Learning how to clean hardwood floors is essential for protecting and maintaining your beautiful investment. Since dirt and grime can’t hide on hardwood floors like they can on carpet, cleaning your floors may seem “high maintenance.” However, once you establish your own routine, the best way to clean hardwood flooring won’t seem so difficult. Daily Schedule – Dust/Sweep Giving your floors a good dusting with a microfiber mop or cloth will be your best daily defense against scratches and surface damage. Microfiber cleaning pads often use static electricity to trap dirt, particles, and other household allergens. Using a broom to can be effective as well, but using a broom only pushes the dirt around. When you want to clean your floors without damaging them, avoid lifting your microfiber mop up off the floor when you clean—this way you keep the dirt trapped on the pad. Weekly Schedule – Vacuum/Mop Weekly maintenance will deal with the harder to reach areas that a daily dusting can’t reach.

Vacuums and wet mops are ideal for getting dirt out of trouble areas like corners and the spaces between each piece of hardwood. However, using vacuums and mops come with extra caution when you want to clean floors without damaging them. If your vacuum has a beater bar, make sure it doesn’t hit the bar floor. Also, the wheels on a vacuum might damage the floor. When you’re using a mop, remember that water and wood don’t mix! heating duct cleaning diyAvoid putting excess liquid on your floor. spray for cleaning laptop fansLightly misting your floor with a hardwood floor cleaner will be enough to give it a great clean. air duct cleaning petsA gentle touch is one of the best ways to clean hardwood flooring.replace fan laptop hp

Use proper tools to clean your floor – a mop paired with a machine washable, microfiber pad for dusting and cleaning. Electrostatic action attracts dirt, microparticles and common household allergens. Avoid using water and vinegar, soap-based cleaners, wax or steam cleaners on your hardwood floors. Vinegar and water actually dull the floor’s finish over time, while soap and wax leave residue. Steam cleaners put heat and excessive water on your floor, which can lead to cupping and long-term damage.best leather cleaner detailing world Regular dusting and cleaning keeps hardwood floors looking new. best way to clean suede couchBut protective mats can further your floor’s life. Use natural rubber rug underlayments with a waffle pattern in entry ways or high traffic areas, and use felt floor protectors on furniture.

Depending on the amount of traffic in your home, we recommend polishing the floors every 2-3 months with our Bona Hardwood Floor Polish and sanding and refinishing approximately every 3-5 years. Monthly Schedule – Polish Polishing your floor every few months is a great way to clean hardwood flooring. Polishing renews and refreshes the finish that protects your hardwood floor. With floors that have some kind of protective sealant, it is the finish that is getting the most attention when we clean—not the actual hardwood. Polishing your floor fills in microscopic scratches and evens out a floor’s protective surface. Polishing a hardwood floor is not a difficult task and can be done with a minimal amount of effort. Yearly Schedule – Deep Clean With all the abuse we put on our hardwood floors, consider giving your floor a deep clean or a sand and refinish every 3-5 years. Sanding and refinishing your floor completely removes the old protective finish and replaces it.

If your floor has some deep scratches or gouges, sanding and refinishing can repair this damage, leaving you with immaculately clean hardwood flooring. Here are some extra tips that will lead you on the best way to clean hardwood flooring: • Use Mats. Place mats or rugs at entryways or other traffic areas to minimize the amount of dirt and debris that gets onto your floors. Make sure the protective coverings you use are designed for wood floors. Some rubber-backed mats can trap moisture, damaging floors in the process. • Things to Avoid. Avoid using water and vinegar, soap-based cleaners, wax or steam cleaners on your hardwood floors. Steam cleaners put heat and excessive water on your floor, which can lead to cupping and long-term damage. As you come up with your maintenance routine, remember that the overall use of your floors will dictate how often you need to clean. High-traffic areas may need to be mopped or polished more often, while less-frequented floors can go a bit longer between more intense cleanings.

Finding the best way to clean hardwood floors will take some time and patience, but with the right tools and techniques, you’ll be able to keep your floors looking their best. Remember that the time you spend maintaining your floors pales in comparison to how much time you’ll spend enjoying your floors. Bona offers a wide selection of cleaners and hardware that will make cleaning your hardwood floors a breeze. Find the right tools and give your floors a phenomenal clean.Cleaning laminate floors is a breeze with the right mop. This handy guide will teach you how to clean laminate floors effortlessly so you have more time to put your feet up! To get started you will need 2 things: First make sure you have the right mop for the job. The best way to clean laminate floors is with a microfiber mop. Microfiber mops glide across the floor picking up dirt and pet hair effortlessly. The swivel heads make it super fast to cover large areas, they get under tables and chairs easily, plus they require less water which is best because laminate flooring warps easily if exposed to water.

