How to Clean Hardwood Floors

As opposed to carpets, hardwood floors are easy to clean. You can use household products in less time than it usually takes to care for carpeting. Once you know how to care for your hardwood floors, you should be able to keep them sparkling clean for many years. Just follow these steps.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Broom
• White vinegar
• Mop and bucket

1. Dust off the hardwood floors. You can use your everyday broom to get the job done. Be sure that all dust and other grime is removed before you proceed. If you feel a broom isn't doing the job, you can even use your vacuum cleaner.

2. Mix a half a cup of white vinegar with a gallon of warm water. The white vinegar will help make your hardwood floors even cleaner than using just water alone. Make sure the water isn’t too hot, as that may damage your floor.

3. Proceed to mop the floor using a household mop and the vinegar and water mix. Mop the entire hardwood floor area, while paying special attention to any area that appears dirty. Don't soak the floor with water because moisture can harm any hardwood floor. Use just enough water that is needed to mop.

4. Dry the hardwood floors. You can use a towel or a dry mop. On some surfaces, it might not be necessary to dry after mopping. See if your hardwood floors appear to be drying on their own or if you’ll need to dry them yourself.

5. Repeat weekly to keep your hardwood floors looking their best. Don’t mop everyday, as that could do damage to your floors.

Tips & Warnings

• Almost all hardwood floors are safely cleaned with vinegar. If you want to make sure, simply clean a small spot on the floor using the vinegar mix to assure that it’ll be safe to clean the rest of the floor.

[mimi1330]

on 4/1/2009 My family has suffered with allergies and this made carpet something I just don't need a lot of. Yet, I have a bad back and needed flooring which wouldn't be too difficult. Keeping them clean the simplest way possible was a desire of mine. thank you