Caring for Waxed Floors

After a floor has been stripped and sealed or waxed with an acrylic finish, certain steps need to be taken to maintain it. Using the wrong chemicals to clean it can drastically shorten the life of the finish but using the correct ones can extend the life of the finish and keep the floor looking good much longer than otherwise.

Dust mopping or vacuuming the floor (or sweeping it with a soft tipped broom) are good things to do. No dust mop treatment, please, as it will leave a residue that will eventually dull the floor.

An acrylic waxed floor may be damp mopped with warm or cool water and a neutral cleaner. Neutral cleaners have a Ph of 7 and will not attack the finish. Any janitorial supply store will have a neutral cleaner for sale and since you use only a capful in two gallons of water, a gallon of neutral cleaner will last a long time. For spot cleaning, you can make up a mild solution in a spray bottle by using only a few drops of neutral cleaner in the bottle of water. Often marks on a newly waxed floor will scrub off with a terry towel. A white scrub pad (designed for use on glass, Teflon, plastic) may be gently used as well. Wet the floor with neutral cleaner solution while using any scrub pad.

Using a high Ph cleaner such as Simple Green will degrade the finish in almost nothing flat, turning it brown and making the floor need stripping again very soon. Almost all disinfectant cleaners will attack wax finishes, as do bleach and ammonia.

If the floor is waxed in-house between professional visits, make sure it is washed and rinsed first and a compatible wax is used. Avoid Mop 'N Glo as I have seen it leave dirt in the wax when used as directed. It also does not "layer" but melts any layers underneath it to make one thicker coat which is very difficult to strip when the time comes to redo the floor. "Future" is a good brand available in grocery stores. Better yet, get some wax from the floor care professional who strips and waxes your floor, as he or she will know what wax is compatible with what is on the floor.

Tip: You can touch up traffic lanes using a soft cloth fully dampened with your floor finish. Wear latex or rubber gloves to keep the wax off your hands. Put the cloth in a ziplock baggie in your refrigerator to keep it fresh between uses, so you're not filling a new cloth every time you want to touch up your floor.

You can generally expect to need to strip your floor yearly, regardless of the number of waxings that year, as wax wears off from traffic and does eventually discolor from age.

David Holt

Labels: Caring for Waxed Floors

HARDWOOD FLOOR CARE TIPS
FOR POLYURETHANED FLOORS
From Holt Maintenance Co.

Some "do's":

The BEST cleaning method is the Bona Kemi Hardwood Floor Care system, or equivalent. This is 1) a safe cleaning chemical you spray on to 2) a washable pad that fits over 3)a flat "paddle" which has a handle attached. This is fast, easy and often gives results as good as professional cleaning and buffing. Some resources for floor cleaning products are: www.bonakemi.com, www.weloveyourfloors.com and www.1877FloorGuy.com. Also I understand OSH carries the Bona System now. (Don't buy anything that says it will increase the shine; you want "no residue".)

Use carpet or felt bottomed glides on the feet of chairs and other furniture that sit on hardwood floors. This can add years to the life of the floor finish. You can get these at almost any hardware store.

Use the "fish net" type non-skid pads under area rugs rather than the close-woven "doily" type if your rugs are at all slippery on the floor.

If you don't use the Bona system or equivalent, to clean your floor you can dust mop with a dry dust mop (Smart and Final carry these as do janitorial supply houses). Or vacuum with a canister type vacuum with a felt or soft-headed brush as a floor attachment. Or even sweep with a soft-tipped broom. After you get the dry dirt off, you may also damp mop if the finish is in very good shape with no breaks, scratches or scuffs in the finish that would allow the water to actually touch the wood underneath. See below for what sort of soap (cleaner) to use if you do this.

Some "don'ts":

Do not use Murphy's Oil Soap on your floor. If you're going to damp mop, see below.

Do not use a dust mop treatment on your dust mop.

If you damp mop a polyurethaned floor, use a neutral pH cleaner sparingly (1/2 oz. to 2 gallons) in the water. Any janitorial supply store will have one or more brands of Neutral Cleaner. Avoid Simple Green, Formula 409, Fantastic or anything else that advertises itself as a degreaser, as these are alkaline cleaners (pH above 7), not neutral.

Do not wax or oil your polyurethaned floor or put on it any product that says it "cleans and shines". It is far better to just clean it, then get another coat of polyurethane put on if the shine has started to go after a few years. (Polyurethane will not stick on a waxed floor, and it lasts much, much longer than wax does.)

David Holt
davidholt@iglide.net or 213-924-9371

Labels: Hardwood Floor Care Tips for Polyurethaned Floors