Floor Maintenance Tips

Floor Maintenance Tips and Tricks

Looking for floor maintenance tips? Maintaining your hardwood, luxury vinyl, laminate, and carpet prolongs the life of your floor coverings and ensures they look beautiful for years to come.

Not all cleaning products are appropriate for all floor surfaces.

The flooring experts at Lakeside Floor Coverings have put together maintenance guides for every floor type.

Learn from the professionals on how to keep your floor coverings in great shape.

Carpet Care and Maintenance

Proper carpet cleaning will prolong its lifespan, improve your indoor air quality, and maintain your warranty. Always follow your carpet manufacturer’s maintenance requirements. Here are some carpet cleaning tips:

– Clean your carpet routinely with a quality vacuum to maintain the look of your new carpet and prevent soil from becoming embedded in the carpet’s pile.

– Place walk-off mats both outside and inside all entrances to help absorb soil and moisture, as well as trap excessive dirt and debris that might otherwise be tracked into the home from outdoor shoes. Clean the mats on a regular basis so they don’t become sources of soil themselves.

– Move your furniture on occasion to help avoid excessive pile crushing. Also, consider using carpet protectors under the legs of tables, chairs, and other furniture to help distribute the weight. Damage can occur if you use chairs or appliances with rollers or casters without a chair pad designed specifically for carpet.

– If you use rugs on your carpet, clean them regularly (and don’t forget to clean and restore the pile of the carpet underneath). Check area rugs for colorfastness before placing them on carpet because the color in some rugs may bleed through. After cleaning your carpet, allow it to dry completely before replacing the area rugs.
– Protect your carpet from prolonged periods of direct sunlight with blinds, shades, or awnings.

– In a typical household, professional carpet cleaning should be done every 12 to 18 months. Choosing the proper deep cleaning solution is important. The wrong solution could leave residues and accelerate re-soiling, defeating the whole purpose of professional cleaning. Hot water extraction, also known as steam cleaning, is the most effective solution.

– Spills are inevitable; the key to preventing carpet stains is to act quickly. When a spill occurs, spot cleaning is recommended. Blot the area to absorb the liquids with a plain white paper towel or white absorbent cloth. Avoid scrubbing or using a brush, as this can damage the carpet. Follow your manufacturer’s recommendations on how to clean carpet and remove common household stains. This may vary based on carpet fiber and the type of stain.

Hardwood Care and Maintenance

Sweep, dust, or vacuum the hardwood floor regularly to remove dirt or grit that can scratch or dull the wood floor finish. When using the vacuum, be sure to use the hardwood floor attachment (not the beater bar). Our favorite tool is a microfiber dust mop.

– Clean your hardwood floor with a mild cleaning solution or just plain water (never use abrasive cleaners). Spray a mist directly onto the wood floor and wipe with a mop. You should avoid a wet mop on your wood floor. Save your mop bucket; you do not need that much liquid to clean hardwood floors.

– Using floor mats at exterior doors is helpful in trapping loose dirt, grit, and other substances that can otherwise be tracked onto your hardwood flooring. Placing an area rug in high traffic areas will help reduce wear on the floor finish.

– Avoid using rubber-backed mats as they prevent your wood floor from breathing, with the exception of inside exterior doors to absorb snow and water.

– Periodically rearranging your area rugs will allow the hardwood flooring to age evenly. UV sunlight will alter the tone of different species of hardwood to varying degrees.

– Use floor protectors to minimize scratches from heavy objects, such as a furniture leg. As a rule, the heavier the object, the wider the floor protector should be. Replace plastic furniture wheels with rubber wheels.

– Maintain the indoor relative humidity level between 35% and 55% throughout the year to minimize the natural expansion and contraction of wood (see manufacturer’s recommendations).

– Use a damp cloth to blot spills and spots promptly. Always avoid allowing liquids to stand on your floor.

– Be careful using a steam cleaner on your wood floors, as excessive moisture can damage the hardwood flooring.

Finally, when the finish is showing wear, have a professional wood flooring company buff or sand the floors.

Vinyl Maintenance and Cleaning Tips

Sweep or vacuum vinyl floor regularly to remove loose dirt and debris.

– Wipe up spills as soon as possible. Spills can discolor, stain, or leave water marks on the vinyl flooring.

– Damp mop with warm water and a pH neutral floor cleaner.

– Never use abrasive cleaners, compounds, or tools. Always check the product manufacturer’s recommendations.

– Avoid using a steam mop.

– Use walk-off mats at entrances to assist in trapping dirt and grit. Dirt and grit can act as an abrasive, which dulls the vinyl floor finish over time. Avoid rubber-backed mats as they can discolor the flooring.

– Use protective pads under furniture feet that move often (like chairs) to protect the vinyl flooring from scratches and scuff marks. Clean the floor protectors regularly as they can pick up dirt and debris.

– Avoid pushing, pulling, and dragging heavy furniture and other items across the vinyl flooring. Items should be picked up and moved to avoid scratching the finish.

Tips and Tricks for Floor Maintenance

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