How To Clean Hardwood Floors That Are Not Sealed
If y'all have a hardwood flooring in your home, it is important to know if the surface is sealed or unsealed or in other words, unfinished wood. This will help you make the right pick regarding the best method of cleaning, as well every bit proper care and maintenance of your wood floors. In gild to clean unfinished wood floors or ready a stained area, y'all need to double check if they're sealed or not.
Floors that are sealed have a treated surface with synthetic resins such equally urethane or polyurethane.
The surface sealants or an oil stain will either cover the surface or penetrate into wood to form a protective barrier. Water-based, oil-based, and hard wax are the mutual types of forest sealants used. You don't demand to utilize harsh chemicals when y'all clean unfinished wood.
Sealed hardwood floors are considered finished. The sealant usually protects the wood against wet, humidity, scratches, and daily vesture and tear. This should also act every bit a bulwark when it comes to tough stains forming.
Unsealed hardwood floors do non have a protective coating and thus are vulnerable to environmental conditions. These woods surfaces and untreated floors may take dirt trapped and will demand to exist properly cleaned earlier being sealed. So it's actually important to clean unfinished wood floors thoroughly with a make clean cloth outset and foremost and wipe away any clay. Join us as WFC Wood Floor Cleaner dig into how to make clean old unfinished wood flooring below.
Unlike modern homes that have finished hardwood floors, many older homes have unsealed hardwood floors. These require not bad care to remain beautiful and concluding long. This intendance mainly involves protecting the flooring from whatever contact with water.
Finished hardwood floors with damaged seals, scratches, dents, marks, and openings can too let moisture to penetrate into the wood and damage information technology. They also crave attention, especially when dealing with h2o or liquids.
Water, wet, or any liquid has detrimental effects on unfinished or hardwood flooring with a broken seal. When exposed, the wood absorbs water or solutions and begins to warp or stain. E'er mop up whatever liquid with a dry cloth.
Mopping unsealed hardwood floors with h2o or liquid cleaners is highly discouraged. Therefore, it is of import to determine if your hardwood flooring is sealed or unsealed before cleaning. Exercise not use whatsoever wet cleaning methods until you know for certain about your wooden flooring.
Contents
- How Do I know if Hardwood Floors are Sealed or if it's Unfinished Woods?
- How Practise You Make clean Unsealed Hardwood Floors?
- Dusting/sweeping
- Vacuuming
- Damp mopping
- How to Shine Unsealed Forest Floors
- Tips for Caring for and Maintaining Unsealed Unfinished Forest Floors
- Conclusion on how to make clean erstwhile Wood Floors
How Practise I know if Hardwood Floors are Sealed or if information technology's Unfinished Wood?
There are diverse means to tell if your hardwood is properly sealed or not.
- Place a few drops of h2o with a damp cloth on a subconscious area of your floor and sentry. If information technology beads up (sits there) it implies that the surface is sealed (properly finished). If it gets absorbed then the floor is non sealed or the seal is damaged. These are untreated forest floors.
- Take some fine steel wool and rub a small hidden area of your flooring. If the floor is sealed with wax, you lot volition see a greyness film on the steel wool.
- Contact a professional wood floor good or the installation visitor and they will fill you in on your hardwood floor.
Generally, earlier trying out a new cleaning technique or product, try information technology out in an camouflaged surface area where not everyone tin can encounter just in case it is unfinished wood floors.
If all goes well, so y'all can utilise it on your entire floor comfortably without an adverse reaction. But be sure to follow the manufacturer'south communication and just test a small corporeality.
How Do You lot Clean Unsealed Hardwood Floors?
Dusting/sweeping
Dusting is a common cleaning method used in most homes – even on unfinished floors. It is the safest as long as you are using the right device.
Brooms with soft beard or microfiber dust mops are the best to employ for dusting both sealed and the unsealed hardwood floors. A soft bristled brush won't damage anything whilst cleaning unfinished wood and won't crusade any scratches either.
This removes dirt, debris, and hair, thus calculation life to your floor and in those hard to reach areas. You can as well apply a feather duster to gather other droppings and dust too.
Some other option to gather up any dust is using adhesive condom. Information technology can be one of the all-time things to use on unfinished woods every bit everything will stick. Yous can then sweep any backlog with a soft bristled brush or a microfiber cloth.
