Clean Step Mat - "Does it Work?" - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

If your doormat isn't keeping messy foot tracks and paw prints off your floors, then you may want to try the Clean Step Mat.  According to the box, you "Just step to clean..."

It's a super absorbent doormat constructed of a cotton and microfiber blend with a non-slip backing.  It claims that it will instantly absorb the mess you're carrying on the bottom of your shoe by simply stepping on the mat.  No shuffling or scrubbing needed here.   The mat measures 18"x28".

Before use though, a paper insert says it needs a wash to activate the mat!  Well, a cold water bath and low heat tumble without using detergent or fabric softener is more like it.  With the Clean Step Mat washed and dried, I set it up outside and get ready to make a mess for my shoes. 

I pour some water on the ground and make some mud.  I plan to use one shoe to step in the water and the other in the mud.  Then, I'll walk across the mat and onto white sheets of paper to see if the mat cleans the mess off my shoe.

I'm wearing a pair of shoes with a square groove pattern with plenty of room for mud.  I step in the water then I move to the mat, walking with normal pressure.  The paper should be dry when I step on it if the mat works.  Well, I see a wet shoe pattern on the paper, so no success here.

I step in the mud with my other shoe, forcing the dirt into the grooves on my shoes.  I walk on the Clean Step Mat, again applying normal pressure.  I quickly notice I've left a lot of mud on the mat.  But as I step on the clean paper I can see there's plenty left to leave a muddy footprint.  I try again, and I still make mud prints.

The stepping action alone does not allow the Clean Step to clear the water or mud from my shoes.  If I rub my shoes it works pretty well, but that's not what the product promises.  Oh and this mat has a tag that says it's flammable.

So with dirty shoes, the Clean Step Mat gets a dirty NO for this week's "Does it Work?" test.  The Clean Step Mat ran us about $20 at a local business.

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