Genuine hardwood floors aren’t as easy to come by these days with all of the vinyl substitutes out there. But if you do have hardwood floors, you want to make sure you’re maintaining and caring for them properly. There are quite a few guidelines as to what you should and shouldn’t do when it comes to these precious floors. So, if you want to maintain one of the best qualities of your home, keep these hardwood floor care tips in mind.
Tools Are Everything
Just as you wouldn’t use a hammer to tighten a bolt, you wouldn’t use an abrasive vacuum cleaner to clean your hardwood floors. To preserve your hardwood floors, you have to use the right tools. Using a mop paired with a machine-washable microfiber pad for dusting and cleaning will help keep the floors intact.
Electrostatic action from the microfiber attracts all the dust particles and allergens accumulating on your floors. You can also use a broom, but there isn’t much cleaning that’s achieved from sweeping, it’s only moving the dirt around. If you can, avoid using a vacuum cleaner for the stragglers to prevent small scratches and other damage that you’ll have to rectify down the road.
Don’t Use The Wrong Floor Cleaner
If you aren’t careful when it comes to hardwood floor care, you could potentially do more harm to your floors than good. Lots of DIYers will tell you to use vinegar and warm water as a cleaning solution around your home, and in most cases, this is true. But not for hardwood floors.
With hardwood floors, you have to keep in mind that you’re not cleaning the wood itself, you’re cleaning the finish that’s on the wood. Vinegar is an acid and when it comes into contact with your hardwood, it’s going to dull the finish and actually start to break down the finish altogether.
Tread Lightly
We aren’t saying that you should institute a new policy that no one can wear high-heeled shoes on your hardwood floors, but maybe you should. Hardwood floors are more sensitive than they look. Even your furniture can take a toll on the floors and leave scratches when (accidentally) moved. By being mindful of the types of things that come into contact with your hardwood floors, you can minimize the amount of damage the floors sustain over their lifetime.
Avoid products marketed as “Polish”
This hardwood floor care tip is essential to follow. Hardwood floor care takes time to execute properly, but using the wrong product or using the product wrong will make this difficult. Many people enjoy that shiny look that polishing floors can provide. And, this sealant can protect the floor from getting damaged. However, take care to read the label closely. Many of these polishes require the old layer to be removed before applying the new, otherwise, you’re simply sealing in the dust and grime from the previous later.
Bring in Professionals Yearly For a Deep Clean
The better you take care of your floors, the longer they’re going to last. But there is only so much that you can do on your own. The general cleaning and polishing can be done by you, but when it comes to doing a deep clean on your hardwood floors you should bring in professionals like JP Carpet Cleaning Expert Floor Care. A deep clean is necessary every year but is a much more time-consuming process than polishing. Trust us, you’re going to want to leave this part to the professionals.
Hardwood Floor Cleaning and Refinishing in Los Angeles
Hardwood floors are a valuable asset to any home. When it comes to hardwood floor care there are some things you won’t be able to do on your own. And when you do bring in some outside assistance, make sure you’re bringing in professionals who can handle your hardwood floors with care. That’s where we at JP Carpet Cleaning Expert Floor Care come in. We are here to help you with your hardwood floor needs, from a deep clean to a total refinishing. Call us today at 818-263-9314 to schedule a hardwood floor cleaning or get an estimate for one of our many other services.
To learn about more hardwood floor tips for 2023, check out our updated article.
