How To Clean Hardwood Floors

Cleaning Your Home’s Hardwood Floor

Whether you clean your house on your own or hire house cleaning services to give you a helping hand, it is important for you to understand how to clean your hardwood flooring properly.  Hardwood floors can be a beautiful addition to your house, but they require proper care for long lasting beauty.  In order to keep the shine and newness of your hardwood floors read on for some helpful tips!

Hardwood floors are prone to form scratch marks from small particles such as dirk and even dust.  A great investment for everyday hardwood floor cleaning is a proper broom.  It is best to clean your hardwood floors each day to prevent buildup of dirt and dust.  However if that may be too great of a commitment for some, try to have yourself or house cleaning services to help sweep every two days or so.  Another possible investment for people who aren’t able to sweep their floors daily is rugs or mats.  Rugs and mats are able to catch the dust and dirt from everyday activity, as well as provide a barrier from possible scratches or over use.  For areas that are frequently used, such as entry way and hallways, it is a great idea to invest in a mat. 

Cater Your Cleaning

Before you clean your floors, determine what kind of finish the wood has.  The easiest type of floors to clean are surface-sealed hardwood floors.  They are known to be water resistant as well as stain resistant.  This means all you have to do is sweep and mop your floors.  The next most common type of hardwood floors are oil treated floors.  These floors require more attention and care.  They require protection from occasional waxing or liquid treatment.  Surface finished floors such as varnishes and lacquers are not completely resistant to water and moisture.  To ensure the quality and life of these floors it is best treat them the same way as you would oil treated floors. 

Tips and Tricks

One important tip when it comes to your hardwood floors is to never use waxes, oils, any type of furniture spray, abrasive cleaners, ammonia, bleach.  It is best to use pH neutral soap or a specific hardwood cleaning product that is best for your type of hardwood floor.  Using only water to “clean” your hardwood floors can result in dull looking finish.  When mopping it is best to have a mop that is moist as opposed to dripping in water, even if you have a surface-sealed floor that is water resistant.  If you notice scuff marks on your new hardwood floors, no worries!  A simple combination of baking soda and a tiny bit of water will easily take care of that.  Grease and food stains can be taken care of with certain commercial cleaners.  Also keep in mind that it is normal for your hardwood floors to start looking dull after 5-7 years.  If it’s been around 5 years, consider recoating your hardwood floors to give them an instant boost in appearance.