About 4 months ago I moved into a house with hardwood floors. Since then, the dog and I have tracked in some dirt and placed tracks on the floors. I sweep and dry mop, but how do I “clean” a hardwood floor?
Murphy’s Oil Soap, a bucket of water, and a wet mop (or in a pinch, a clean cloth). Have at it.
In between cleaning, I find that those new Swiffer/Grab it/whatever dustcloths on a handle thingies work really well at picking up dust and cat (and I assume dog) hair.
Am I the only person in the world who hates the look of a hardwood floor? My MIL recently ripped up her carpet and put in Pergo (yes, I know that’s fake wood) and to me it looks like her furniture is sitting on a basketball court or something. I don’t get it.
Unfortunately, it’s a lot more complex than this. Murphy’s Oil soap is fine if your wood floor has a polyurethane finish – the kind that looks like it has a smooth glass or plastic seal over the wood. If you can feel the grain of the wood by running your hand over the floor, your floor is probably waxed or oiled. Each type of finish requires its own special type of cleaning – most importantly, you should NOT use water on a waxed floor – you could damage the floor.
I did a lot of research on this exact question several months ago, and learned that my floor has a wax finish which needs to be cleaned by waxing and never with water. (From the Murphy’s Oil Soap website: “Remember, Murphy Oil Soap should not be used on unfinished, unsealed or waxed wood surfaces because they may be water sensitive.”)
Here’s a page that gives some general guidelines.
I second this – whatever kind of seal your wood floor, Swiffers are great for picking up dust, etc.
I use Zep Hardwood Floor Cleaner from the Home Depot. Great stuff. You use it like Windex. You could spray it on and mop it up, but I usually spray it on and wipe it up with a rag. Way easier than fussing with a mop and bucket. It has info on the bottle about what floor finishes it can be used on.
Actually, current wisdom is that you should never use Murphy’s Oil soap on wood floors, period. If yo ever want to refinish them, the oil prevents the finish from adhering properly.
Ok, since I seem to be wrong about cleaning the dang things (to be honest, I have someone come in to clean, so I don’t know what I was thinking posting about cleaning :)), can I at least comment about how they look?
I LOVE the look of hardwood floors. voguevixen, your basketball court comment made me smile, but to me, wood floors have a beautiful mellow shine that really enhances the look of the room. Not to mention if you live in a rental, hardwood floors are prettier and cleaner than the carpet they usually use. <shudder>
Foremer Professional Hardwood Floor Care Person Speaks.
Spoilervirgin is partially correct (not about the Murphy’s. though). The absolute first thing you must do is determine the nature of the finish. If it is poly, you clean it with plain water or water with a small amount of ammonia in it. Do NOT use Murphy’s, wax, oil, or anything except what I just said. You could spoil the finish for resurfacing.
The way you test to be sure of what the floor is is quite simple. pour some acetone or acetone-based nail polish on a spot and rub it with your fingers. The acetone will evaporate. If what remains is sticky, it is not poly, or it IS poly and someone dumped wax on it.
If it is wax, true cleaning is a bigger job than you probably want to get into or I want to write about. Did you buy this house or are you renting?
If you bought it, you should learn more about your floor and how to care for it. If you are renting, get your landlord’s help. (BTW, statisitcally speaking your floor is probably poly)
stoid
Thanks all.
I’ve bought the house. I can feel the grain of the wood with my finger. The house was built in 1905, these are the original floors, which were uncovered and redone several years ago. The floors aren’t deep filthy, they just have some dirty spots.