Vacuuming
Using a suitable vacuum for a hardwood flooring on a weekly ground tin can continue your unsealed hardwood floors sparkling.
Still, you should be mindful as to how you use your vacuum to avoid scratching your flooring. Even on finished floors you will want to avoid it beingness marked but employ the dedicated hard floor setting on the vacuum cleaner to assist you with this.
Practise not use a vacuum with a beater bar, which can damage your floor. A canister vacuum with a hardwood attachment is the best to proceed wood make clean. Some vacuums volition also come with a soft castor attachment.
Clammy mopping
Clay, oil, and grime will all the same form a residue on the surface, even after regular sweeping or vacuuming. Cleaning unfinished forest is important!
You tin use a dry to damp mop and a natural cleaner to clean your unsealed hardwood flooring with care. Ensure there is no moisture film or excess lukewarm water left continuing on the surface. You can as well buy a static dust mop to assist assemble information technology up as well.
Completely wring out the microfiber mop or soft cloth you lot are using to mop and immediately follow with a dry towel to remove any moisture. Brand certain you clean upwards whatever backlog liquid – even on finished woods to prevent any permanent damage.
Vinegar solution cleaning procedure
- Sweep your floor to remove droppings and clay particles well as information technology can go deeply ingrained.
- For cleaning unfinished woods floors with vinegar, fill a bucket with one gallon of warm water and add ¼ cup of white vinegar and mix. Make sure to clothing gloves and eye protection. Alternatively, you could add together some of the vinegar solution to a spray canteen and buff the floor this was too.
- Submerge a mop or a cloth into the solution and completely wring information technology out to go rid of excess solution.
- With your dry-damp mop, first mopping from the far end of the room every bit yous movement towards the entrance and gently scrub when removing stains..
- Immediately follow with a dry towel to ensure that no movie of h2o or moisture is left behind.
- Let the floor dry out completely earlier walking in.
White vinegar is a natural cleaner that is tough on dirt and odor. The solution does not incorporate harsh ingredients that can dull your flooring.
Exercise not utilize commercial liquid cleaners such equally Swiffer Moisture Jet orMurphy Oil Lather that can penetrate into the wood or exit a viscous dull rest.
How to Shine Unsealed Wood Floors
If you don't intend to seal or refinish your hardwood floor in the future, y'all can care for it with oil or wax to arrive shiny and also remove a residue layer of clay and grime on the wood.
- Treating with oil: Use a soft rag to apply a natural oil such as linseed or jojoba on the floor and allow it stay for 15 minutes. Use a dry mop to buff the oil on the surface and remove whatever dirt and crud.
- Waxing: Use a soft rag and apply a petroleum based, waterless wax on your flooring. Permit the wax dry for half an hour and buff it using a clean cloth. If the surface area is large, y'all may want to employ a buffing motorcar to save on fourth dimension.
Notation: Any time to come sealing or coating will not adhere to a hardwood that has been waxed or oil treated.
Therefore, use this method only if you accept no plan for futurity coating or refinishing.
Tips for Caring for and Maintaining Unsealed Unfinished Forest Floors
- Protect the floor with area rugs and runners in areas with high traffic.
- Identify mats at archway to avoid carrying in soils under your soles.
- Immediately mop any spills of h2o or liquids to avoid any stains – preferably with a microfiber cloth.
- Practise non utilise a steam cleaner on unsealed unfinished woods floor.
- Sweep regularly to remove dirt particles that can scratch and sand the woods.
Conclusion on how to clean old Forest Floors
Unsealed hardwood floors are highly vulnerable and you demand to properly know how to clean old unfinished floors.
You also accept the option of using mineral spirits for deep make clean unfinished, untreated wood. Still, if you aren't fond of these, you could e'er use trisodium phosphate which is a crystallized powder. Yous just need to work the chemicals into a stain to protect your flooring.
Simply if you cull to keep them unsealed, ensure you accept proper care of them to retain their aesthetic value, beauty and durability. Don't leave grit and droppings on the untreated forest. Make sure yous brush up any mess and you can always use a cloth to remove any excess dirt or stains on the woods. Unfinished wooden floors need to be kept tidy so they look their all-time!
Source: https://www.woodfloorscleaner.com/faq/can-you-mop-unsealed-hardwood-floors/
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