Have you ever wondered how to clean laminate floors? This type of floor is quickly emerging as a popular choice among individuals who enjoy the look and feel of floating wood tile but are seeking to avoid the cost and heavy maintenance that is associated with floating wood tile.
While there are several different types of floor available when it comes to the laminate style, there is one method that is used to successfully clean all of these styles of floor. Well, here are the basics of how to clean laminate floors.
To begin with, the laminate floor can be carved to fit the irregular floor. The study conducted by Catalina Research states that the use of laminating floors has increased by 5% in volume by the sales manufacturing from previous years to 957.5 million square feet.
Although, the overall United States market value of the same category decreased by 2.2% to $880.9 million according to the data provided by the sales manufacturing.
How To Clean Laminate Floors
Table Contents
Sweep laminate floor every Day
Because there is so much dust and debris that falls on the floor regularly, you should sweep every day. The best time is probably at night where everyone is gone to bed and the foot traffic has slowed down. This allows you to get to the higher traffic areas of your room.
Though you may have some rooms that are not used often, there will be dust particles that get on the floor from your air vents, make sure that you also clean the floor in those rooms. While you may not have to do it every day, you should at least do it 2-3 times a week.
Mop once a week
Some things a simple duster or broom will not pick up or we step on things that rub into the floors and are harder to get with a broom, so the only way to get it off of your floor is to mop it up. When moping, you can use a microfiber mop that is soft and will not damage your floor.
Avoid mops that are made out of harder material and can scratch the floors. Make sure to ring the mop a couple of times before you mop because you don’t want to damage the laminate floors by having excessive water.
Use an Eco-Friendly Solution
Some products are being promoted these days, i.e. “This is the best thing to clean your floors with”. The type of products you need, just look in your cabinets and grab the white vinegar or you can make your own.
Mix a cup of vinegar with warm, or steamy water. Add a few drops of lemon to get rid of the vinegar smell and if you have a lot of harder things on the floor, add just a drop of dish detergent. Mix it well and you are good to go!
Vacuuming
Vacuuming is a great way to suck away all of those invisible yet annoying specks of dust from the surface of your laminate. Always use a special and soft flooring attachment to vacuum your laminate. Don’t just use the regular vacuum cleaner. Otherwise, you could inflict wear and tear on your floor and scuff it up along the way.
If there are spills from the cleaning agent or water, make sure that you get rid of them immediately to avoid markings left on the floor.
Remove Common Stains
In the case of common stains like rubber heel marks, paint, oil, permanent marker, and tar, apply a natural cleaner on a fresh, light-colored cloth. If it doesn’t work, you can try using an acetone-based fingernail polish solution or rubbing alcohol. Nine times out of ten, such techniques do the trick.
Warm water, a natural cleaner, and a light-colored cloth can be used to remove stains like pasta sauce, blood, soda, wine, beer, and juice from your floor. Gently apply the cleaner and the warm water until the stain is completely gone.
If chewing gum or candle wax gets stuck to your laminate floor, freeze it solid with some ice for a while. From there, use a piece of plastic to gently scrape the substance away. Wipe the area down with a warm, damp cloth and you should be good to go.
Read the cleaning instructions that come with your laminate floor.
Consult the manufacturer’s instructions for your floor cleaning agent. The brand may have specific recommendations based on the materials used. Most companies have point-by-point product rules and information to clean laminate floors on their websites.
Never use soaps, cleaners, and cleaning agents that were not recommended by the manufacturing company of your laminate floor. The reason is manufacturers have their recommendation because there can be some chemicals included in those cleaners that may harm the floor.
Don’t use rough tools.
When cleaning a laminate floor, avoid using rough tools. Use hairy blooms to avoid scratching the floor. When vacuuming don’t use an attachment with a blade bar.
Don’t forget to throw down a welcome mat.
Dirt that gets tracked in from outside not only makes your floor dirty but also can damage the floor. The sand from the bottom of unclean shoes is the greatest enemy of the face of laminate floors. Stop dirt in its tracks with a mat that offers visitors the opportunity to give their shoes a good wipe.
Trim your pet’s nails.
You should trim the nails of your pets, be it a dog or cat. If the pet’s nail is unkempt, they can scratch your laminate floor as they move around. It’s not a tip but it’s a way to care for your floor.
Shining an aging laminate floor is something that every cautious homeowner would like to underscore. However, several possibilities may occur while carrying out this process, which includes the fact that you may damage the internal wooden pattern layer while attempting to improve the outlook of your floor. To know how to shine laminate floors;
You should check which materials may damage the floor if used in the cleaning process. For example, if you have to clean a floor that has got several hard stains on it such as those from oil or gravy, therefore, you should never use a rubbing material such as a wire ball or an abrasive cloth. These materials scratch the top protective layer of the laminated floor and may even reach deep to scratch the internal wooden layer.
