Hardwood Floor Maintenance

Maintenance is the key to the lasting beauty of your wood flooring.  However, cleaning your wood floor requires no more effort than vacuuming carpet or mopping vinyl - and wood floors don't need to be shampooed periodically.

For the first two weeks your floor is still curing, so:

• Be gentle when moving back furniture.
• Install proper felt protectors under ALL furniture.
• Wait with replacing area rugs.
• Avoid using water or any cleaner during this period.
• Avoid heavy traffic - wear socks, not shoes.

Long term maintenance of your floors:

According to the Oak Flooring Institute, "a good rule of thumb is to vacuum or dust weekly."  After vacuuming or dusting, use recommended flooring cleaner for spills and general cleanup on floors which have non-waxed polyurethane or Swedish finish.

Additionally:

• Place mats and throw rugs at doorways, exteriors and interiors to help prevent the tracking of grit, dirt and sand.
• Never wet-mop a wood floor.  Water and wood do not mix well together.  Use recommended flooring cleaner.
• Wipe up food and other spills immediately with a dry or slightly dampened towel (wipe dry).
• Keep high heels in good repair.  An unprotected tip will dent any hardwood floor.
• Put felt or fabric-faced glides under the legs of furniture to prevent scuffing and scratching.
• Kitchen floors experience the most traffic in a home.  Place an area rug in front of the kitchen sink and stove.  Shake out or vacuum the rugs frequently.
• When moving heavy furniture, protect wood flooring by slipping a piece of cloth or blanket under the legs.
• Do not use wax, oil soap, Pledge or other household cleaners.
• Finally, urethane finishes eventually will show wear patterns from surface scratching.  When high traffic areas begin to look dull it is time to recoat or restore the finish.  Call our company for a free evaluation of the condition of your floor.

The recommendations made here are not intended to endorse specific products or brands but to serve as general guidelines in the selection and use of maintenance materials.  Except for any directions on using water on wood, wherever our guidelines vary from a product's label instructions, always follow the label.