How Do You Clean Your WOOD Floor?

[iLander]

Does anyone have any suggestions for wood floor cleaning?

I HATE the streaking, and I've tried a bunch of products with mops, water, etc. I've even tried just spraying on hard wood floor cleaner and rinsing with paper towels. Still streaking.

It makes me nuts!

I always follow label instructions carefully, so it's not a technique thing.

Anybody else solve this one?

I've got a LOT of wood, so please keep that in mind (no toothbrushes )

 

[Kaleigh]

Hey Ilander,
I use Quick shine by Hollaway house. Long lasting protection and shine for hard wood floors. I swear by this stuff. You should be able to find it at your supermarket. It really does an amazing job. I have lots too, and this stuff really lasts.. The shine is so pretty. HTH, good luck. Lisa

 

[iLander]

Hey Ilander,
I use Quick shine by Hollaway house. Long lasting protection and shine for hard wood floors. I swear by this stuff. You should be able to find it at your supermarket. It really does an amazing job. I have lots too, and this stuff really lasts.. The shine is so pretty. HTH, good luck. Lisa

Thank you, Kaleigh!

It seems to have good reviews on the net, too. It says to do up to 6 layers of the stuff, then what are you supposed to do? Do you have to strip it off, somehow? I read it on their main website.

It says my local grocery is on their retailer's list, but I swear, I've never seen this stuff before . . .

It sounds so easy to use!

 

[Kaleigh]

Hey Ilander,
I use Quick shine by Hollaway house. Long lasting protection and shine for hard wood floors. I swear by this stuff. You should be able to find it at your supermarket. It really does an amazing job. I have lots too, and this stuff really lasts.. The shine is so pretty. HTH, good luck. Lisa

Thank you, Kaleigh!

It seems to have good reviews on the net, too. It says to do up to 6 layers of the stuff, then what are you supposed to do? Do you have to strip it off, somehow? I read it on their main website.

It says my local grocery is on their retailer's list, but I swear, I've never seen this stuff before . . .

It sounds so easy to use!

6 layers?? Hah, not me, I do one. They also make a cleaner.. Just pour a bit on the floor and wipe with a clean wet sponge mop...
Easy as 1,2 3!! I kid you not!!!

 

[iLander]

SOLD!

I'm ordering the starter kit from their website, because I swear I've never seen it in a store.

Thank you, Kaleigh! I have a shelf full of floor cleaners, but this one has great reviews.

I'm not doing six layers either, it just seemed curious to me.

TIP TRADE: If you ever need a carpet cleaner, use this stuff:

http://www.chemdry.com/products-tips/products-available-at-the-home-depot/stain-extinguisher-carbonated-spot-remover

Chem Dry Stain Extinguisher. I can get out stains that have been there for literally years. It's amazing, I have saved SO much money on carpet cleaning. It's not good for big areas (too tedious to spray and blot a large area), but it's good for your average spot.

 

[Kaleigh]

YOU will love it. I cannot do without it. If they take this off the market I would cry... JUst like I did when the company that made my chocolate covered potato chips did. I need very little in life, small things make me happy.

 

[violet3]

i think you've already decided, but DH and I just got the bissell steam mop - my sister got the shark mop. It steams the hardwood and sanitizes - the bissell also smells like eucalyptus, which is awesome!

 

[NewEnglandLady]

I used to use both Murphy's and Quick Shine. With two dogs, I vacuum every day, but once a week I like to do some deeper cleaning for the hardwoods. When we were renting our last house I fell in love with Quick Shine because it left a nice, polished look. Unfortunately, because I was applying it once a week, after a few months the wax really started building up and it started to look like there was a layer of old plastic on the floors. I ended up spending hours and hours steaming the floors to get rid of the wax buildup before we moved out.

