Hardwood floor is one of the best investments you can take for your property. Maintaining it helps you preserve this costly investment. When installing a new wood floor, sanding, removing carpet and sealing, cleaning is important.
The method and products used are key and they may damage or help clean and maintain your wood floor for decades. Cleaning practice for solid or engineered wood floor may either include commercial or homemade products. Other daily activities like pet urine, water spill, construction dust, and normal wear and tear may call for hardwood cleaning.
How to Clean Hardwood Floor
Homeowners have joined the trend of do-it-yourself (DIYs) since its less expensive. Cleaning the hardwood floor requires preparations to do it easily and extremely fast.
There are many available options inside your kitchen that you can use to maintain and clean your flooring. Here are some steps to consider before actual cleaning:
Floor Preventive Measures
Carefully remove furniture from the room to effectively clean all areas. Avoid pulling or pushing furniture they may destroy your hard floor furnish. Consider cleaning form one corner to the other side.
Sweeping, Dusting and Vacuuming
Consider moving furniture to one corner and sweep from the other side. Using disposable dust cloth or a soft microfiber is a good choice to remove dirt and particles that can ruin your floor furnish. Once you have swept your floor, consider occasional vacuuming to remove finner dust that might accumulate with time.
Use a vacuum cleaner with special floor accessories or use an alternative of an electric broom. Remember to vacuum even inside crevices in your room corners. A hose attachment is a good recommendation to trap the dirt.
Mopping
Regular dust mop for your hardwood floor will do wonders. For quick clean consider using a mop with dusting agents to pick dirt, dust and pet hair that may otherwise scratch your floor. However, this depends on the traffic your floor receives.
Mops with microfiber heads are good for your hardwood floor. Follow the below steps on how to clean the wood floor naturally.
How do you Clean Wood Floor Naturally?
When considering homemade cleaning remedy, don’t overlook weekly or bi-weekly vacuuming. The best choice is a vacuum with a floor brush attachment. This vacuum cannot scratch your hardwood floor finish. Learning how to use homemade cleaners can save you money as well as provide a safe eco-friendly cleaning method for your hardwood floor.
Vinegar
- Vinegar and Water
Steps
- Measure half a cup of white vinegar
- Pour the vinegar measured in a gallon of Luke warm water.
- Consider adding essential oils to add a nice fragrance to your homemade solution. Add a few drops essential oil of your desired fragrance into your cleaning solution. Essential oils have varieties of fragrances.
2. Vinegar and vegetable oil
Steps
- If you have a concern using water, you can opt for Vinegar and vegetable oil.
- Mix vinegar and vegetable oil.
- Put in your spray bottle to apply on your hardwood floor
- Clean the areas applied with a soft cloth
- Repeat until you are through with all wood flooring area.
Plant-based Liquid Soap
Steps
- Measure 2 cups of water and warm.
- Add 1/2 cup of white vinegar.
- Add 3-5 drops of plant-based liquid soap. You may add a few drops of alcohol.
- Pour your mixture to a spray bottle. You may consider adding 4-8 drops of your favorite fragrance essential oil for a nice fragrance.
- Lightly spray a small area and wipe with a dry microfiber cloth. repeat the above procedure until you are through with the whole cloth.
Dish Detergent
Steps
- Warm 2 cups of water.
- Add 1/2 cup white vinegar.
- Add 3-4 drops of dish detergent. You may opt to add 3-8 drops of favorite essential oil for.
- Put your mixture to your spray bottle. Spray 3ft by 3ft and mop with a clean cloth. A microfiber cloth is more ideal. repeat until you have cleaned the whole floor.
Murphy oil soap
Murphy oils contain 98% natural ingredients. It’s specifically formulated to clean your wood floor without rinsing.
Steps
- Warm a gallon of water.
- Add 1/4 cup of Murphy oil soap. For extremely dirty floor use 1/2 cup of Murphy oil.
- Mix or whirl the mixture with your mop. Wring out excess water.
- Mop the floor and allow it to dry before walking on it.
Murphy is a good remedy for crayons, pens, shoes, polish or even per urine stains. Apply a dab Murphy oil in a damp warm cloth. Rub the affected area form the edges going inwards to remove the stain effectively.
Bona
- Bona hardwood cleaner can be used for cleaning your wood floor. It’s a commercially available product that has been used by professionals for years. Use the spray bottle to spray and mop with a microfiber cloth to get the best results.
Teabag
Steps
- Boil 2 cups of water.
- Steep 1 teabag into the boiled water. Leave it for about 5 min until it cool to room temperature.
- Remove the teabag.
- Take a clean cloth and soak in the liquid.
- Wring out the cloth and wipe your hardwood floor clean.
- Dry your floor with a clean soft towel or cloth. The tannic acid in the tea can bring back the shiny appeal of your hardwood flooring.
Lemon Juice, Olive Oil and Water
Steps
- Heat 1 gallon of water
- Extract 1/2 lemon juice.
- Add the lemon juice to the gallon of hot water.
- Soak the clean cloth or mop in your mixture. Wring it to just leave it wet.
- Mop out the floor until through. Avoid using excess solution always wring your mop or cloth to leave it slightly damp.
Lemon has natural acidity that makes it a good disinfectant and a wonderful cleansing agent. It is a good natural way to remove stubborn stains on your hardwood floor. The solution should leave your floor with great fragrance and a rich sheen hardwood floor.
Fixing hardwood isolated issues
After mopping it may require you to fix the isolated issue of your hardwood floor. Hardwood floors may have a problem; dark spots, scratches or other lone stains from water spill and pets urine. Use fine steel wool (000) to remove stains and polish with hardwood floor wax to rub it out.
For extremely stubborn dark spots and stains, place carefully a bleaching agent for some minute and use a damp soft towel or cloth to rinse. The bleaching agent may remove hardwood finish. Consider sanding and staining to blend the section with the other floor.
Alternatively, for raised and deep stains, it may require fine sandpaper to smoothen your floor. Use a matching stain and protective coat to blend the section with other flooring finish. A small chip in your flooring needs to be fixed with wood filler, take a filler that matches your hardwood floor finish. Allow it to dry and sand it and apply the finish and protective layer to match the other hardwood floor.
Things to do and avoid
- Take off your shoes-walking with dirty shoes on your wooden floor will leave a lot of dirt behind. These particles can ruin your hardwood floor. Consider putting mats both inside and outside the exterior doors. In rainy and snow weather consider having boot removal area to avoid water and deicers damages.
- Avoid pouring water or using a lot of water when mopping, this may ruin your hardwood flooring. Immerse your mop in clean water and wring it to leave it to dump for mopping your hardwood floor. Consider using a dry soft towel to dry your wood floor or just let it dry air.
- Avoid dubbing dirt into your wooden floor. Dust your hardwood floor with a mop treated with a dusting agent or microfiber duster to remove dust, dirt particles and pet hair.
- Avoid using harsh chemicals, steel-wool, sandpaper to remove stains from your hardwood flooring. They can permanently damage your hardwood floor finish.
- Always clean water spill immediately never allow the water liquid to settle your hardwood floor for long.
- Trim your pets, claws or nails to prevent hardwood floor scratching.
- Consider adding area rugs in high traffic areas. Add furniture pads to prevent furniture from sitting directly on your hardwood floor.
- Avoid using excess oil or waxes or furniture sprays, these may create a dangerously slippery surface. Waxes make the hardwood flooring surface hard to re-coat.
- Lemon, vinegar, and water shouldn’t be used in excess. Avoid high concentrated mixtures, they can damage your wood sealant.
