Clean wooden floors are amazing to see in houses. They give a classic touch to any room and can even increase the value of your house if the right hardwood flooring is used. However, they can be prone to things like warping or disfiguring if not maintained correctly. Spills and leaks have to be taken care of immediately, and you need to know the proper way to clean wooden floors.
Tip 1: Know What Kind of Finish Your Floor Has
Wooden flooring has different finishes, and therefore different ways to clean wooden floors. If you own flooring that has a urethane or polyurethane surface-sealed finish, then it makes the job so much easier. For these surfaces, the finish already provides a thin, protective plastic layer that keeps the flooring dirt-proof, water-proof and stain-proof.
All other kinds of finishes for hardwood flooring such as oil-treated, lacquered or varnished, and even untreated floors, have basically the same properties and cleaning requirements.
Tip 2: Stick to the Cleaner That Is Right for Your Floor Type
Cleaning wooden floors is easy once you know what type of finish they have. As mentioned earlier, surface sealing floors are already water and stain resistant, so it's very easy to clean them. Just sweep with a broom, and then mop with a soap and water solution.
For most other types of flooring, there is a wide range of hardwood floor cleaners available on the market. You can either spray them onto the floor, or they may come in liquid form that needs to be applied with a cloth mop.
For oil-treated floors, the best protection from stains and water is wax, which comes in paste form and liquid form.
Tip 3: Avoid Water or Moisture
At first, we may instinctively think that the best way to clean hardwood flooring is to mop it with water and soap. By no means should you do this. Avoid cleaning wooden floors with water or water-based cleaners. Wooden floors are able to absorb water into them. When the flooring absorbs water, its actually swells and expands. This is not good especially if wooden planks are close together. This leads to warping of the wood and can even crack and splinter it. At this point, you will need to completely replace the flooring, which only adds up to your costs.
As soon as you spill water on wood flooring, don't hesitate to clean it right away, before any permanent damage is done to your flooring.
Tip 4: Revitalize Your Urethane Finish with Screening
As stated earlier, surface sealing keeps hardwood flooring durable and resistant to water and stains. However, even surface sealing wears down after a certain number of years from frequent treading. What you can do is to get a professional contractor to screen your wood flooring. This means taking out the urethane finish by using abrasives, without destroying the original wood underneath. After the screening, fresh coats of urethane or polyacrylic are applied successively on the floor to give it a new and fresh coat of floor finish that can withstand more years of wear and tear.
Tip 5: Sweep and Buff Your Floor Regularly
When sweeping your floor to remove the dust and dirt, use a broom that has fine, soft bristles broom to clean your wooden floors and keep dust and dirt away that can abrade the surface of your wood flooring.
Feel free to use a vacuum cleaner to get dirt out of hard to reach places such as grooves on the wood.
Lastly, don't hesitate to buff your wood flooring every once in a while with a clean cloth or a piece of cloth at the end of a mop. This will keep the flooring shiny and looking like new.
Tip 6: Keep Wooden Floors Clean With Entryway Rugs or Mats
A simple and elegant way to keep dust and dirt out of your room is to place decorative rugs or mats on your entryways. These rugs can serve a double purpose. When you and your guests enter your room, your shoes rub against the rug, and the dust and dirt your shoes may bring from the outside cling to the rug and stay there, leaving you free to walk all over your floor. Not only do they keep the dust out, but they also prove to be very decorative and pleasing to the eye.
Knowing how to properly clean and maintain your wood flooring will go a long way for you and your house. Your family and friends will simply love the classic touch that wooden floors simply have, and you will reap the benefits of increased property values.
If you need professional help with cleaning wooden floors, as well as screening, then use handycanadian.com for references on how to do it and professional assistance through local contractors that can help you with your home project.
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