Homeowners can opt for various types of flooring these days ranging from ceramic tiles to chemical floor coatings. Out of all the options, hardwood flooring stands out because of its beauty. However, if you do not properly take care of it, its appeal quickly fades. It does not matter where you have hardwood flooring installed, from a garage to a penthouse suite. If you want the entire area to shine, you need to take all the steps you can. This includes the following great tips to help you maintain the beauty of the hardwood floor.
Add Humidifiers
If the area where you live is hot and humid, you need to seriously consider using humidifiers since they help prevent wood shrinkage. During winter, wooden floors expand. Use humidifiers to minimize gaps appearing because of shrinkage and expansion.
Take Steps To Prevent Scratching
It is very easy to scratch the hardwood floors. For instance, when you wear spike heels, the floor can so easily be damaged and dents quickly appear. Similarly, when there are pets in the home, their nails need to be kept trimmed. Make sure that their paws are clean so that stains and scratches are easily avoided.
Avoid Chemical Liquid Cleaners
Always avoid vinyl cleaning products, tile cleaning products, and steam mops when you clean hardwood floors. This is because paste wax, citrus, silicon, products with lemon and oil soaps dull the floor’s finish and quickly damage it. Never use such products on a floor made out of wood. Instead, use a microfiber cloth or mop to dust the area every day. Microfiber cleaning pads should be preferred because they take advantage of static electricity in order to trap dust, dirt, and allergens.
Speaking about dusting, make it a habit to vacuum the wooden floor once per week. This helps you to remove dirt. Make sure you are particularly careful with corners and gaps that might exist between hardwood pieces. Also, the wheels of the vacuum should never damage the surface when used.
Wipe Spills As Soon As Possible
Every single spill needs to be cleaned as soon as possible. This includes water and tea. Hopefully, you are used to cleaning the house better than ever, especially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Use the same care but do it more often than your instincts tell you. Spills are particularly damaging because they can leave stain marks when they linger for so long.
Polish The Floor When Needed
Polishing is very important for hardwood floors since it refreshes and renews the finish. You have to take this action every few months so that microscopic scratches can be filled. Also, the protective surface is evened out so it looks better.
Fortunately, not much effort is needed for polishing. Just use buffing, not acrylic waxes. This is because wax makes the wooden floor slippery and creates a dull appearance.
Use Ice To Remove Sticky Items
When sticky items reach the wooden floor, the worst thing you could do is to scratch them out. This includes items like wax and chewing gum. The best thing to do is to use ice so that these substances are hardened. Then, take a plastic scraper and gently scrape them away. While doing so, be careful to not apply too much strength or you might end up scratching the wood.
Final Thoughts
Hardwood flooring is always beautiful and enhances the value of the home. It is durable and beautiful. However, in order to keep the area you walk on look beautiful, you need to be cautious. Even something as simple as the above-mentioned heels can lead to problems. The more time passes, the easier it is for hardwood flooring to look dull.
