What’s damaging your wooden floors?

Wood floors are timeless, beautiful and hard wearing, creating an affluent look to your home and will last a generation if cared for properly. If you’ve invested or are looking to invest in wood flooring, then you’ll know that they’re not a cheap option and the last thing you want to be doing is damaging it if you’ve forked out a lot to lay it in your home! But it’s not always simple to fix or replace damaged planks, so we end up constantly worrying about caring and keeping our floors away from anything that can damage it. We’ve come up with the things that are damaging your floors and you might not even know it!

Be aware of the vacuum

We all reach for the vacuum as an easier and more effective alternative to endless sweeping. However, not every attachment is wooden floor friendly. Don’t use a hardwired brush attachment as the abrasion can damage the floor. Instead, use a nozzle for those hard to reach places or a very soft brush.

Mopping

Unlike laminate and vinyl where mopping is advised, you should be far more cautious with wood floors. Water is not good for natural products, as large abundances of it can cause the floor to swell and warp. If you are to mop, mop very dry to avoid damage and do not use a steam mop.

High heels

As a general rule, you should take off your shoes when you’re about to walk on wood floors, especially heels! The pressure from the heel can cause dents on the surface of the planks, so be aware of this.

Cleaning products

Before you even consider purchasing wood flooring, you should check what cleaning products the manufacturer had advised for the specific product. There’s usually a particular product depending on what finish is on the wood, so be aware of this too. 

Pets

With most of us having little furry creatures roaming around our homes and them being a part of our family, we need to consider them when making decisions. Unfortunately, pet’s claws have been known to cause scratches on wood floors. The obvious way to avoid this is to keep your pet’s claws trim and perhaps consider keeping them away from the room that has the wood flooring in it. However, we know that this isn’t always practical, so luckily there’s a way to eradicate this with wood flooring. It can be sanded down a number of times, so this is perfect if your pet’s claws or anything does scratch. 

What should I do to protect my floors?

Now we’ve covered all the things you shouldn’t do, but what about things you should? 

Regular sweeping and mopping

Although something we all do and need to do with every floor, it’s really important to keep on top of sweeping your wood floors more regularly than if you have vinyl or laminate. The reason for this is that dirt and debris can scratch wood flooring – although it’s fairly resistant to scratches, especially if there’s a strong finish, but it isn’t completed proof. By sweeping regularly you will get rid of any harmful bits and pieces – it is also worth purchasing mats to place by doors to remove any debris from shoes. The same goes for mopping, this will keep any stains away from seeping beyond the surface and prevent any permanent damage. 

This is a guest post.