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Hardwood Floors 101

Who is Bob?
Owner of Fashion Floors by Bob, Inc. serving Minneapolis, Saint Paul and Greater Minnesota since 1987 with hardwood floor installation, sanding, finishing, stairs, custom stain, patch and repair.
www.FashionFloorsbyBob.com

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Hardwood Floor Cleaners

Choosing appropriate cleaning products for your hardwood flooring depends almost entirely on the finish, or coating, applied over the top of the raw wood. There are a lot of misleading retail products on the market that have caused un-repairable damage, loss of warranty, or additional maintenance expense that would not have been necessary if the proper products were used.

Select Hardwood Floor Cleaners Carefully

1. Read product labels thoroughly and ensure they specifically state they are suitable for your floor's finish. Bruce and other Armstrong® products do a good job of describing proper usage, for example.

2. Regardless of the cleaning product used, never let it stand on the floor for any length of time. Clean the floor in sections, using a dampened (not soaking wet) cloth or mop. Be sure no puddles have collected before moving on to a new section.

Say NO to Oil- and Wax-based Cleaning Products on Polyurethane Finishes

There are a lot of products out there claiming to be very effective and safe for hardwood floors. Read those package labels carefully and be sure they say they can be used for polyurethane finished floors such as Bona.

Some labels actually say they can't be used for polyurethane though they market themselves to wood floor owners. Other products don't say at all - I suggest you avoid those too. Read the fine print.

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The use of oil- or wax-based cleaning products may ruin your floor AND result in the loss of the warranty.
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The Murphy Oil Soap™ product has caused a great deal of frustration for some of my customers. This company markets aggressively to the hardwood floor owner and claims to be the most popular cleaner of wood in existence. That's fine - but you are not cleaning the wood itself on a finished hardwood floor ... you are cleaning the finish, the polyurethane coating over the wood.

They also declare that various tests show that new polyurethane coats adhere perfectly to wood floors cleaned with their product. I believe this is misleading to consumers, and I've seen the unfortunate effects over my two decades in the industry - even very recently with their most current product.

It seems there may also be some misleading advertising about the Orange Glo® hardwood floor cleaner. I keep hearing negative about it. This link leads to some consumer feedback. I have had no experience with it personally but I suggest checking into it further before using it on your floors.

  

Warranties by most manufacturers are voided if the consumer uses the wrong cleaning products for their wood floor type and/or finish. Oil soaps and products containing wax cleaners are one such example of what NOT to use for polyurethane coatings.

An oil soap product coats the floor surface with an oil residue that makes it nearly impossible to successfully recoat for maintenance in the future, even years later. To properly repair a floor contaminated with this type of product it must be completely sanded and refinished - a very costly and otherwise unnecessary event. One tell-tale sign that an oil soap or wax product has been used, when it shouldn't be, is the appearance of footprints as the floor is walked on in bare feet.

 

If you have already used a wax- or oil-based product on your polyurethane-coated wood floors, I advise that you immediately discontinue use and begin cleaning your floors with either white vinegar or a professional hardwood cleaner specifically for polyurethane finishes.

Don't use a retail cleaning product that must be mixed with water, such as oil soap or Mop & Glow™. Do not use wax, paste, polish, abrasive cleaners, steel wool or scouring powder.

Bob's top picks

The brands I use and trust the most are Bruce's, Dura Seal, and Bona. A homemade mixture of vinegar and water works well once or twice a month - you can spot clean with plain water in between. Or try a mild, all-natural soap heavily diluted with water and applied to the floor sparingly with a damp (not wet) cloth or mop or spray bottle.

From Hardwood Floor Cleaners to Area Rugs

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