Wood Floor Cleaning And Maintenance
Wood Floor Cleaning And Maintenance
A solid wood floor should be a floor for life if properly maintained. The main issue with wooden floors is humidity and strong cleaning products. 9 out of 10 wooden floors that look in poor shape, look like that because too much water was used to clean it or very strong acidic/bleach based cleaning products were used to wash it. You can avoid these issues by respecting the standard care and maintenance. Have beautiful and fully protected wooden floors for many years.
Wood Floor Cleaning And Maintenance — Finishes
Most wooden floors in Ireland are sealed with lacquer or an oil. There are water based floor lacquers and there are solvent based floor lacquers. Also, there are standard floor oils and there are hardwax oils. Knowing what type of finish is on your floor is essential in order for you to implement the correct cleaning routine.
Up to about 20 years ago, most floor lacquers were oil based. These finishes were very durable and chemical resistant but had some issues as well. It generated alot of pollution during the manufacturing process and it was very time consuming to apply 3 coats. Due to bad odours, many people had to move out of their homes for a while. Another major issue was the transformation from a nice clean finish into a dark yellow or peach finish, in a matter of months. These finishes were reacting with UV light and chemicals and the colour was changing fast, transforming the wood floors. These oil based finishes were step by step replaced with water based floor lacquers. A water based floor lacquer is not as durable as a solvent based finish, but with the right care and maintenance, you can get 5 to 7 years of use out of it. Water based sealers look way better, dry faster and release no fumes. But the maintenance has to be top notch.
Oiled floors and waxed floors were very popular for a while, they went out fashion and now are back bigger and stronger than ever. An oiled floor looks amazing, it allows the wood to breath and it does not change colour. But again, oiled or waxed floors will only last if maintained with proper oiled floor cleaners & refreshed with a maintenance oil at least once per year.
So the most essential thing is :
Not a lot of water
Try to use flat mops
No harsh chemicals
Wood Floor Cleaning And Maintenance — Varnished Floors
Even if the solvent based floor lacquers are not as popular as they used to be, some people still use them. But regardless of the type of floor lacquer used to seal your floors, you will need to maintain it all in the pretty much the same way. Using a cotton mop is possible but you will need to use it semi wet and in conjunction with a proper wood floor cleaner. If you prefer to clean your wooden floor with a standard mop, no problem, but please use Bona Cleaner as the main cleaner for daily cleaning and maintenance. Bona Cleaner is a highly concentrated wood floor cleaner and maintainer that will break the dirt apart without damaging the finish of your wooden floor. At the same time, it will enhance the sheen of the floor while helping the liquid to evaporate faster to dry streak free. There is no better product available for daily cleaning and maintenance.
We would recommend Bona Wood Floor Spray mop as it is a one piece tool fully ready for quick & easy cleaning of your floors. No more mop & buckets, no more water and zero risk of over wetting the floor. The mop is a pleasure to use and it leaves the finish looking spotless, streak free and radiant. You can purchase 4L refill bottles of Bona Wood Floor Cleaner and refill the cartridge as needed. Just press the trigger of your spray mop and wipe it off with the microfiber flat mop head.
If you do not want to use a spray mop, you can buy Bona Wood Floor Cleaner Spray. You can just spray it all over the floor and then use a flat mopping system to scrub and dry the floor.
Wood Floor Cleaning And Maintenance — Oiled Floors
Your oiled floor was sealed with a blend of natural and synthetic waxes. These sealers will penetrate deep inside your floor and will protect the floor against liquid staining & general traffic. An oiled floor is not as durable as a varnished floor, but with the right care, it can provide outstanding protection for many years. We recommend that you use proper oiled floor cleaners like Bona Soap or Bona Cleaner For Oiled Floors. These two products will safely clean and nourish the floor at the same time without affecting the finish. We recommend the new Bona Oiled Floor Spray Mop as your main floor cleaning tool because it is easy to use and you cannot damage the floor at all, but other systems can be used as well. You can use Bona Soap Cleaner diluted 1 to 100 in warm water in conjunction with a cotton mop. Just be careful not to use too much water. Or you can spray the whole floor with Bona OIled Floor Cleaner & then use a flat mopping system to dry it off. By using proper oiled floor cleaning products, you extend the life expectancy of your floor finish while maintaining the natural look of the wooden floors. Never use degreasers or high PH cleaning products on oiled floors. You will cause permanent staining and discoloration. Also never use scrubbing pads on oiled floors. You will create patches that are impossible to repair.
