How To Clean Hardwood Floors To Keep Them Beautiful

Home floor cleaning is probably on your mind if you've recently moved into a new home with hardwood floors, or renovated your existing home's floors. Unlike carpeting, which is simple to clean and maintain, hardwood floors do require a bit more care. Fortunately, once you learn how to properly maintain your hardwood floors you will be able to look forward to years of easy care with stunning results.

The first thing you will need to do before cleaning is to figure out what kind of floor you have. If you are lucky to have a new sealed floor, it is probably a surface sealed floor which requires relatively little care. If your floor is older, it is probably a penetrating seal treated floor. This type of floor needs more involved care with waxes and oils.

For cleaning hardwood floors, in the case of a surface sealed floor, you merely need to mop using a product recommended by your flooring manufacturer. Products like Oil Soap solution (which don't generally contain oil) are usually safe. A damp mop and a little soap are often also safe for this type of floor. Make sure to dry the floor completely when you're done, since sitting water can damage a surface sealed floor.

If you have a penetrating seal treated floor, you will not be able to mop with water-based products. Instead, for routine cleanings, you can simply sweep or vacuum your floor. Every once in a while, for a deeper cleaning, you will need to strip the old wax coating and apply a new one. You can do this once or twice a year, if you like.

Use a stripper, and follow the manufacturer's directions. Allow the hardwood floor to dry and try to ensure proper ventilation. Then purchase a product for waxing your floor that is approved by your floor manufacturer. Follow directions and apply one or two coats, or as many as desired.

The final - and most important - step is applying a hardwood floor buffer. This process is necessary to allow the wax to properly sink in and seal the floor, as well as to achieve a beautiful shine. Most people opt to rent or purchase a hardwood floor buffer machine, since it makes the job much easier. You may be interested in knowing that by purchasing the hardwood floor buffer machine, it will pay for itself after just three to four cleanings!

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