Caring for Your Hardwood Floors

Hardwood floors make a great addition to any home remodel at Lake of the Ozarks.  Although they aren't soft like carpet, they require less maintenance, last longer and don't hide all the harmful matter that carpet does.  However, that means you can actually see this matter building up on your hardwood floors; so how do you keep them clean?  Check out these tips from Lowes.com to keep your hardwood floors scratch and dirt free!

Cleaning Your Hardwood Floors

Since hardwood floors are one of the largest investments in your home, avoiding permanent damage is important to protecting your investment. Cleaning your floors is the first step in protecting your hardwood floors and eliminate the expense of replacing them in the future. Routinely clean and maintain your floors to avoid dirt and scratches that will dull the finish.  To ensure your beautiful hardwood floors will last a lifetime, be sure to use products that are safe for your floor, family and the environment.  While kids, pets and environment are all key factors in the amount of dirt your hardwood floors attract, you should clean your floors as often as possible.  This frequent cleaning will keep dirt and dust off the floors and avoid scratching.  In addition, it will keep harmful pollutants such as dust and allergens out of the home.  

Polishing Your Hardwood Floors

Depending on the amount of traffic your hardwood floors get, you should polish them every two to four months.  Polish provides a protective layer and evens out your floors by filling in the micro-scratches.  Polishing your floors is a simple do-it-yourself task that starts with sweeping, vacuuming or dust-mopping your floor.  Make sure your floor is dry and then squirt the polish on, spreading it with an applicator.  Follow the coverage specifications and allow it to dry completely.  Don't walk on it for at least an hour and wait 24 hours before allowing heavy traffic on it.      

Steps to Protecting Your Hardwood Floors

1. Daily 

Dust: Dusting each day keeps dust and dirt off the floor therefore preventing scratching.  Daily dust-mopping will also significantly reduce allergens in your home.  Try using a microfiber material because of its static charge that attracts more dust and allergens.  The smaller fibers reach into the floor pores to lift dirt more effectively, extending the life of your floor.

2. Weekly

Clean: Did you know there is actually a wrong way to clean floors?  Too much liquid can damage your hardwood floors, while the wrong formula may not work at all.  When choosing a cleaning product, look for pH-neutral, nontoxic and biodegradable formulas to clean effectively and keep you safe.  Vinegar, for example, can eat away at the finish, even when diluted with water.

3. Quarterly

Polish: Every two months, use water-based polishes to restore luster and shine. These types of polishes won't leave a residue or emit harmful toxins.  Plus they'll prevent over cleaning and stripping of your floor.  Durable, urethane-based polishes have fast dry times, no waxy buildup and a protective wear layer to fill in micro-scratches and even out the appearance of your floor.    

Hardwood Floor Maintenance Tips

• Avoid using water and vinegar, soap-based cleaners, wax or steam cleaners on your hardwood floors.  Vinegar and water will dull your floors finish over time, while soap or wax will leave a residue.  Steam cleaners put hear and excessive water on your floor, which can lead to cupping and long-term damage.
• Use a natural, rubber rug underlayment with a waffle pattern in the entry ways or high traffic areas.  Use felt floor protectors on your furniture and avoid walking across your hardwood floors in high heels.  
• Frequently dry-dust your hardwood floor with a microfiber dusting pad.  The electrostatic action will attract dirt, which is the main cause of scratches, micro-particles and common household allergens.    
• Using the proper tools to clean your floor is important.  A mop paired with a machine-washable microfiber pad is perfect for dusting and cleaning.  Avoid string mops because they put excessive amounts of water on the floor, which can be damaging and actually push dirt around, instead of picking up and removing dirt. 
• Wipe up all spills immediately to avoid permanent stains. 
• Keep pet nails trimmed to avoid scratching on your floors. 
• Maintain a comfortable environment and temperature, especially no extremes in humidity.  

Keeping your hardwood floors looking beautiful and new should be easy if you follow these tips. If your hardwood floors at the Lake of the Ozarks are already dull and scratched up, consider having All-Star Home Renovations install some new ones for you.  Or do you not have any hardwood floors in your house? Consider adding some!  Whether you are looking to sell or just update your home for your own enjoyment, hardwood floors add value to your home, proving to be a sound investment.

Follow our blog for advice on remodels at the Lake of the Ozarks, minor home repairs and improvements, tips to improve the value of your home, and so much more.

All-Star Home Renovations serves the entire Lake of the Ozarks area. We can handle everything from your most complex home improvement and remodeling projects to the simplest.

All-Star Renovations has 25 years experience and is fully insured!

• Kitchen Remodels
• Bathroom Remodels
• Deck Additions
• Siding, Roofing, Windows & Doors
• Tile & Flooring Installation
• Screened Room Additions
• Custom Trim Finish Work
• ... and so much more!

Request a free estimate on your next project!

