In case you have wood flooring, you’ve likely already discovered their propensity for attracting dirt and sustaining scuff marks. You may be considering purchasing a steam cleaner to maintain them tidy, and it is true the mops make short work of dirt. But they are not such as engineered flooring hardwood and laminate planks producers and refinishing professionals caution that steam may harm all types of wood flooring, for timber flooring. It’s ideal to prevent water when cleaning your wooden floors.
Water Seepage and Swelling
Water may damage wood flooring by seeping through the cracks between boards and soaking under the surface into the wood. This seepage causes the wood to swell, and because the boards are closely assembled in floors, they push against each other. The edges can curl a condition called keratin, and the floor never returns to its original condition as soon as the timber dries out, while it may abate. Correct acute cases of cupping on hardwood flooring by sanding and refinishing, but replacement of the damaged boards, on some flooring that are engineered and laminate is the only alternative.
Steam Enhances Penetration
If you wash your floor sometimes with water and dry it completely immediately afterwards, you may be able prevent most of the unwanted effects of water damage. Using a steam cleaner is a story that is different. The mop pushes steam through cracks and crevices to force dirt outside, and the steam penetrates the joints between boards. Problems may not be noticed by you on a hardwood floor after the first couple of applications, but the effects are cumulative. On flooring, the effects are more immediate, as water is soaked up by the fiberboard cores of the planks more easily than solid hardwood.
Water Staining
Steam does not need to penetrate between the planks of your floor. Places on them may be missing or thin finish, if the planks are worn. It may pass through the finish and moisten the timber, Should you employ steam to these areas. The result is unattractive and dark blotches of timber. Water-staining is not common on flooring because of the surface, but it might affect solid and engineered hardwood flooring. The remedy would be to bleach the spots, which needs a sanding and refinishing out when it does.
Cleaning Hardwood Floors
It’s preferable to utilize a hardwood floor cleaner, in lieu of using steam — or even water — to clean your hardwood flooring. These products contain a solvent, for example ethylene glycol ethers, instead of water. If the floor is not scuffed, upkeep need entail little more than sweeping and vacuuming. Avoid using a vacuum with a sweeping attachment; the sweeper’s motion could scratch on the ground finish. You can remove by creating a paste with baking soda and water and scrubbing the scuffs if the ground has one or two scuff marks.