Vinyl Flooring Maintenance Hacks Every Homeowner Should Know
Every homeowner desires a tidy, appealing, and guest-friendly house. In bathrooms and kitchens, vinyl flooring is a popular choice that looks great with proper upkeep. The longevity of this flooring makes it a popular option for homes as well. If you want your floors to look brand new again, deep cleaning is a smart idea even if a fast sweep and mop generally takes care of ordinary dust and debris. Below are some cleaning tips for floors vinyls that have stains or scuffs that detract from their aesthetic appeal.
As you'll see, maintaining and cleaning vinyl floors isn't difficult. Just like with any other floor, you should hoover or sweep it frequently. Use a soft broom to sweep it instead of a hard one to prevent scratches. To make it slide smoothly over the floor when vacuuming, put it in the "bare floor" mode. Get a doormat as well to prevent dragging dirt outside.
It's also necessary to acquire low-impact cleaning methods, so do not think that soaking the floor in water will work. Rather, choose a cleaning product designed especially for vinyl flooring. Additionally, never clean vinyl with oil- or wax-based solutions. If you want to purchase vinyl flooring, hallway flooring, or more, check out Vinyl Flooring UK.
• Use a Vinyl Floor Cleaner or a comparable product to dry or damp mop as needed for general cleaning.
• Avoid using a steam mop or wet mop at all since the heat from the mop may dull the finish and standing water can permanently damage surfaces. The damp mop's moisture should swiftly evaporate off the floor.
• Avoiding too much wetness on the floor is still a good idea, even with vinyl flooring's waterproof nature. Thus, we advise using a dry towel or dry mop to absorb spillage right away.
• Adhesive Remover should be used to remove dried glue.
Use a moist mop with warm water and a small amount of detergent for a deeper clean. Standing water can harm your vinyl floors, so be sure to completely dry out the mop to prevent additional water from getting on your floors. To further protect your vinyl floors from scratches, never use steel wool or abrasive scrubbing pads.
Preventative Maintenance Tips:
• To prevent scratches on the floor, regularly hoover or sweep the floor with a broom or dust mop to remove debris, grit, or sand. Watch out for additional trash, such as tiny stones and pebbles that may be scattered throughout the floor.
• Brush or felt Hoover heads are preferred over hard heads; avoid using vacuums with beater bars or turning them off.
• Trim your pet's nails to prevent over-scratching.
• Remove small diameter buttons or ends from furniture legs and replace them with felt-tipped, non-staining floor protectors that have a minimum 1" diameter surface to avoid indentations and scratches. Wider floor protectors could be necessary for heavier items. Check the felt tips frequently for wear or debris/grit accumulation, and replace them as necessary.
• Install soft rubber casters with a minimum 2" diameter on rolling furniture.
• Use appropriate dollies, glides, or 1/8" Masonite with the shiny side down when moving large appliances or furniture; do not drag or slide across the floor. Vinyl floors can get damaged when appliances are rolled across the floor or when large, load-bearing carts with little wheels are used.
• To stop moisture and dirt from being tracked onto the floor, place doormats at entrances on the inside as well as the outside. In high-traffic areas and in front of kitchen sinks, area rugs are also advised. Breathable materials are required for rugs in order to avoid moisture trapping. We suggest using a permeable rug underlay; the ideal patterns are mesh or grid. Use of rugs with solid vinyl or rubber backings is not advised as this could harm the finish.
• In locations where UV radiation is prevalent, use drapes and shutters to reduce the amount of direct sunlight that hits the floor.
• Avoid using strong or abrasive cleaners to clean the floor. Mineral spirits, paint thinner, acetone, ammonia-based cleansers, acrylic finishes, wax-based products, detergents, bleach, polishes, oil soap, abrasive cleaning soaps, and acidic ingredients like vinegar should never be used on flooring. Don't ever treat floors with wax.
• "Hot spots" may be caused by heating units or uninsulated ductwork near the flooring or subfloor; these must be removed before installation.
• Massive furniture (500 pounds or more) might prevent a floating floor from moving freely and naturally.
• Avoid putting flooring under fixed or permanent cabinets and avoid screwing or nailing anything through a floating floor.
• Lighter and darker hues exhibit more blemishes, stains, and filth and require more upkeep.
Even though vinyl flooring doesn't stain, spills should still be cleaned up every once to avoid discoloration. Start by using a fresh cloth or paper towel to dab the spill in order to erase stains from your vinyl floors. Wipe the spill and then use a light detergent and warm water mixture to clean the surface. For more enduring stains, follow the manufacturer's instructions before applying a commercial vinyl floor cleaning.
Use isopropyl alcohol or nail polish remover on a clean cloth and carefully scrape any stubborn stains, such as those caused by markers or ink. Before putting a cleaning solution on a stain, always test it on a tiny, discrete section of your vinyl floors because some solutions could damage the surface.
Searching for something more thorough than a routine cleaning and unsure of how to handle stubborn paint or gum stains that you might think are unremovable?
When scraping up paint or gum, a putty knife works excellently, but use caution to avoid damaging the floor. A baking soda paste works wonders for stains like ink, lipstick, tomato sauce, grape juice, ketchup, and others you believe are hard to remove! Using a soft cloth, apply the baking soda paste (baking soda and water), and then gently rub until the spots are gone.