This may cause irreparable damage to the floor because, if the pattern on even one plank becomes contrasting to the ones around it due to excessive scratching, the radiance of the floor as a whole may decrease quite sharply.
Thus ensure that all the materials you use in cleaning the floor such as mops or brooms, should be soft and go over the laminated floor smoothly. Also, you should know how to shine laminate floors using the perfect concentration of the cleaner which would be printed by the manufacturer on the bottle.
While cleaning the floor to ready it for the application of the cleaning fluid, you should make sure that the mop you use is mildly wet and not completely soaked in water, as this would leave excess water on the floor.
In places where the floor is worn out and the wooden pattern layer is exposed, the water may be absorbed if left standing for an extended period, which may be damaging for the floor and cause the particular area to look dull.
Along with that, if you leave large dirt particles on the floor and continue with applying the cleaner, the dirt particles may settle in the boundaries between two planks, and due to downward pressure, may start eating into the glue holding the individual pieces together.
This would mean that after some time, grooves would be created at the plank boundaries which would disturb the originally smooth and unbroken appearance of the floor. Thus, you should always take extra care while attempting to improve the look of the floor using laminate floor cleaners as you may very well end up damaging the floor if you use the incorrect method or procedure.
Benefits of laminate floor
floating wood tile have several benefits but not limited to the following;
Maintenance: Laminated floors are dependable and durable. They can stand a region with a high movement of people since they have high resistance to impacts.
Cost: When compared to the hardwood floor, the laminate is cheaper. Most of the producers of laminate floors charge reasonable prices, enabling one to acquire floating wood tile cheaply.
Molding: The larger part of laminate designs virtual molding to create it simpler to plan your room. Utilizing other materials to plan your room can be impossible or difficult to have a matching mold. This makes it hard to make decisions on the floor designs.
What To Use When Cleaning Laminate Floors
When cleaning the laminate floor, use non-abrasive products. This includes; mild detergents, ammonia, vinegar with water, etc. These agents will help in the removal of stains in a certain area of the floor. It is helpful to know the kind of cleaners you should go for.
The best way to know that a product is good for your floor is to test it. You can do this on the floor surface under the fridge and see what the results are. You will find that citrus-based products are very effective and they will not harm your floor. Therefore, do not go for soap-based cleaners. The citrus-based cleaners will leave your floor surfaces looking great and feeling fresh.
What not To Use When Cleaning Laminate Floors
You should never use scouring powder, steel wool, or sandpaper. Many are tempted to scrub their floors using these products, thinking that they are going to get rid of stains. They ruin the floor and reduce greatly its features and glory. In this category, there are things you should never do, like waxing, sanding, or applying lacquer. A doormat should be used as a precautionary measure.
It will help greatly by trapping all dust and stones that may find their way into scraping your flooring. Furniture can leave marks on your floor and avoid this use felt pads that are placed under the furniture legs or use Castor cups or furniture wheels.
Besides the unwanted accidents resulting in the floating wood tile getting defective, there should be proper care to increase the life expectancy of certain floating wood tile. As easy and low-cost as it is, one has to clean floating wood tile to avoid the dilemma, and to achieve this, it should be done regularly all year round to avoid incurring a loss.
Floating wood tile is indeed the type that requires the easiest method to maintain it, yet cleaning it properly and regularly is highly essential. So, if you don’t want to be in the same boat as those who ignore the need for their laminate flooring to be kept in a like-new condition as possible, consider the following.
In Conclusion
If you need to do a few spot cleaning, for an extreme mark you’ll utilize either a nail clean remover that contains acetone or liquor. Warm water can be utilized for stains and for things like gum or wax, you ought to first use ice to solidify them and after that scrape them away very gently.
Cleaning cover flooring isn’t difficult at all. The most perfect way to clean laminate flooring is the same way you’d clean your counter or tabletop. You’ll not require any grating materials or solid chemicals. Its simplicity to clean is what makes it popular and a choice to many. Following the above guidelines will help you clean and maintain your how to clean laminate floors.
References
- Can I Use Roomba on Laminate Floors?: https://smarthomestarter.com/can-i-use-roomba-on-laminate-floors/
- 9 Laminate Floor Mistakes and How to Fix Them: https://www.thespruce.com/laminate-floor-mistakes-and-solutions-1900254