The house we bought has original wood floors that have only been oiled for the past 200+ years. They have developed a patina and I've been told that the best way to clean them is by steaming them--so I do that once a week. I don't know if it's a good solution for non antique floors. I think each type of wood floor requires different solution. So far I like the steaming because it's the only thing that hasn't left old buildup for me (Murphy's and Quick Shine both did)

 

[bebe]

ugh, wood floors.
I love mine, our entire downstairs is wood except the laundry room and exercise room.
I started out using a grocery store cleaner, great results. Then I had a short-lived maid
who insisted she use nothing but a warm, wet string mop. After a few months, the wax from
the product I was using and the water the maid was using created a cloudy film. Hubby and I
spent 4 days with a steamer and towels getting the wax build up off. At that point I used
nothing but the warm water for years, then I started noticing how dull it looked. Tried a bunch
of products, some of the areas looked cloudy again. My neighbor suggested Boma. It worked!
I bought a flat thick terry mop that had a spray bottle on it (Target) and went to town. My floors
are ok, not great, but not as cloudy. I think the real trick is to stick to ONE product and never
change.

 

[turtledazzle]

I second the Bona recommendation. It is what the guy who refinished our floors told us to use -- but he also told us to clean sparingly. Cleaning wood floors too often is apparently not good for them either, so we just vacuum and use a damp micofiber mop a lot of the time.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

My MIL asked me this over the holiday's...she phrased it like this "what do you use to clean your floors"...I answered "my house keeper"...and I meant it.

For the life of me I swear I have ZERO motivation to get on my hands and knees to wash the hardwoods. We have very little carpet in our house...and when I look at the job as a whole (not room by room) I get tired just thinking about out.

My lady using Bruce (from Lowes). It's A+ stuff. Outside of that, it's all Greek to me.

 

[soocool]

I second the Bona recommendation. It is what the guy who refinished our floors told us to use -- but he also told us to clean sparingly. Cleaning wood floors too often is apparently not good for them either, so we just vacuum and use a damp micofiber mop a lot of the time.

Ditto!

I only use the Bona on spots and use sparingly. I vacuum the floor with a soft brush vac attachment and sometimes use a slightly damp mop (microfiber or terry cloth) to clean (we do not wear shoes in the house). I make sure I vacuum the runners and area carpet twice a week to make sure I remove all dust and dirt so that it does not end up on the floor and scratch it.

Somethings to remember:
1. do not wax a polyurethaned floor (finished in place floor).
2. do not use a lot of water on a hardwood floor. When wood absorbs water it expands and this can lead to cracking

 

[soocool]

Does anyone have any suggestions for wood floor cleaning?

I HATE the streaking, and I've tried a bunch of products with mops, water, etc. I've even tried just spraying on hard wood floor cleaner and rinsing with paper towels. Still streaking. It makes me nuts!

I always follow label instructions carefully, so it's not a technique thing.

Anybody else solve this one?

I've got a LOT of wood, so please keep that in mind (no toothbrushes )

iLander, the streaks may be due to the water you use. Try distilled water instead of tap water.

If your floors are polyurethaned they may need to be screened and a new coat or polyuretanne applied if not too bad. Otherwise, maybe sanded and refinished?

If your floors are prefinished then you don't want to wet mop (damp mop only) because the water can seep down between the planks.

 

[Tuckins1]

I have a lot of beautiful hard wood floor, and I have discovered that a very diluted mixture of warm water and windex (yes, windex- due to the amonia) works great. I scrub my floors on my hands and knees, just using a cloth that is REALLY wrung out to wipe the floor, then I use a dry one to wipe up any left over dampness on the floor. They sparkle like a showroom floor!

 

[Catmom]

My entire house is hardwoods. Bonakemi all the way!

 

[janinegirly]

We have wood floors throughout the house, including the kitchens. Well everywhere but the bathrooms...so this is timely. I agree on not overcleaning, wiping down and vacuuming is enough with deep cleaning once in awhile/as needed. Our floors are new and not super shiny (more matte) so I'm trying to avoid any wax build up. Bona sounds good - I'll look into it.

In terms of vacuuming, which ones areyou all using to prevent scratching?

 

[mary poppins]

We have polyurethane wood floors throughout the house, except two bathrooms. I sweep with a soft sweeper (not a broom) almost every day because I don't like the feel of crunchy grit under my feet. Other than that, we just steam with a shark as needed.

