Cleaning & Maintenance

Cleaning & Maintaining Your Timber Floor

Whilst timber flooring requires very little maintenance, there are a few things you can do to ensure its longevity and beauty.

A system of regular sweeping or vacuuming and mopping should keep your timber floor happy, and if you have an oiled floor - regular mopping with specialty oiled timber floor products will help you build a ‘patina’ to the floor which will enhance and deepen your oil finish, while protecting your floor. It’s very important to use products specially designed for maintaining timber flooring to keep it looking fresh and fabulous.

Routine clean

Vacuum or sweep to remove any loose dirt or grit off the floor. The best method of removing dirt and grit is vacuuming with a soft brush attachment on your vacuum, alternatively use a soft broom to sweep prior to damp mop cleaning. 

Slightly dampen (never soak) your clean Microfibre cleaning pad and attach to the mop head. Lightly spray a 2m x 1m area of your floor with your Mop using the trigger handle on the mop, then mop that section. Finish one area before moving on to the next. Use the bona spray bottle on localised marks or spills.

For oiled floors only

**The same process applies if you have an oiled floor, however you must only use cleaning products approved for use on oiled wood floors such as Rubio Soap. Simply decant your rubio soap concentrate following the instructions on the bottle. If you use a spray mop, decant into the spray mop cartridge and use your spray mop as normal.  

If you are cleaning an oiled floor - you cannot walk on the cleaned floor until it is completely dry, please allow 15 minutes per section to dry before walking on. Alternatively you may want to use Rubio Surface Care, a handy ‘ready to use’ spritzer spray for oiled floors, a fast solution for smaller surfaces or to remove local stains without having to mop the whole floor.

Deep Clean

After every few years depending on the wear and tear of your floor, you might like us to do a powerscrub on your floor. The powerscrub will remove the toughest dirt and grime from wooden floors with ease, the machine uses two counter-rotating cylindric brushes that deeply cleans all kinds of timber flooring surfaces, from oiled and polyurethaned floors to rough brushed timber flooring, parquet and engineered or prefinished flooring with bevelled edges. Refreshing with a powerscrub is a ‘halfway’ between your regular cleaning routine and a complete re-surface of your timber floor.

Not only can a powerscrub clean your timber floor, it will refresh any decking that has silvered off and needs a fresh look.  Call on 08002410088 or info@freedomflooring.co.nz

Timber Floor revival

After a few years of kids, pets and parties (not necessarily in that order!) you might like to think about whether it’s time to go for a timber floor revival. This is one of the main advantages to timber flooring - the ability to make it fresh again.

So what is the process? It is good for you to keep a record of the type of products used on your floor. So if you are getting your floor finished now, or recently had it finished then retain this information so your flooring contractor can ensure the original and recoat materials are compatible. However, if you don’t have access to this information we can help you.

A recoat involves a solvent wash to your timber floor first, then your floor will be buffed (lightly sanded). The floor is then vacuumed and recoated. Pretty!

For more information call 08002410088 or info@freedomflooring.co.nz

General Hints & Tips

Pots and Plants

Use stands or plastic pot plant saucers to keep pots off your floor. Moisture that soaks through pots or ceramic plant saucers will destroy the coating and the floor. Use felt protectors under the legs of planters stands.

Spills

When a spill occurs, soak up the liquid immediately with paper towels or a towel. Mist the area with a spot cleaner, and mop with your Microfiber mop or a Microfiber Floor Cloth. Never leave puddles of liquid on your timber floor - clean without delay!

Mop Pads

When your mop pad becomes soiled, rinse with water and thoroughly wring out the pad. If the mop pad becomes excessively soiled, launder and replace with a clean mop pad. Using excessively soiled pads may cause streaking. Do not use any fabric softeners, dryer sheets or bleach on your Microfiber cleaning pad as these products will weaken the natural cleaning characteristics of the pad.

Dirt and Grit 

Lift dust, dirt and grit weekly by vacuuming with the soft brush vacuum head on or sweep with a soft broom. Shake out door mats weekly. Damage often occurs to wooden floors by grit being ground into the surface by walking it in from outside. Use mats to look after your floor - place a door mat outside each of your entrances and if possible a softer mat immediately inside each door - this will help to remove any sand, grit and small stones from soles / feet.

Vacuum and brooming

Check and clean the head of your vacuum regularly for grit and debris that may scratch the floor. The frequency of cleaning will depend on traffic and amount of activity from occupants. If the vacuum has broken wheels or the metal parts scrape the floor, then please replace your vacuum head, these can scratch your timber.

Furniture 

NEVER drag furniture across your floor, only lift and carry. Ensure moving people are supervised at all times so that they do not drag furniture or large appliances. When wheeling heavy items (eg: Fridges) use heavy carpet runners or mats to roll the wheels on, as the wheels will dent the floor underneath. Place felt pads under legs of all furniture especially chairs and stools - these can be purchased in handy different sized packs. There are chair caps and felt to suit every application.

Floor mats and rugs

Make sure mats and rugs have natural material backings rather than rubber or synthetics which could possibly discolour your floor. Lift wet or damp rugs or doormats immediately to dry, as leaving them will mean your timber will absorb the moisture.

Sunlight 

Your floor can be affected by UV rays, so move rugs and mats often during the first few months. New UV double Glazing will minimise this, or you can use UV filters over older/existing glazing. Sheer curtains can look beautiful and will also protect your floor from harsh NZ sun.

Products

ONLY use recommended cleaning products suggested by your provider. Products not recommended could compromise your coating and will void your warranty.

**Warning: Under NO circumstances should you consider using a steam mop on any kind of  timber floor. This will delaminate your coating, and permanently destroy the fibres of your timber floor.

**Never ‘wet mop’ a timber floor. A dampened mop is all you need. Clean any spills of water immediately off the floor with a towel. 

**After the coating is dried it continues to cure for a few days, During this time please only use a soft broom or vacuum with the soft brush vacuum head setting on to remove general dust and grit - no mopping in this time.**

Buy Now - Recommended cleaning system for oiled timber flooring 

Buy Now - Recommended cleaning system for water based polyurethane timber flooring