A Hardwood Floor Care Guide ~  Wood Floor Maintenance 

The key to lasting beauty of your wood flooring investment is 
proper maintenance for the life of your floor.

The following are some excellent guidelines for maintaining today's wood floors. 
Don't know what type of finish you have?

All Hardwood Floors regardless of what type of finish, must be maintained properly to keep the beauty long lasting. Every floor must be dust mopped, vacuumed or swept with a soft bristle broom daily, or as often as necessary, to remove grit and dust from the surface. Walking on dusty or dirty floor is the fastest way to damage a finish.

Place walk off mats (carpet runners) at all exterior entrances. This will capture much of the harmful dirt before it even reaches the hardwood floor. Shake out, wash or vacuum mats and area rugs frequently.

Floor protector pads of soft felt or similar material should be placed on the bottoms of the legs of the furniture. Floor protectors must be kept clean of grit and periodically replaced.

Pets-Pets claws will scratch even the toughest of wood floor finishes. A heavy dog(125 #) can exert more than 2000 # of pressure on wood floor products. Keep nail trimed, minimize dog play when possible, and use walk off mats, area rug runners, always keeping the floor clean and free of dirt.

Pet Stains-Dog & cat urine is very damaging to wood floor finishes, and wood floor products. If left standing they can eat away even the toughest of wood floor finishes. After penetrating the wood grain itself, the wood become a very dark blackish color and for the most part will permanently damage and stain the floor. Sanding will lighten the stain some, but removal and replacement will give best results. Often time attempting to bleach the spot will further damage the wood fiber and not allow new finishes to adhere properly.

Keep high heels in good repairs. An unprotected tip will dent any hardwood floor. A woman of 125# can exert more than 2000# of pressure on that portion of the wood floor. Much consideration should be given when entertaining large groups and events that attendee may be wearing this type of shoe. 

Kitchen floors experience the most traffic in a home. To prevent premature wear of the floor, place an area rug in front of the sink and stove area. Shake out or vacuum the rugs frequently. Recoat as needed (every 12-18 months) NEVER use wood conditioners or oil soaps on surface finishes.

Finally, using a humidifier or dehumidifier in conjunction with a furnace or air conditioning system to maintain relative humidity in the home at 30-50% will maintain the moisture in the wood and minimize cracks between the boards.

Urethane Finishes Routine Cleaning - Use the finish manufacturer's or the prefinished floor manufacturer's recommended cleaning system. If the manufacturer is not known or has no recommendation, use a cleaner that will not leave a residue that would inhibit bonding and recoating. NEVER wax a urethane finish. Do not generally wet a wood floor with water. When using any wood floor cleaner which requires mixing with water, follow mixing directions precisely. A cloth wetted with water and squeezed dry may be used to wipe up food stuffs and other spills, provided the area is buffed dry immediately. Heel or scuff marks and stubborn stains may be removed by lightly rubbing with a cloth and a wood floor cleaner.

 Long-term Maintenance - Recoating Surface finishes - Urethane finishes eventually will show wear patterns from surface scratching. When high traffic area begin to look dull it is time to recoat or restore the finish. Always follow the manufacturer's recommendations. Screening (light sanding) and recoating with same finish every 2-3 years will help maintain your wood floor for years to come. Make sure no oil soaps, and other "contaminates" have been used on the floor, intentionally or otherwise. This can create an adhesion problem for the new finish, causing peeling and flaking. If unknown, always inform the wood floor contractor, as this improper maintenance can cause finish failure, making for serious concerns as to the end results, and who is responsible.

Wax Finishes

Routine Cleaning - Use the finish manufacturer's or the prefinished floor manufacturer's recommended cleaning system. Never use a water based cleaner on a wax floor. Once dirt and dust have been removed, the luster may be restored by buffing. Apply additional wax only in heavy traffic areas, if needed. Caution, do not over wax. An application of a solvent based cleaning product will remove dirt and allow the floor to be buffed clean. Spills must be wiped up immediately with a lightly water dampened cloth and then hand buffed dry.

To remove white spots caused by water spills, use fine steel wool (#000) and a small amount of mineral spirits, rub gently in a circular motion until spot is gone. Then apply additional wax to the area and buff.

Long-term Maintenance - Wax floors that have been neglected may be restored by deep cleaning. An application of a renovating system with fine steel wool, proper dry times and a complete re-waxing will clean and reseal the wood as well as restore color and luster.

Note: Once wax, in any form, has been applied to a wood floor, only wax may be used as a coating over the floor. Urethane and other surface finished cannot be applied over an existing wax finish.

Acrylic Impregnated Floors
Non-Urethane Coated

Routine Cleaning-For general cleaning always follow the manufacturer's recommendations and use their floor care products. Long-term Maintenance - An acrylic impregnated floor that has been neglected or improperly cleaned may need restoration. Stripping, sanding or screening the floor may be required, always contact the floor manufacturer for complete instructions.

Urethane Coated

Routine Cleaning - Some acrylic impregnated floors are coated with urethanes. For general cleaning of these types of floors, follow the manufacturer's recommendations and cleaning procedures for surface finishes. Many manufacturers using a special cleaning solution made for today's urethanes. See Maintenance Products

What type of finish do you have?
Here are some simple steps to help you determine if the finish is a wax finish, shellac or varnish finish or a surface finish. If the floor was installed, or last serviced, before the mid '60s, you should assume the finish used was varnish or shellac. To determine this, scratch the surface with a coin or other sharp object in a corner or other inconspicuous space. If the finish flakes, it is probably shellac or varnish. Shellac and varnish are rarely used anymore and require full sanding to remove before application of a surface finish or wax finish.

Next, check the floor for wax finish. In an inconspicuous area, corner or behind a door, apply two(2) drops of water. If, within ten minutes, white spots appear under the drops of water, the floor has a wax finish. To remove the white spots, gently rub the spots with #000 steel wool dampened with wax.

If the finish does not flake from scratching with a coin and white spots do not appear from the drops of water, the floor has a surface finish and should be maintained accordingly.