Wood Floor Cleaning And Maintenance — Varnished Floors Refreshing
Even the most durable floor varnish from any brand will eventually become dull and crack & break apart. A low quality floor varnish will seal your floor for up to 2 years while a premium quality water based floor lacquer will provide up to 10 years of protection. Areas with more traffic than others will wear off faster while areas with less traffic will stay the same. This issue will create two colours on your floor and it will make the whole area look old and dated. No need to sand it yet, there is another solution out there. You can use a refresher to repair damaged areas and create an even finish. We recommend Bona Freshen Up, Bona Wood Floor Refresher or Bona Wood Floor Polish. All these products do pretty much the same thing but some look a bit different than others when dry. 1–2 coats of Bona Wood Floor Polish (matt or gloss) will work better if applied before the damage appears. The traffic will happen on the polish itself not on the floor. Bona Freshen Up is a high traffic polyurethane sealer and surface refresher. Usually used for regular maintenance and weekly/monthly refreshing. This product will get rid of all types of dull patches & small scratches. A bit too glossy for some people. Bona Wood Floor Refresher is the ideal product for patchy and worn wooden floors. It restores the sheen instantly and it creates a perfect finish all over the floor. Suitable for commercial & domestic use.
Wash the floor with Bona Cleaner or Bona OxyPower Spray. Scrub well to remove imperfections and residue. Wait 30 min and apply 1 thin coat of refresher. Assess the job 30 min later. If happy with the results, stop at one coat. If not 100% happy, apply 1 more coat. All the products listed above can be applied the same way. Do not wash the floor for 24 hours after refreshing.
Wood Floor Cleaning And Maintenance — Oiled Floors
After about 6 months of use, you will notice that your oiled floor is losing its colour and it starts absorbing dirt. No need to panic, it is the normal process. Your floor was sealed with an oil & the oils are likely to evaporate, dry out or be washed away. You need to plan a refresh. You will need to buy some maintenance oil and you will need to recoat the floor surface before it is too late. Unsealed wood floors can easily stain permanently or get very wet and expand. Refreshing an oiled floor is a pretty easy operation. You can use Bona Wax Oil Refresher or Bona Oil Floor Spray Refresher. Bona Wax Oil Refresher is basically a hardwax oil with an enhancer to dry fast. Bona Oiled Floor Spray Refresher is a waterborne refresher compatible with all Bona hardwax oils.
Bona Wax Oil Refresher — clean the floor with Bona Oiled Floor Cleaner to remove residue and impregnated oils. Using a cloth or a buffing machine, apply 1 thin coat of maintenance oil. Allow the floor to absorb whatever it needs and remove the excess. Around the edges use a small cloth to avoid touching painted surfaces. Bona Wax OIl Refresher will dry in about 2–4 hours. The product is 100% matt and natural looking.
Bona Oil Floor Spray Refresher — this product is a refresher that fully dries in less than 1 hour. Just spray it all over the floor, wait 3 minutes, then use a flat mop and Bona Applicator Pad to even up the surface. The floor has to look wet but not over wet. It will dry with no sheen and it will maintain the wood 100% natural.
***oiled floors have to be refreshed every year. Otherwise your floor will get damaged and dirty***
No need to spend a fortune and a lot of time cleaning floors. You need to use proper wood floor cleaning products & proper equipment. Try the new Bona range of products. You will be amazed how with Bona wood floor cleaning is so quick and easy AND products amazing results every time.
