! I am no longer subject to the whims and vagaries of the Swiffer!

Swiffer bottle hack

When I bought one a couple of years ago, I thought to myself - this is a brilliant thing, but I'll just refill this same bottle of cleanser myself after it runs out. Only apparently the Swiffer people anticipated this, because the "bottle" is not a bottle at all - it looks like it has a screwtop, but instead it is sealed shut. Go ahead, try to uncap the one you have at home. I'll wait for you...

...Ridiculous, right?

So, inspired by this groovy instructable, I hacked my bottle to be endlessly refillable. I used the same method, but went with whatever I had around the house:

- heat up a small part of the bottom of the empty Swiffer bottle with fire (I used matches, but a lighter would be less dangerous)

- puncture a bunch of holes in the heated plastic with an awl

- cut the top of any reclosable container that has a cap (I used a milk jug top)

- glue this container top to the bottom of the Swiffer bottle so that the cap sits above the holes you made with your awl (I used scads of hot glue)

- pop off the cap, fill it up with the cleanser of your choice (I go with half-water half-vinegar), and clean to your heart's delight (with your homemade Swiffer rag of course)!

Hmm... of course, now I see that you could also follow these instructions to work with the faux Swiffer cap itself.

6 comments:

Mama Monster said...

genius!

Anonymous said...

I wonder if you're breaking any federal laws.
Also, isn't your education in literature, not engineering? Go read a book, sheesh :)

/hug

Unknown said...

Spreading this information now qualifies you to go straight to eco-Heaven.

Thank you for freeing me form the eternal bonds of BJs.

Anonymous said...

Just stopping by to let you know I added you to my blogs I love page. I'd love to feature a few of your posts sometime if you're up to it.

Stacy
www.kidsstuffworld.com

Wendy said...

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for posting this. I got a free Swiffer Wet Jet and LOVED it. But it has been sitting in my garage for over a year because I refuse to buy refills for it. And now I can use it!!

Unknown said...

sweet. this is great.

thx! ~Lisa