 

[atroop711]

I have bamboo flooring and I use this http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/view.2/app.detail/params.item.V28671.desc.Haan-Slim-Light-FloorSteamer-wCarpet-Glide2Microfiber-Pads.. I only use this once a week...every day I will either sweep with a swiffer or I will vacuum some spots.

It's simple, good for bamboo and wood flooring. Leaves the floors so clean and it's fast too

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Ditto the others who recommended the Bona system. I vacuum and then go over the floor with the fluffy dust mop (I can never seem to get up ALL of the dog and cat hair without it!) and then I spray and mop with the microfiber mop pad.

 

[Allison D.]

I just had hardwood floors put in our upstairs by a guy who's been refinishing and laying hardwood floor for 22 years, and when he saw I was using Bona cleaner for the downstairs, he advised against it.

He said that most of the cleaners leave wax build up that accrues over time, including Murphy's and Bona.

He told me the best way to care for them is to clean them with Windex......spray it on, damp mop it up. It's not on the floor long enough to saturate or cause problems, and no buildup.

 

[Catmom]

I just had hardwood floors put in our upstairs by a guy who's been refinishing and laying hardwood floor for 22 years, and when he saw I was using Bona cleaner for the downstairs, he advised against it.

He said that most of the cleaners leave wax build up that accrues over time, including Murphy's and Bona.

He told me the best way to care for them is to clean them with Windex......spray it on, damp mop it up. It's not on the floor long enough to saturate or cause problems, and no buildup.

That's so funny Allison because we just had some hardwoods put in our livingroom to match the existing 22 yr old floors by a guy that's been in the business for about as many years. He also does the floors for many of the buildings in downtown Chicago and he recommends Bona as the only thing to use. I think it's one of those things where each guy has his own take on the matter.

 

[Tuckins1]

I just had hardwood floors put in our upstairs by a guy who's been refinishing and laying hardwood floor for 22 years, and when he saw I was using Bona cleaner for the downstairs, he advised against it.

He said that most of the cleaners leave wax build up that accrues over time, including Murphy's and Bona.

He told me the best way to care for them is to clean them with Windex......spray it on, damp mop it up. It's not on the floor long enough to saturate or cause problems, and no buildup.

I use a diluted windex solution too, and my floors look like brand new!!! I don't spray it on, I mix it with warm water. Just enough to make the water a bit sudsy. I scrub my floor with a damp cloth and then wipe it up so it leaves no streaks. It takes time, but it's worth it!

 

[iLander]

I just had hardwood floors put in our upstairs by a guy who's been refinishing and laying hardwood floor for 22 years, and when he saw I was using Bona cleaner for the downstairs, he advised against it.

He said that most of the cleaners leave wax build up that accrues over time, including Murphy's and Bona.

He told me the best way to care for them is to clean them with Windex......spray it on, damp mop it up. It's not on the floor long enough to saturate or cause problems, and no buildup.

I use a diluted windex solution too, and my floors look like brand new!!! I don't spray it on, I mix it with warm water. Just enough to make the water a bit sudsy. I scrub my floor with a damp cloth and then wipe it up so it leaves no streaks. It takes time, but it's worth it!

THIS is exactly what I've been doing all these years. It does look great, but seriously, I don't think I can keep it up any more! I will continue to do it on the tile, because nothing looks better, and it's a small area.

I bought the Quick Shine that Kayleigh suggested, but haven't managed to get the time set aside to work on the floor. It's easily a four hour job. Without the stupid den.

This is why the elderly live in a single room at a facility that someone else cleans: they are just smarter!

 

[PilsnPinkysMom]

We used to use a Bona and recently switched to a Shark vac/steam mop combo a few weeks back. It's much easier (in that we don't have to buy refills) and really seems to work. If the pup tracks mud on a particular area, I'll spritz it with a water/cleaning solution combo, let it sit for 10 seconds, and then run over it with the steam mop. I like that the steam sanitizes and is safe for the animals and for our baby niece... no chemicals!