Hardwood floors are a classic choice and highly preferred by homeowners. Even bars and restaurants often have hardwood flooring owing to its beauty and easy maintenance. Hardwood floors make your place look earthy yet elegant and go well with many décor styles. 

Hardwood flooring is a major investment and if you take good care of it, it can last well for many years. All you need is some preventive maintenance, regular cleaning, and refinishing every once in a while.

So, here are some tips explaining how to care for hardwood floors.

 

• Clean spills immediately

 

Hardwood floors take spills well as they do not stain instantly like on carpet. But they could, after a while; and any liquid on a hardwood floor for long could damage it. If stains set into the floor, you will have to refinish the floor. So, it’s critical to clean up any spills immediately.

 

• Dust and mop regularly

 

No matter where you live, or how clean your house is, dust and other fine particles can set into the grain and between floor boards. There could also be tiny bits of dirt that could scratch the floor surface. Hence, it is necessary that you sweep the place every day. This will get rid of unwanted grit and save you bigger damages or repairs in future.

 

• Use a hardwood cleaner once a week

 

Various types of hardwood cleaners are available in the market. Using this on the flooring once a week or once in a fortnight will keep the surface looking shiny and polished.

 

• Vacuum the place

 

Even if you are sweeping and mopping regularly, or have a ‘no-shoes policy’ indoors; there will be some dust, mud, sand or gravel coming into the house depending on the season and your place of residence. Certain particles may escape the mopping and sweeping but can be removed using a vacuum cleaner. Vacuuming the rooms once a week will ensure that no particles remain on the floor and create scratches on it as they get pushed around.

 

• Use furniture pads

 

The legs of chairs, tables and beds are no friends of hardwood flooring. Furniture that is moved around a great deal, like chairs can cause a lot of scratches on the hardwood floor. If these are deep, they will be visible until the hardwood flooring has been rebuffed and refinished.

Beds and sofas are not shifted often and so they may damage less. Nevertheless, it is a good idea to use furniture pads on the bottom of all pieces of furniture. You could also apply strips of felt so that you can prevent permanent scratches on the floor.

Adding rugs and carpets to your décor is also a wise way of preventing direct contact of shoes or furniture with the floor.

 

• Polish the floor

 

Hardwood floors with a wax finish can be waxed often. This will keep them looking shiny and will also buff out any recent scratches. 

But use all wax and cleaning products after reading the product information and instructions carefully.