Remove caked-on food by carefully inserting the tip of a plastic knife under the lower edge of the debris and then gently sliding the knife upward. These nooks are hiding spots for trapped dust. Move your cleaning tool from one side of the floor to the other, paying extra attention to areas where adjacent floor boards meet. If your preferred mode of dust busting is vacuuming, use a floor-brush attachment and avoid the beater bar-its rotating brush can dent wood floors. If you prefer to sweep rather than mop, opt for a broom with synthetic fiber ends to help trap collected dust in the broom head and prevent it from resettling on the floor. Compatible on a variety of hardwood floor mop brands, a pair of reusable pads like the Old Home Kitchen Mop Pads costs less than $15. To keep costs down and lower your environmental impact, choose pads that can be removed, machine washed, and reused. These mops have pads with tiny synthetic fibers that reach into the grooves of wood floors to pick up and hold dust without scratching the wood. The best mop for wood floors is usually one with a large, flat head affixed with a microfiber cloth pad, such as the Swiffer Sweeper. This routine works on floors with either surface or penetrating finishes. RELATED: New Floors? 5 Top Hardwood Options to Know Bust dust by mopping, sweeping, or vacuuming regularly.ĭry mopping, sweeping, and/or vacuuming on a weekly basis are the best ways to rid hardwood floors of light dust, dirt, and pet hair accumulation. If scraping the floor finish smudges it, but no clear material comes away, the floor likely has a penetrating finish. If the scraped material is clear, your floor probably has a surface finish. The easiest way to check if a floor has a surface finish is to take a sharp knife blade to a small, hidden area of the floor and scrape off a tiny amount of finish. Use only solvent-based cleaning products instead of water-based ones on floors with penetrating finishes. These finishes easily absorb water, and water can warp wood floors. Penetrating finishes such as linseed or tung oil soak through the surface of hardwood floors and then are usually topped with a wax coat for added sheen.It’s safe to use water and water-based cleaning products on surface finishes. When liquids come into contact with surface finishes, they pool rather than penetrate the wood. Surface finishes such as urethane and polyurethane form a protective, waterproof barrier on the surface of the floor.There are two main types of hardwood floor finishes: surface finishes and penetrating finishes. First, figure out what kind of finish your floor has. Using these recommended techniques for the best way to clean hardwood floors will keep yours looking great for years to come. Read on to learn how to identify your floor’s finish and select supplies for dusting, deep cleaning, and removing stains.
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