You can either buy a manufacturer’s cleaning solution or make one yourself (scroll down to see my recipe for homemade laminate floor cleaner below). Either way you’ll need a spray bottle to squirt the cleaning solution onto the mop pad. dry mop with your microfiber mop OR use a vacuum on the wood floors setting to suck up big dust bunnies and hair tumbleweeds dampen the microfiber pad with warm water and spray on the cleaning solution of your choice when the microfiber pad gets too dirty simply – rinse, replace and continue when you’re finished rinse the microfiber pad and put it in the washing machine on sanitary wash Cleaning laminate floors with string mops or sponge mops will take you longer, leave streaky marks and because they use a lot of water will make it easier for moisture to sink into the cracks. If moisture gets into the laminate core board it can warp the laminate floors over time. No matter what the manufacturer told you about their floor having an airtight lock system, unless you’ve bought special waterproof laminate flooring with waxed edges I would never recommend using a string or sponge mop on laminate floor.

The janitor in our office in Beijing used a string wet dripping mop and the flooring is warping after only two years of use. Scroll to the bottom of this page to read my do’s and don’ts for caring for laminate flooring, plus bonus tips for removing exotic stains or stubborn marks. 3 Best Ways to Start There’s never one perfect way to do anything which is why I’m going to leave it up to you to choose how you get the big dust bunnies and hair tumble weeds off the floor. Everyone has their own personal routine and if you’re happier to do things a certain way then stick to it. Here are the 3 best ways to get rid of the big stuff before you begin mopping with water. I’ve started with the fastest method and ended with the slowest. OR use the microfiber mop (without water) to get all the big clumps of hair and dust up. You can scrape the debris off and rinse before using the same microfiber pad for wet mopping OR dry dust mop with a Swiffer type sweeper

Top Tip – It is best to sweep or vacuum in the direction that the floor is laid in to collect all the dirt between the grooves instead of trapping it. *Don’t use a vacuum with a beater bar because it can scratch the laminate floor. If your laminate floor has a high gloss or piano surface I recommend you avoid vacuuming altogether just to be on the safe side and begin with #2 or #3 instead. This is because even if you set the vacuum to the wood floors setting it can still scratch the floor and scratches on high gloss or piano surface are very obvious in the light. If you’ve already been using your microfiber mop to dry mop the laminate floor, you can either scrape off the debris into a bin, rinse and reattach or simply replace the microfiber pad with a spare one. Top Tip – it’s good to have a spare pad or two so you always have one to mop up emergency spillages with whilst others are cycling in the wash. prepare your home made cleaning solution in a spray bottle or just grab your branded one from the cupboard

dampen the microfiber pad with warm water from the tap (not too soggy) and spray on the cleaning solution mop the floor – a microfiber mop cuts through gunk with hardly any pushing down or scrubbing, so relax and let the mop do the work when the microfiber pad gets too dirty after one or two rooms – rinse, reattach and continue. REMEMBER – You don’t need to haul a bucket of warm water around with you. One microfiber pad can easily last for two rooms or more so you don’t need to rinse it out in the sink very often. There’s no squeegeeing or high-duty wringing like with a string mop when you’re finished rinse the microfiber pad in the sink and hang out to dry. After several uses (and the pad appears to be quite discoloured) put it in the washing machine on sanitary wash This method of cleaning laminate floors will cut your cleaning time in half, plus it is the safest way to wet mop laminate flooring to prevent serious damage from warping. If you are not convinced that microfiber mops are the best way to clean laminate floors see my article: 10 advantages of microfiber mops for cleaning laminate floors.

Homemade Laminate Floor Cleaner Here’s an excellent recipe for home made laminate floor cleaner that works a treat, especially for cleaning high gloss laminate flooring leaving it completely streak free: 3 parts water to 1 part vinegar 1 squirt of liquid dish detergent put it all in a spray bottle and you’re good to go! Making your own homemade laminate floor cleaner will save you from ever needing to buy an expensive manufacturer’s cleaner 🙂 Do’s and Don’ts of Caring for Laminate Flooring Do not use mops like string mops or sponge mops that use a lot of water (remember – if water corrupts the core-board it will cause it to warp!) When wet mopping your floor, do not soak the microfiber mop pad just dampen it Blot up  large spills with a sponge, dry cloth or paper towel. Do not allow puddles to remain on the surface of your laminate floor for a long period of time because they could cause warping Remember, laminate floor is not real wood, so you should never wax or polish your laminate flooring

Do not use anything with chemicals that promotes a clean and shine Do not use bleach or abrasive cleaners for cleaning laminate floors Never use steel wool or scouring pads because they are renown for scratching surfaces Removing Exotic Stains and Stubborn Marks Blood: give it spray of window cleaner and wipe with a damp cloth Chewing gum: use a plastic knife or something else (non metal) to get under the gum and avoid scratching the floor. Once you’ve prized the worst of it off rub the residue with a soft cloth dampened with mineral spirits Crayon: apply mineral spirits to a damp cloth and rub away Grease: Freeze with an ice pack until the grease hardens, then scrape off with a plastic knife. Wipe away the remaining residue with a squirt of window cleaner and a damp cloth. Ink: Wipe with a damp cloth. Add a little detergent if the stain is stubborn. If it’s very stubborn use a commercial ink remover but be sure to wipe up with a damp cloth once you’re done