Taking care of your hardwood floor at a time can be tough considering the nature of that floor. Since the hardwood floor is entirely made of wood only, it is prone to a lot of scratches, decays, dents and the list is endless. Unlike the usual tile floors, the hardwood floor has its distinctive way of dealing with it when it comes to cleaning. This article is meant to educate on the easy steps you can take.
Well, if you have kids around, you will be required to clean the floor so many times. If there are some pets which live inside the house, then it can be worse. The spills, dirt, furs, you name them. All of this is going to deteriorate the cosmetics of the floor to look if there is no sufficient cleaning which is carried out. In this article, we will elaborate more on how you are going to clean and maintain the floor and the appropriate products to use so that the floor cleaning will be much less suffering than it used to be.
Always sweep the floor
More often than not you should sweep the floor. If you are planning to sweep the hardwood floor, then you should use the soft and fine bristle broom. In the modern day market, you are going to find some microfiber based sweeper. Just as the name is implying. The microfiber is made from tiny fibers which are going to avoid scratches as you sweep the floor.
Always get rid of water
As in nature, water remains the worst enemy of wood. Water decays wood easily. With this in mind, you should always get rid of water before it steps to wood grain or seam. A soft towel is going to come in handy in the case, and immediately you wipe it clean. Check to ensure the surface is dry. If your floor is coated with polyurethane then you should never use a wet mop, instead, use damp mop while cleaning. The rule of thumb is clear that there is no water which drips from the mop, and then this one will be good to go
Use the carpet runners with anti-skid pads
The carpet runners who have the anti-skid pads are one of the efficient ways to prevent the scratches in some high traffic areas. Believe me, if you recently installed the hardwood floor in your house then be quick enough to lay down the carpet before it experiences excessive damages. However, if you take this step, you should make sure you vacuum the carpets and rugs on a regular basis so as to ensure whatever the amount of dirt which has accumulated on the carpet is not aoina to fall throuah the weave. When this happens. The dirt, typically abrasive will scratch the floor slowly. You should ensure you are not wearing steel -plated heels or the high heel if you do not want the floor to get scratched. Please avoid this at all cost.
Never drag any furniture on top of the surface
This has been the main cause of scratches since the weight of the furniture will lead to enough force of scratching the hardwood floor deeply. If there is a need of moving the furniture’s, then you should use a gild furniture pad at the bottom of the furniture. This is going to aid in sliding across the floor surface without making scratches. Usually, most house owners install hardwood floors from living room till the way back. If you are one of such owners, then you should consider installing floor mats at the main entrance. Well, you know the reasons behind this. As I said earlier, the main cause of scratches on the floor is furniture. However, sometimes furniture may skid while someone is sitting on it. If this is the case, then you should use a Furniture pad installed at the feet of sofa or table. This is going to reduce the amount of scratch.
Follow Recommendations of Manufacturer
This is because the hardwood floor is made up from some pieces of wood and these species have specific chemicals which may or may not be used. Keep in mind that the manufacturer or your installer knows better than you.
With these tips, it is clear that you should follow the following four steps in cleaning your hardwood floor:
- Clear the floor area of the furniture which is easy to move
- Dry -mop or even vacuum the floor; this is what will get rid of surface debris or dirt.
- Mop the floor, go with grains. If the floor is Polyurethane, dampen the mopper with water and some few drops of dishwashing liquid
- Buff the floor with cloth
Conclusion
This is it. The above tips on cleaning and taking care of your hardwood floor are paramount. It may be as simple as you see, but if you do not practice it, then your hard floor may lose the aesthetic look in no time. Remember, the beautiful floor is always an asset to any home. It brings style and warmth to your house. So you should always make it gorgeous by keeping it clean 24/7 all year round.
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