Hardwood flooring looks amazing, there’s no question about it. It can change your space from dull and bland and bring so much warmth and coziness to a room or an entire home. But when it comes to cleaning hardwood floors, you can make a mess in no time.
They can also last decades, with proper care. The downside is that they need to be handled with care, especially if you’re a cleaning enthusiast. Let’s go over some tips for cleaning your hardwood floors the right way.
Clean your hardwood floors with a pro dry mop
Let’s start with the basics of cleaning: sweeping your floor.
According to scientific research, moisture plus wood equals problems (usually). If you use a regular mop with a bucket of water, and it gets between the boards, you are risking ruining your floor. Steam mops are great, but not for hardwood floors.
Therefore, dry mops are a good idea for this type of flooring. Most dry mops are made of microfiber, which absorbs germs and liquids more efficiently than regular cotton mops. They might be a bit more expensive than regular cotton mops, but they are still affordable. You can find multiple options under 30$.
Vacuum your hardwood floors regularly
Vacuuming is a great habit that will help to maintain your floors but, just like everything else, make sure you are aware of ground rules in order to protect your rooms and get the best out of this process.
For hardwood floors, you need to remove your vacuum roller brush before you start cleaning because it can lead to scratches.
Use wood floor cleaner
Remember that hardwood comes is an organic material. Unlike other types of flooring, it requires special care to maintain the right levels of humidity, resistance and so on, and in places with high humidity, such as Dallas, this is already a problem. In this case, it’s best to acquire a product that it’s been designed for hardwood floors.
Remember to control how the amount of liquid you’re using. It’s easier to do so using a spray in each section. Pair that with a microfiber mop and you’ll get your floors to shine!
Avoid wax
This is vital. Try not to over-wax because it can be damaging to your hardwood floors. Also, make sure to check that any cleaners or polishes you use do not contain wax.
Hardwood is an organic material and as such, it needs to maintain certain properties, such as internal temperature and humidity, in order to function properly, i.e., not to rot, lose resistance, become vulnerable to wood parasites, etc.
Presence of wax is another one of these properties, and therefore you need to keep it within a safe range, so it doesn’t get too dry or too greasy. Most wood floors need rewaxing only once or twice a year. Make sure you know the exact type of hardwood floor because that may affect the frequency of waxing.
Seal your hardwood floors properly
You should seal/finish hardwood floors. Although they are extremely resistant, for obvious reasons they are not meant to be walked on per se or being exposed to liquids. In order to function as flooring, they need to be sealed against constant traffic and liquids.
Remember that despite them being sealed, hardwood floors might not be the best option for your bathroom and kitchen, because they will be constantly exposed to moisture and spills, even possible seepages.
As with the rest of products, make sure you’re getting a high-quality sealant that is made especially for hardwood. Sealants can be oil based or water based. Water-based sealants finish dry quicker and don’t yellow over time, but they don’t last as long as oil-based sealants.
You will probably need to re-seal your hardwood floors every 5 years, depending on the type and brand of sealant.
Conclusion
If you’ve recently bought a house with hardwood floors, or if you managed to install brand new ones, you may be a little unsure of how to proceed. The number one priority is to keep your floors dry and to maintain them regularly with high-quality products.
Remember to revisit this article any time to make sure you’re ready before you start cleaning your hardwood floors.
And if you’re still unsure that you’ll do a great job, you can always hire a professional service and they will take care of everything. What are your thoughts on hardwood floors? Are they too hard to maintain? Let us know in the comm