Serving the Entire Lake of the Ozarks Area

Adam : 573-286-2569
adam@all-star-renovations.com

Jay: 573-480-4757
jay@all-star-renovations.com

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How to Keep Your Tile Floors Clean

Make Those Tile Floors Shine

Clean floors can do a lot for the appearance of a home.  You may have all the rooms picked up and organized, but a dirty floor creates that sense of clutter even when everything else is clean. Every time you go in and out of the house you are dragging in more dust and dirt.  At first you may not notice it, but eventually your floors become dull and sometimes you can even see the dust gathering together near the walls and behind doors.  And if walking on them turns your bare feet black, it's time to clean those floors and make them shine.  SheKnows.com has a few steps for you to follow to get your tile floors at the Lake of the Ozarks squeaky clean!

Step 1: Wipe Up Spills

During your day to day tasks, you are bound to spill something on the floor.  Rather than letting it set into your floors, wipe it up immediatly.  This will keep you from having to work extra hard to get it up later.  For liquid splills, use a damp cloth and for solid materials grab the broom or a vacuum for a quick fix.

Step 2: Remove Loose Dust

A broom and dustpan work well for any hard surface floors, but a vacuum is actually a better option, even for tile.  Sweeping often leaves behind dust particles, whereas a vacuum will get more of that dust out of the way and get your floors ready for mopping.  Most vacuums have a hard surface setting. but if yours doesn't, raise the height to the maximum setting to avoid scratching your floors.

Step 3: Know Your Surface

Knowing what type of materials your tiles are made of makes a difference in how you clean them. Many materials are sensitive to the harsh chemicals in cleaning products, especially any natural stones such as marble or travertine.  A general purpose cleaner or even simply hot, soapy water works fine for daily cleanup on ceramic tile.  You only need cleaning products if the dirt and grime has really built up and you need to do some hard-core cleaning.  Many manufacturers will recommend certain products for you to use for the heavy duty jobs. Since all tile is not the same, using the wrong cleaner can mar or dull your tile.  In addition to the cleaner, you need something to clean it with.  For smooth tiled floors, a soft mop should do the trick, but for rough surfaces, you will probably need a good scrub brush.

Step 4: Distinguish Your Dirt 

In addition to the type of tile you have, you should be aware of what type of dirt you are trying to get rid of.  If your are cleaning bathroom tile, you are likely dealing with soap scum.  Kitchen tiles will most likely be covered in grease and and grime.  Different types of dirt need different types of cleaning products.  Many cleaning product labels will say "cuts grease," which is good for the kitchen. Often times, you don't even need those store-bought products with all their harsh chemicals.  If hot water doesn't do the trick on your ceramic tiles, try adding two tablespoons of rubbing alcohol to each gallon of water.  This especially helps with dirty grout, but be sure to wipe up any excess liquid to keep from saturating the grout.  For vinyl tiles, you can add one cup of vinegar to a gallon of water. For marble and stone tile, as mentioned above, you need to be very careful.  Vinegar, rubbing alcohol and the store-bought cleaners can destroy the natural stone tiles.  Add some mild dish soap to your water instead and be sure mop again with just water to make sure all the soap residue is gone.    

Step 5: Be Pro-Active

The most important step you can do, is to prevent the buildup of dirt and grime.  The more often you at least sweep or run a soft mop across the floors, the easier they will be to keep clean. Experts suggest to sweep at least every other day and mop at least every two weeks.  If you wait and let that dirt build up, it will be harder and take longer to get them back to the way they were. You can also lessen the amount of dirt you track in by having mats inside and outside your doors.  Also taking off your shoes at the door helps a lot and be sure to clean those mats regularly.

Now how do you know when your floor is really clean?  Its easier to tell on hard surfaces than it is on carpet, but sometimes you don't know for sure until you test it. You can take a wet paper towel and wipe the surface to see if it picks up any dirt you may have missed.  Also touch it with you hand to see if there are any sticky places, sometimes the cleaning products will leave a residue that will actually attract more dirt and keep it glued to the floor.  Be sure to get those products thoroughly cleaned up.  And if you have neglected your flooring at the Lake of the Ozarks for too long and find that they are dull or scratched up and need replaced, call All-Star Renovations to get the job done!

Follow our blog for advice on remodels at the Lake of the Ozarks, minor home repairs and improvements, tips to improve the value of your home, and so much more.

All-Star Home Renovations serves the entire Lake of the Ozarks area. We can handle everything from your most complex home improvement and remodeling projects to the simplest.

All-Star Renovations has 25 years experience and is fully insured!

• Kitchen Remodels
• Bathroom Remodels
• Deck Additions
• Siding, Roofing, Windows & Doors
• Tile & Flooring Installation
• Screened Room Additions
• Custom Trim Finish Work
• ... and so much more!

Request a free estimate on your next project!

Serving the Entire Lake of the Ozarks Area

Adam : 573-286-2569
adam@all-star-renovations.com

Jay: 573-480-4757
jay@all-star-renovations.com

Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Connect with us on LinkedIn

Follow us on Google+