Hardwood floor has the best floor texture that gives your house a good look. It’s shiny and smooth nature makes it one of the toughest types of floors to maintain. Hardwood floors are prone to scratches if not well attended to. In this article, we will cover all there is to know about maintaining and cleaning hardwood floors.
Basic cleaning
When it comes to cleaning hardwood floors, there are guidelines that should be followed. First, you should dust off the floor and ensure that you use a well-treated mop with dusting agents. These agents pick up pet hair, dust and dirt. Vacuuming weekly helps keep the floor clean however caution should be practiced by using a vacuum cleaner with a floor brush attachment. The main concern is scratching the floor, therefore, vacuum cleaners with a beater bar attachments should be avoided at all cost.
Cases of deep cleaning
Deep cleaning should be considered every now and then since oil, grime and dirt may build up over time. Deep cleaning requires the use of a slightly damp cloth soaked in a saturated solution of wood cleaning product. Care should be taken at this point because leaving the floor with standing water ends up being damaged.
Maintenance
To maintain the good look in hardwood floors it is always good to position mats both outside and inside exterior doors. This helps solve the problem of tracked-in dirt and saves you the trouble of having to clean the floor all the time. You may also want to set a place for boot removal during the muddy and winter days. Hardwood floors have a smooth texture that can be ruined by furniture scratches. You should ensure that you put protectors especially in areas that the furniture rests.
Mark or stain removal
Stain or mark removal should go hand in hand with the type of floor finish. There are two types of finishes, hard and soft. For the soft finish, the stain usually penetrates the wood while for hard finish the stain remains on the surface. To remove stains on a hard finish, it is recommended that one use a soft and clean piece of cloth. The use of harsh chemicals, sandpaper and steel wool is strictly prohibited due to the fact that these methods destroy the finish. Below are some of the common stains and marks and how to get rid of them;
- Pet stains– apply bleach or vinegar and leave it to soak for about an hour then rinse with a damp cloth.
- White stains or water marks– Rubbing the spot with floor wax should help remove the stain and if not, one can lightly sand the floor and then clean with odorless mineral spirit.
- Heel marks- it is advisable to use fine steel wool in rubbing the floor wax.
