Most will agree that a well-maintained wood floor is a thing of beauty. If you take the time to learn all the things you need to do for your floor, shouldn’t you also know what you should try to avoid? Hardwood floor care is more than just cleaning and occasionally refinishing. A lot of it involves knowing how these surfaces can be easily damaged. Following is a list of actions to avoid in the care of your hardwood floors and how to protect the beauty of hardwood floors in your home.
Actions to Avoid in the Care of Your Hardwood Floor
Dragging heavy furniture.
Furniture can leave scratches and gouges in floors as you move them. Get some help lifting heavy pieces, or use felt pads. Sweep thoroughly before you move heavy furniture. Dirt that gets trapped under the furniture can leave scratches in your hardwood flooring.
Waiting too long to refinish
If your hardwood floor is beginning to look stale and the finish has worn off, it is time for a refinish. Putting this off will make the work harder and force you to spend more money restoring the surface or replacing the boards. Timely refinishing is especially important for high traffic areas.
Using chemicals
Cleaning a wood floor is easier than most people think. You do not need strong cleaners to do a good job. In fact, many cleaning products can damage the surface of hardwood floors. Purchase products made specifically for wood floors.
Steam cleaning
Steam mops are more suited to use on tiles. Aside from the moisture which is not good for wood floors, the heat from steam mops can cause the top layer of the wood to deteriorate over time. On that note, avoid using too much water when mopping up your floors.
Pet management
Dogs and cats can do a lot of damage to this type of floor in a relatively short time. Keep their nails or claws trimmed to protect the wood.
Welcome mat
Anything that gets tracked on your floors is slowly wearing away the surface. Make sure that you use a welcome mat to keep this to a minimum.
Tacking down rugs
Trying to keep rugs from shifting can be frustrating but tacking them is not always the best answer. When you have to move the rug, some of the adhesives may be left behind. You can also strip off some of the finish as well.
High heeled shoes
Your amazing stilettos might look great, but they are not so great for wood surfaces. They can leave impressions and marks on the wood. This can be even worse if the heel is damaged.
We regularly partner with homeowners to repair or replace hardwood floors during the remodeling process. We have a historic home in the Willo where we will be replacing the 100-year-old hardwood floors during their remodel. Since these homeowners appreciate real hardwoods, we will be installing a new hardwood floor. We will proceed that with a good termite treatment to keep them safe from that damage.
Preventing any type of damage to your hardwood floors will actually make maintenance much easier. You cannot possibly protect your floors from everything, but you can help that beauty to last longer by taking several precautions and preliminary measures. Call us at (480) 895-3442 if you are interested in installing hardwood flooring or restoring your existing hardwood floor; we can help! Our premier, award-winning remodeling company serves those in Phoenix or the surrounding area.
Examples of some of our hardwood floors:
See all our award-winning designs in our portfolio here!