Wooden floors are a noteworthy investment and yet they take such a beating. We walk all over them, track soil onto them, and still expect them to gleam by the day’s end.
Follow our simple steps to change your floors from dull and grimy to gleaming, perfect and clean!
Determine the finish of you hardwood floors
Before you seize a bucket of water and a mop, it’s ideal to discover how your hardwood floor is sealed…
Surface-sealed floors:
Many new wood floors are fixed with urethane, polyurethane or polyacrylic. Surface-fixed floors are stain- and water-harm resistant and least demanding to clean: simply sweep, mop and you’re finished!
Penetrating seal-treated and oil-treated floors:
An infiltrating seal or oil completion will soak into the wood grain and solidify. This kind of floor must be pampered and secured with fluid or paste wax.
Lacquered, varnished, shellacked or untreated floors:
Although technically surface completion, lacquers, varnishes, and shellacs are not as resistant to dampness, spills and wear as alternate sealants referenced. Treat floors with these completions with fluid or paste wax.
Do’s and do not’s for surface-sealed floors
- Do not utilize soaps, waxes or polishes: Soaps leave the residue. Wax creates unnecessary buildup on the surface and makes the floor slippery. Polishes, contrary to expectation, will dull the finish.
- Do not wet mop wood flooring: Damp is good. Dripping wet is bad. If you can ring out the mop or pad you’re working with too much water. Excess water will lead to damage to the floor and even the subfloor.
- Do use a soft-bristle broom: Soft bristles are sufficiently enough on the hardwood finish. An angled broom helps you to get into corners and under cabinets. You don’t want dinge to build up at the edges and in the nooks of your room.
- Do use a floor-cleaning product according to instruction: Read and save the manufacturer’s care and maintenance instructions. And be sure to keep the company’s contact information for future reference.
Routine Cleaning
In high-traffic areas, similar to the lounge area and kitchen, you should clear every day if possible and mop your hardwood floors once or twice a week. Mop less-dealt areas once a month or once a season.
Handling Simple Problems:
Does Scratch or scrape mark get you down?
A combo of baking soda and olive oil can help reduce and expel scratches from wood. Vacuum your floor completely, and then apply baking soda moistened with several drops of olive oil to damaged areas.
Hairline cracks in the floor?
Don’t panic and endeavor to fill them. Dry heat amid the winter months causes wood floors to shrink and crack. Cracks should close up amid the summer.
The completion looks dull?
Sand the floor gently and re-coat with an extra layer or two. Re-coating is vital about each five to seven years.
Do’s and do not’s for seal-treated, oil-treated, shellacked, varnished, lacquered or untreated floors…
Do use stripper to evacuate old wax buildup: Pick an item the floor manufacturer recommends, a commercial product from the hardware shop or mineral spirits.
Do use fluid wax designed for wood floors or paste wax: Fluid wax is less demanding to apply but leaves a thinner coat than paste wax.
Don’t use acrylic or water-based waxes, furniture waxes or one-step waxes: Acrylic and water-based waxes can turn floors white, furniture wax creates a slick surface and one-step waxes can trap dirt.
Routine Cleaning
Try not to wipe waxed floors. Simply vacuum and sweep the surface normal. Once or twice a year, strip the old wax and apply a fresh new coat.
Waxing technique:
Vacuum the floor to evacuate the dust: Strip the old wax with a floo stripper or mineral spirits. Keep the area carefully ventilated as you work and as the floor dries. Whether you use paste wax or liquid wax is a matter of personal taste; there’s a difference in the look of each. Paste wax goes on thicker and you get a faster build, but applying it takes longer. Liquid wax goes on quicker and smoother but also thinner.
Buffing:
Utilize a cloth or, to make the activity simpler, lease a buffing machine. Remember to always buff in the direction of the wood grain.
Handling simple problems
White water spots damaging your floor’s completion? Include few mineral spirits to an extra-fine steel wool pad and delicately rub the area in a circular motion. Keep the area all around ventilated as you work.
Got heel marks that won’t wipe off? Include a small amount of wax to an additional fine steel fleece pad and delicately rub the area in a circular motion.
Food stains causing you inconvenience?
Wipe the surface with a damp cloth, rub dry and wax. While evacuating any stain (from wood or rug), always work from the outside edge in toward the middle.