How to Protect Hardwood Floors

Hardwood floors are beautiful and can add thousands of dollars of value to a home, but only if they are well maintained. Hardwood floors that are scratched, worn or just loose their natural beauty can actually be a detriment to a home. If your hardwood floors are new, recently refinished or you just want to make sure they stay looking good--here are some ideas on how you can protect your hardwood flooring.

Things You'll Need

• Vacuum cleaner
• Mop
• Area rugs
• Felt protector pads
• Humidifier
• Diligence

Instructions

1. Consider that dirt, sand and grit are major enemies of good-looking hardwood floors. If any of these are allowed to sit on the floor they just get ground into the surface as people walk over the floors. The grit acts like sandpaper digging into the hardwood finish and perhaps right into the wood itself. Keep your hardwood floors clean by regularly sweeping, vacuuming using a bare floors attachment or even just a good (clean) dust mop.

2. Stains caused by water look dark and ugly and can even cause distortion of the hardwood boards. Be sure to wipe up any spills promptly.

3. Use area rugs to protect your floors. Area rugs near doors will help keep dirt and grit off the hardwood, and since sunlight can actually cause hardwood to change color, having an area rug in locations where the sun shines directly in will help keep your floor looking good.

4. Avoid scrapes and gouges on your floor by attaching felt protector pads to the legs of your furniture. When moving or rearranging the furniture, be sure to lift the piece before moving it. Even with the pads, scratches can happen.

5. Remember, pets (particularly dogs) can be a hardwood floor's worst enemy. A dog's nails can easily scratch a hardwood floor, and over time they can literally ruin the surface. Keep your pet's nails trimmed so they won't inadvertently scratch your floors.

6. Take care of your own shoes as well. If you commonly wear street shoes in your home, be sure the heels are in good condition. A worn heel (especially on a high-heeled shoe) pad can dig right into the wood surface and leave a major dent.

7. Try to keep the humidity in your home between 40 and 50 percent. You can do this by using a humidifier (where you can actually set the humidity similar to setting the temperature on a heater) or simply by boiling a pot of water on the stove during the winter.

Tips & Warnings

• If you do get a scratch on your floor, scratch repair kits are available at home and flooring stores. You will need to be sure to get a color that matches your floor and be prepared to sand down the surface and refinish the small section, but it's much cheaper than refinishing your entire floor.