Like other floorings, a certain amount of care and maintenance is required to keep hardwood flooring in good condition. With the right maintenance techniques, your wood floor will be able to retain its beauty for years to come. Light hardwood flooring is a little more prone to wear and tear as compared to dark ones and this is the reason they require more cleaning and maintenance. Although wood floors are durable and easy to clean, there are a couple of things you must keep in mind.
Clean Spills Immediately
If something spills on your hardwood floor, make sure you wipe up the spill immediately. You can use either a dry or a slightly damp cloth. Avoid using a wet mop as it can cause damage over time. Remember, wood swells and shrinks easily depending on the moisture level, that’s why it’s important to keep the humidity levels down. The best way to avoid such issues is to clean up spills as soon as possible.
Use Furniture Pads
When it comes to hardwood flooring, scratches are a real problem to deal with. While some scratches are unavoidable, others can be prevented. One of the easiest ways to prevent those scratches is by adding furniture pads to the legs of tables, chairs, and sofas etc.
Sweep or Dust Daily
It may seem like a lot of work, but it’s highly recommended. Even if no one is bringing dirty shoes into the home, dust still finds a way to enter, and then it settles between the floorboards. Also, if you have a pet around the home who sheds hair, dusting and sweeping daily is the best thing to do.
Vacuum Weekly
Vacuuming every week may sound painful, but in order to keep your hardwood flooring clean, you must make sure there are no crumbs and dirt left behind that you might have missed while sweeping.
Light floors need more attention
As mentioned earlier, the lighter the floor, the more attention it requires. You will have to clean them more often as they are more prone to wear and tear.
Polish Quarterly
Polishing not only helps extend the life of the hardwood floor but it also adds shine to it. However, before polishing, make sure you dust or sweep the floor to remove any loose debris. Then you can follow up with a vacuum to make certain no dirt and dust is left behind. After that, you can use water-based polishes to add shine and lustre to your wooden floor.
Refinishing
Over time, hardwood flooring starts to look a bit dull. A new coat of wood floor finish is applied to give it a fresh and new look. Refinishing helps in restoring the wood's original shine and appearance.
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