Wooden Floor Protection: How To Keep Your Interior Shining
While many flooring manufacturers have tried, it’s impossible to replicate the beauty of real wooden flooring. Both elegant and traditional, wooden flooring requires care to keep it in its best condition. In this article from the experts at Treatex Ltd, you can discover how to keep your wooden flooring looking its best for years to come with our maintenance tips.
Why Wooden Flooring Needs Extra Care
While it may seem tempting to use any cleaning techniques for your flooring, wooden flooring has some special requirements that need to be followed to stay in good condition. Below, you can discover why wooden flooring needs that extra bit of love.
Sensitivity to Moisture
As a porous material, wood is incredibly good at absorbing moisture. When it absorbs water, wood can become warped or swollen, altering its appearance. Fluctuations in air humidity can also have an impact, leading the wooden flooring planks to either expand or contract. Wood’s sensitivity to moisture is typically what makes wood unsuitable for flooring bathrooms, making it important to keep in mind when approaching the cleaning process.
Reactions to Temperature
Similar to its sensitivity to moisture, wooden flooring can also react poorly to changes in temperature. In the warmer months, you may find that the wood begins to expand, allowing it to absorb moisture from the surrounding air, which can result in changes to the lumber. In colder weather, on the other hand, wood can contract, causing it to lose moisture and therefore shrink in size.
Susceptibility to Scratches
While some wooden flooring is more resistant to scratching than others, it’s important to be aware that scratching can happen. Scratched wood flooring can be unsightly and obvious against the shining appearance of the rest of the wooden flooring.
How Wooden Flooring Can Become Dull
After investing in wooden flooring, it would be devastating for its finish to become dull quickly. To prevent this from happening, it can be helpful to familiarise yourself with some causes of floors becoming more dull. Read on to discover some common reasons below.
Incomplete Cleaning
When cleaning your flooring, it can feel tempting to allow your floors to dry naturally. By doing so, you allow any leftover moisture to either soak into the floor or sit in streaks on the surface. To prevent either scenario, make sure to properly buff your wooden flooring after cleaning to achieve a professional finish.
Pet Claw Scratches
One of the most common ways for a floor to become scratched is through the claws of animals. Large pets, such as dogs, can easily scratch flooring as they walk upon it as a result of their claws. Scratching is often more likely if the surface finish of the flooring has worn away, leaving it more vulnerable to damage.
Using the Wrong Cleaning Products
While it may seem that cleaning your floor should make it shinier, it typically depends on whether you’re using the correct cleaning products. Using products with strong chemicals such as bleach can remove the protective finish of the flooring and cause the wood to become discoloured.
Overdue Refinishing
Over the lifetime of your wooden flooring, you will need to repeatedly finish the floor to keep it looking its best. If you have noticed your floor has become dull, there’s a strong chance the flooring is overdue for refinishing.
Essential Tips for Wooden Floor Protection
There are multiple easy ways you can prevent your floor from becoming damaged. Below, you can find some essential tips for wooden floor protection from our experts at Treatex Ltd.
Choose the Right Cleaning Products
When it comes to cleaning your floor, it’s important to source the right wooden floor protection products. Opting for cleaning products that are free of harsh chemicals is often a great way forward, as this can prevent damage caused by abrasive cleaners. Additionally, it’s important to remember that not all floor cleaning products are suited for wooden flooring, so make sure to opt for a floor cleaner that is designed specifically for use on wood floors.
Don’t Drag Furniture
While it can be fun to rearrange your room on a whim, it’s important to ensure you’re able to properly lift your furniture upwards to move it. Dragging furniture may seem easy, however, it can lead to long and difficult-to-remove scratches. As some movement of your furniture can happen naturally through accidental bumps, try putting rugs under furniture legs to prevent scratches.
Keep the Wooden Flooring Dry
As mentioned, wooden flooring becoming wet can have a large impact on the overall appearance of the wood. It’s therefore not recommended to take a sopping mop to wooden flooring, as this can result in the warping and movement of the wooden planks. Instead, if a mop is needed, make sure it is only slightly damp and never use a steam cleaner on wooden flooring.
Protect Flooring from Sunlight
While sunlight can brighten up your home when it enters through your windows, this is not without its consequences. Direct sunlight that falls on your belongings can make them fade, from books to decorations. This is also true of some wooden flooring finishes, while sunlight can also cause wooden floorboards to dry out and weaken. You can protect your flooring from direct sunlight by using curtains and blinds while you’re not home, or by opting for a wood finish that has a UV filter included.
Wooden Floor Care Products at Treatex Ltd
If you have wooden flooring in your home, we have the wooden floor care products you need to keep your flooring in great health. At Treatex, we have a variety of products available that can be used to upkeep wooden flooring, which you can discover below.
Hardwax Oil Ultra Clear
Perfect for protecting wooden flooring, the Treatex Hardwax Oil Ultra Clear can be used to create an attractive yet strong finish. From floors to doors, Treatex Hardwax Oil Ultra Clear can also be used on other timber surfaces throughout the home making it a worthwhile product worth investing in.
Spray On Floor and Surface Cleaner
For a quick yet effective cleaning solution, look no further than Treatex Spray On Floor and Surface Cleaner. All you need to do is shake the Treatex Spray On Floor and Surface Cleaner well, spray the surface and wipe clean with a cloth or other buffing material. You can find helpful directions and informative videos on using Treatex Spray On Floor and Surface Cleaner on the product page.
Floor Care
Dull-looking flooring? With Treatex Floor Care, your wooden flooring can be brightened once again. Treatex Floor Care is designed to effectively remove stains from wooden flooring finished with Treatex Hardwax Oil Ultra Clear without the use of harmful chemicals.
Preparation Cleaner
If your wooden flooring is excessively worn, it may be time for refinishing. Treatex Preparation Cleaner can help prepare your flooring for treatment, by removing contaminants from the surface. The contaminants it can reduce can include dirt, grease and fat.
Finishes and Stains
Adding colour to your wooden flooring is a great way to brighten its appearance. At Treatex, we have a range of stains and finishes that are perfect for application on wooden flooring. Popular opaque wood finish colours in the Treatex Classic Colour Collection include but are not limited to ash bark green, saddle brown and old pewter. Alternatively, select from our wide range of Treatex Colour Tones for an impressively natural finish.
Shop Our Products Today
At Treatex, we understand how important it is to treat wooden flooring with care. Our quality products are readily available online, making it easy for our customers to source the products they need to look after their flooring and keep them shining for years to come. Please visit our website to shop our products online, from wood stain removers to wood paints, or to learn more about us. Alternatively, for further support and advice, please get in touch with our team at Treatex Ltd directly.