Real Estate Innovation

The Ways One Can Clean Hardwood Floors

Anyone who has hardwood floors in their homes will want them to look as good as the day when they first had them installed. Although you can use special cleaning products to help ensure that they retain their look, these are not only expensive, but contain chemicals that can be harmful to wooden floors also. Below we look at some other ways in which to clean hardwood floors to ensure that they retain the same look and condition.

Yet even before you actually start deciding what is the best way to clean your hardwood floors you need to find out what kind of finish it has. The finish that your floor has will in the end determine the way in fact you clean it. If yours is a new wooden floor then all you need to do is sweep it and then use a damp mop. But for those floors which have been sealed or treated with oils these need to be cleaned using a liquid or paste wax. Also, those that have not been treated or have a lacquered, varnished or shellacked finished should also be cared for in the same way as mentioned previously.

If you are looking for an effective and cheap way of cleaning your hardwood floors then you cannot go far wrong by mixing white vinegar with warm water. This particular cleaning solution not only helps to remove grease and odors from the floor but also mildew, stains (not all types) and any wax that has built up on its surface.

Even though vinegar is effective at cleaning various different kinds of hardwood floors if you have oak floors or bamboo floors there are other cleaning methods that you may want to consider using instead. Certainly, of all the different types of hardwood floors that can be installed in your home today, oak ones when finished properly are the easiest to maintain.

If you do have an oak floor and would like it to retain the same look as when it was first installed then it should be cleaned on a regular basis. Each week you should vacuum and then wipe over the surface of the floor with a damp mop using a very mild soap solution. But if your floor has been waxed then in order to help bring back the shine and remove scuff marks from the surface you will need to have it either buffed, by hand or arranging to hire a machine to do it.

If you have had bamboo floors in your home these actually need to be cared for in a different way from other wooden floors. Although you can vacuum them and then wipe over the surface with a damp mop as you would with an oak floor. But it is important that the cleaning solution you use does not contain any kinds of ingredients which have acid or are caustic or which are made using oils. So although you can use vinegar on oak and other kinds of hardwood floors it should not be used on a bamboo one.

Another kind of cleaning product which many people use and which a lot of hardwood manufacturers will recommend is Murphy’s oil soap. Of all the products now available, which can help you to maintain and care for your hardwood floors this, is one of the most effective and will help your floor to retain its shine.

Above we have looked at a number of different ways in which one can clean hardwood floors. But which method you use will depend on not just the type of hardwood floor but the way in which the floor has also been finished. Therefore, it is important that you take your time and carry out some research if you want your floor to retain the look it had when first installed.