Engineered hardwood flooring is a craze that’s likely to stay with us for long. The affordability and ease of maintenance of these floors have made them highly preferred among homeowners global-wise. Sadly, engineered hardwood floors succumb to damage by high traffic, waxes, and regular cleaning. As time goes on, you’ll start noticing that your hardwood flooring looks scuffed, dull, and dirty.
How to Shine Engineered Hardwood Floors
The following are ways on how to shine engineered hardwood floors yourself.
Vacuuming
To give your engineered hardwood flooring a shiny and fresh look, clean off the dust and dirt particles. Vacuuming is highly recommended for its ability to penetrate deep into small crevices, removing any hidden tiny dirt particles. By regularly vacuum cleaning your engineered hardwood flooring, you prevent the flooring boards from curling at the edges. You’re advised to use the soft vacuum cleaning attachment instead of the vacuum sweep extension. The vacuum sweep extension can leave our floor scratched, creating room for more dirt particles to build up.
Clean spills as they occur
Spills can soil your hardwood flooring and make it unattractive. Spills are more detrimental when left uncleaned for long. That’s because they penetrate deep into the prefinished or baked-on coating, causing the floor to warp. Therefore, always clean spills soon after they happen. Water and drink spills often leave unattractive spots on your engineered hardwood flooring if you don’t wipe them off immediately. The easy way to clean water spots on your engineered hardwood floors is to apply mayonnaise. Leave the mayonnaise to rest there overnight, and by the next day, the white spot would have vanished. Find out how something as simple as vegetable oil and lemon can protect your beautiful flooring.
Mop your floors often
If your engineered hardwood flooring has unattractive grit or dirt buildup, it changes the overall appeal of your home. Some grimes and dirt don’t require many hours of professional cleaning. They are easy to clean, and with a damp sponge mop or microfiber, you can have your floor shinning once against.
Make your work easier and quick by adding dish soap into the hot water. But ensure the dish soap you’re using contains no oils or wax. The water and soap solution will soften the dirt particles, making them easy to clean. Ensure you properly squeeze the mop and dry the floor with a rag after cleaning. That way, you won’t leave unattractive water residuals on your floor after cleaning. For a cleaner surface, rinsing the floor with clean water is highly recommended.
Buffing and cleaning your floor
To keep your engineered hardwood flooring looking shiny and attractive, you would have to regularly clean and buff the wood. Always use a manufacturer-recommended cleaner for engineered hardwood floors. You may want to mix the cleaning solution with white vinegar and warm water to make it more effective. You can use the solution to clean the floor, but ensure you don’t apply the water directly to the flooring. Water tends to damage hardwood floors by triggering warping. After cleaning the flooring, you should wipe clean the solutions, making sure no vinegar contents are left behind. Vinegar is acidic, and if left uncleaned, it can make your floor finish dull.
Buffing your engineered hardwood flooring is also another way to keep it shiny and attractive. Buffing removes the grime, dust, and other particles found on top of the hardwood floor. A buffing session will leave your flooring looking fresh, smelling clean, and shiny look.
Should You Recoat Your Hardwood Flooring?
If your engineered hardwood floor has seen the better days, it will likely be crackled and harder to clean. That’s where screening comes in. Get the wood surface screened to remove any grimes and leave the floor looking more attractive. After screening the floor, you should then recoat it. The hardwood floor screening process requires buffing using a 120-grit sanding screen and then applying several coats of finish.
What You Should Avoid
Your desire is to refresh the look and freshness of your engineered hardwood flooring without causing any damage. According to experts, using the wrong hardwood flooring products and supplies can harm your floor. As you shine your hardwood flooring, here are things you should avoid:
- Avoid waxing your engineered hardwood if possible. Waxing is known to leave hardwood floors with yellow hues. It doesn’t work well with some coats, too.
- You should never use floor cleaning solutions containing oil and wax.
- Don’t use cleaners such as ammonia that contain a high ph level. These cleaners can damage your floor finish.
- You shouldn’t use vinegar and if you do, only use white vinegar. Vinegar has high acidity levels and can damage your floor finish.
Things to Look for in a Cleaner
As we mentioned previously, using an inappropriate cleaner on your engineered hardwood floor can have a serious effect. You must ensure you’re choosing the right water-based engineered hardwood floor cleaner. Look for eco-friendly cleaners designed of environmentally friendly, chemical-free, and biodegradable ingredients. That will keep your floor clean without exposing inhabitants to harmful chemicals.
Look for a high-quality engineered hardwood floor cleaner with a rotating head and brush. That will make it easier to clean large surfaces with minimal effort. Carefully read the product label to determine the amount of ph. content and confirm whether the product contains acids. Any product with a certain amount of oil and wax should be avoided as it will ultimately hurt your engineered hardwood floor. You may want to buy cleaners from trusted manufacturers for assurance of quality and efficiency.
Conclusion
Cleaning engineered hardwood floors to give it a shiny and attractive look doesn’t have to be a complicated process. You need to master the basics of the different techniques of cleaning, buffing, and mopping the floors. You should as well use cleaners and products highly recommended for engineered hardwood floors. You want to be cleaning spills after they happen to avoid the damage they might cause on your flooring. You should also sweep the flooring every day and clean it at least twice a week.