Hardwood floors are beautiful, classy, and durable. The best way to keep your hardwood in good condition is by keeping the floor out of grits and avoiding walking all over it with shoes that could cause scratches as well as some other precautionary measures.
Ensuring the cleanliness of the wood floor is essential but people have most end up asking the same question, ‘how often to mop wood floors?’ If you find yourself regularly wet mopping your hardwood floors, take a break. Over-mopping as a term exists and you should avoid tat for your hardwood floor.
Mopping your wood floors too often may ruin the finish over time. To avoid this, the frequency of mopping hardwood floors is already addressed in this article.
All at a Glance
How to clean hardwood floors
- Protect your floors
Hardwood floors are expensive so you want to take good care of them. Don’t make your floors look naked and exposed. Place a small carpet at the entrance to trap moisture and small stones coming from outside. Also, place a protective pad under furniture at home to prevent scratches on the wood floors when it’s moved.
Though you have these pads placed under the bottom of your furniture, avoid dragging them as much as possible. You can go for the less expensive plastic discs to be used for the same purpose. Ensure to put the fluffy covers over the plastic discs before you move anything on the wood, even the plastic can cause scratches to woods like pine and engineered flooring.
2. Give your floor a clean sweep
It is a good decision to sweep your hardwood every day with a broom or vacuum, especially in high-traffic areas. Ensure the vacuum is designed to work on hard surfaces. A lightweight vacuum works very well, but an upright one also works well once it has a hard surface setting. If you live with pets, make sure your vacuum has good suction to attract floors on the wood floor.
Wood floors, especially in high traffic regions should be cleaned weekly with a damp mop. If your wood floor is subjected to low traffic, you can do it less frequently, maybe monthly or quarterly. Unsealed wood floors are more prone to water, so make sure to wring mop off excess water before using it.
3. Remove furniture, rug, or carpet
It is expected for you to move your furniture and area rugs before cleaning but most people only do this in a rush weekly by just moving smaller pieces. It is advisable to do a thorough cleaning quarterly so you can commit to moving larger furniture pieces to ensure covering the whole area.
4. Sweep or vacuum the wood floor
Do a thorough sweeping on your hardwood floor by getting rid of unwanted materials. Then, complete this stage by vacuuming the floor so as to get rid of dust and pet hair. You can also decide to take it further by using Swiffer to get up the last bits of dust.
5. Soak a towel
Mix a dishwashing soap and water in a bucket. Attach the towel to a Swiffer mop stick, dip it inside the solution and apply to small areas on the wood floor. Make sure to frequently dip the towel back in the solution and rinse before applying again to ensure optimal cleaning. While this process sucks uptime, it gets us the desired result. The floor won’t be too covered in moisture and it gets dry fast.
6. Apply Bona on the wood floor
After confirming the floor is dry, apply a thin coat of Bona on the floor. It is a good choice to invest your money in purchasing this paint. You can go for an application wand that comes with the kit. Put Bona on the pad that comes with the wand, and use it to spread Bona on the wood floor in small sections. There you have your glossy-looking wood floor back.
7. Replace the furniture and rugs
Now, you can return the furniture and rugs to their former position. And you are done.
Products not to use on the hardwood floor
You should be aware that there are certain products harmful to your hardwood. Harsh chemicals or abrasives are a no-no for your wood floors. Solutions like ammonia, alkaline soap-based cleaners, vinegar, and lemon juice are not good choices. Oils and furniture sprays are also out. All these items can damage the shiny appearance of your wood floor.
Mistakes to avoid when cleaning your hardwood floors
i. Do an inspection to confirm if your hardwood is sealed or not
Check if your hardwood is sealed or unsealed before proceeding with the cleaning process. If they are sealed, frequent mopping is safe. But if they are unsealed, wet mopping daily can cause damage to your hardwood since it is easily susceptible to absorbing water. Confirm the kind of hardwood you are dealing with before cleaning.
ii. Not dry cleaning at the start
Most homeowners commit this mistake sometimes. The secret to managing a beautiful wood floor is to first dry clean, not wet. Regular sweeping and vacuuming are the basis of hardwood cleaning. If you stick to this rule, you will be doing dry cleaning more times than wet cleaning. Regularly removing dust, dirt, and grit from the hardwood floors makes wet cleaning very efficient.
iii. Use of Vacuum’s carpet setting after moving over on hardwood
Most homeowners also commit this error, but the funny part is that the consequences won’t show up in time. You will only get to observe much later. When you set a vacuum to clean a carpet, it brings down bristles and beater bar made to jolt the carpet and pick up lots of present dust and grits.
If you ignored switching the vacuum head or changing settings on the vacuum after you’ve moved surfaces, it means the beater bar can cause scratches and dull the hardwood look, damage the seal and leave them susceptible to dirt.
iv. Over-mopping
Daily mopping your hardwood floor isn’t encouraged. To achieve the best results, only mop areas susceptible to high traffic once a week. For areas that are not quite exposed to traffic, monthly mopping is a good choice. Mopping almost every day can wear down sealed floors or choke them with too much water.
v. Use of overly soaked mop
While you are ready to give the best mopping session for your hardwood floor, always do proper wringing of the dampened mop. Hardwood and moisture aren’t friends. So, always ensure to safe-keep their enemy relationship so as not to get your hardwood floor into trouble. A soaked wood floor leads to swelling and warping.
Ensure to avoid the above references in order to get the most out of your wood floor.
Also Read: Top 8 Best Paint Sprayer for cabinets and furniture
How to maintain clean floors
Having a high-quality doormat at your entrance is of high essence. It keeps dirt, dust, and grit out of the house. They are easy to clean so you shouldn’t be worried to get them for your home. Always set aside time to observe your wood floor for any stains, scratches, or blemishes you may not see before. This helps you to decide how to deal with them as appropriate in time. If you notice any of them, take steps and deal with them without spending so much.
Lastly, if your hardwood suffers from high traffic such as in the hallway, you may purchase a narrow runner rug so that you can lay down in the hallway instead. It will cover some parts of the wood to ensure the protection of the other parts of the wood that will remain visible.
What you should know about polishing
No matter how frequently you adhere to cleaning your floor, choosing to polish your floor always stand out as it earns your hardwood that shiny look again. Polishing materials also provide a thin layer of safety to the hardwood from any of the unwanted scenarios that happen to wood floors.
Polish also helps in filling minor scratches and dents in hardwood and covering up blemishes. You should try polishing once a month or biweekly based on your decision. Ensure the floor is completely dry after polishing before people start to walk over it so you won’t get things all messy.
What you should know about dry mopping
Dry mopping is a good technique for keeping your hardwood clean. It involves using a spray cleaner along with a dry push mop. It helps to dislodge and remove grease without causing harm to the wood finish. Dry mopping includes a dry mop, a microfiber dusting pad, a microfiber cleaning pad, and a spray solution made for hardwood floors.
You only need to spray your wood floors and then do the rest with a cleaning pad. After performing this technique, your wood grain will reflect with no residue left.
Conclusion: How Often To Mop Wood Floors
Hardwood floors should be one of your top concerns in your home settings. Asides, from preserving the beauty of the floor, cleaning would keep you safe from illnesses that could cause by mold and fungus presence. As much as cleaning is important, knowing how often to mop wood floors and the necessary tips to avoid is crucial in maintaining a glossy-looking hardwood floor.