With every season comes new trials and tribulations when it comes to the maintenance of hardwood floors. Challenges such as extreme temperatures, snow, ice, rain, dirt, and leaves can cause damage to your floors, particularly if they are neglected over a long period of time. It is extremely important to keep up with the maintenance of your hardwood floors. Regardless of the type of wood floors you have in your home, the upkeep routine should generally be the same. The regime is not too complicated, but will still require you to put in some time and effort. Here’s some information on how to clean and maintain hardwood floors.
Cleaning Hardwood Floors
Cleaning your hardwood floors on a routine is essential to the longevity of these surfaces. Here are some hardwood floor cleaning tips:
Vacuum Regularly
The buildup of dirt and grime can be a huge obstacle to maintaining clean hardwood floors. Thus, it’s extremely important to clean regularly. In addition to looking filthy, debris and dirt have the potential the damage your floors by sticking to the bottom of your shoe and scratching the surface. Try to vacuum weekly to pick up any particles that are tough to get just by sweeping. The vacuum cleaner’s strong suction will help you capture dust and debris in cracks and crevices, as well as in between planks. To avoid scratching, turn on the hard floor setting to turn off the brush roll or beater bar. Additionally, consider using a flat attachment to prevent bristles from damaging the floor. If you’re not interested in vacuuming on your own, consider investing in a Roomba.
Sweep or Dust Daily
Even if you don’t wear shoes around the house, dust forms everywhere, settling into the grain and between floorboards. If you have pets that shed, it could also create a hygiene issue. Try to sweep your floors daily if you can. Afterward, use a dry or dust mop, or even a dry microfibre mop or cloth, to gather any dust or dirt that remains. If you don’t have time to sweep the whole house daily, at least try to get entryways or hallways, the areas that gather the most dust, as often as you can.
Use Wood Floor Cleaner
Hardwood floor cleaners will allow you to get a deeper wash, leaving your floors more polished and shiny. When it comes to choosing a cleaner, floors with different finishes require different treatments. You should ask your finish and floor manufacturer for recommendations on products. However, there are some cleaning products you’ll want to rule out right away. For example, harsh chemical products will create hazing when applied to the hazing, which can build up over time and look very unflattering. If you’ve made this mistake, remove the product using a damp microfibre cloth dipped in warm water. Also, don’t use any cleaners that promise to revitalize, polish, rejuvenate, or shine the floor. This means that they’re putting a supplemental product on the surface that will make it aesthetically pleasing for a brief amount of time, but it’s not designed to last.
Maintaining Hardwood Floors
Knowing how to clean hardwood floors isn’t the only aspect to consider when it comes to keeping your floors in pristine condition. Here are some hardwood floor maintenance tips:
Identify the Warning Signs
The environment surrounding your floor is a huge factor when it comes to their care and durability. As wood reacts dramatically to humidity and temperature, understanding these elements, even if they’re not in your control, is important. Make sure you’re aware of red flags. If there’s too much moisture, the wood will cup. Ergo, get rid of the source of the water to prevent this from happening. Extremely dry conditions can cause gaps, cracks, and splits in the floor. Use a humidifier to add some moisture to the air, allowing your floor to settle down again.
Re-Finish Every 3 to 5 Years
Your wood floors will begin looking a bit dull over time. When this happens, you can renew them by applying a fresh coat of wood floor finish. This will increase the longevity of the floor, adding another layer of protection every time it’s necessary. Which finish you choose depends on the needs and specifications of your floors. Furthermore, how often you’ll need to do this is dependent on your lifestyle, as well as your family’s.
Use Furniture Pads
Preventing scratches is one of the toughest challenges when it comes to maintaining wood floors. Though some scratches are inevitable, others are certainly avoidable. One of the best ways to maintain your wood floors and prevent this issue is to add furniture pads to the legs of your couches, tables, and chairs.
Touch up Surface Scratches
If you do happen to accidentally scratch your floors, fixing them is a relativity easy task. Using a stain maker from a wood furniture touch-up kit to get rid of these imperfections. Area rugs or doormats could also be another effective method for covering up scratches, or protecting your floor from more, while also adding personality to your space.
Engineered Hardwood Care and Maintenance
Engineered hardwood flooring consists of a solid wood top layer, also known as a “wear” layer, and a multi-layered plywood core. They require more maintenance than solid hardwood flooring, as the veneer layer will erode if it is sanded and refinished too many times. Thus, there is a lot of effort that goes into maintaining the polish and shine of engineered wood. If you have a home with pets and/or small children, you might want to consider another option unless you can maintain it on a regular basis.
Looking for a hardwood floor cleaner or other services in Canada? Search no further than Capital Hardwood Flooring. We offer a variety of top-quality flooring products and services that will meet your design requirements, such as installation, bespoke, staining, and finishing. If you’re interested in our services, contact us at 416-536-2200 or visit our office at 1015 Dupont Street Toronto ON M6H 1Z7.