Hardwood floors are tricky to clean without damaging their surface or finish. Therefore, care is required to do it well. Also, if your home is filled with pets, then pet dander or dust mites could be forming more regularly too.
Dust accumulates constantly. It can be problematic for people with breathing difficulties like asthma or COPD, or who are allergic to dust. Call a Toronto house cleaning company to Keep hardwood floors clean and make them safer to walk on too.
Tools of the Trade To Clean Hardwood Floors
A variety of tools of the trade are effective on hardwood floors. While these types of floors are quite durable, they typically either have a polyacrylic urethane or polyacrylic urethane coating that can be damaged when using the wrong tools. Also, the type of cleaning solutions used matters for the same reason too.
A broom or brush is excellent for removing grit, dirt, and food remnants from hardwood floors. The trick here is to only use ones with softer bristles to avoid scratching the floor’s protective surface. Also, nylon or similar material for the bristles is useful too – it does a better job of capturing what’s on the floor.
A mop with a detachable microfiber head is most effective. It can also be ‘hot swapped’ to another head when it’s become worn out. The head may also be washable too.
A standard vacuum cleaner can damage hardwood flooring. Many people choose not to vacuum them for this reason or only use a hand-held vacuum in troublesome spots. The best vacuum has soft bristles and a beater bar that can be retracted back inside the machine; this avoids creating new scratches while moving the vacuum over the floor.
A floor cleaner needs to be one that won’t damage the protective surface and be eco-friendly too.
Paper towels can mop up any excess liquid collecting in the corners.
Distilled water is also beneficial because it doesn’t have chemicals or minerals that could damage the wood.
Vacuum or Sweep the Floor Regularly
While vacuuming daily isn’t likely on the cards, sweeping up daily won’t require much time and is hassle-free.
Clean Up Spills Immediately
Do not allow spills to remain. They can discolor the protective coating or become sticky and difficult to remove with milder cleaning solutions designed to not damage the wood or its coating. This is a balancing act between preservation and effectiveness.
The worst culprits are darker in color because they hide easily on hardwood and tend to be more difficult to get out afterward.
Mop the Floor Each Week
Using the microfiber mop, run it over the hardwood floor each week.
Follow the natural direction of the grain. This lets the floor dry more evenly and prevents streaking. Use distilled water with the mop to prevent the minerals from dampening the natural shine of the wood.
A cleaning solution can be added to the distilled water or in spray form. It should be mixed correctly to avoid overusing it. If you do, excess cleaning solution leaves a sticky film over the floor.
Also, if you prefer non-commercial cleaning solutions, then mixing a little bit of white vinegar (distilled version) with distilled water will do the trick too. Open the windows afterward to let the smell disappear soon after.
Grout on a tile floor never seems to stay clean for long. It gradually changes from its initial white color to a greyish hue. This is because it’s porous, so it absorbs moisture and becomes discolored as a result.
Because it tends to look grubby, it’s necessary to clean it semi-regularly.
Here is How to Clean Tile Floor & Grout Effectively
What Will You Need to Clean the Grout?
Get your supplies rounded up. Look to see if you’ll need to pick up something you don’t have at home.
You’ll need this list of supplies:
Hydrogen peroxide
Soap
Baking soda
Something to scrub with
A towel
A spoon
Access to hot water
The tool(s) to scrub with could be a scrubbing brush or even a toothbrush. We’d say that a scrubbing brush is effective to access most of the grout, even if you need to turn the brush partly on its edge to do so. An old, no longer used toothbrush might be useful for tight corners and tricky spots
Prepare Your Supplies
Heat some water in the kettle. Mix it with some colder water, so it’s not scolding but still hot enough.
Prepare a mixture of hot water, baking soda, and some hydrogen peroxide. If you have one available, use a spray bottle. If not, a jug of the mixture can be poured onto the grout and is fine too.
Getting Started
Clean the floor initially to remove any dirt or grime on the surface. Using soapy water and a mop is perfect for this task. Getting this out the way first makes it quicker to access the grout.
A towel or a sponge can be used to dry the floor ahead of applying the cleaning agent to the grout. Let the floor dry for a while.
Now apply the baking soda mixture to the grout. It will require a hard scrubbing action to sufficient agitate the grout without physically breaking it apart. You want to avoid damaging the solvents in and around the grout.
If the grout is particularly bad, then adding the baking soda with less water in it and leaving it for a while before scrubbing allows it to soak in more. This can be more effective.
Air out the room after the floor tiles have been cleaned. This will allow any mold spores to float away.
Additional Preventative Measures
To reduce the need to clean the grout, it’s possible to later add a secondary treatment to them.
The grout can be subsequently sprayed with a disinfecting mixture to help avoid mold from reappearing later.
The mixture is created with either tea tree oil or white vinegar combined with some water. Add this to a spray bottle and use it liberally on the tiles and in the grout area.
While using white vinegar is a great disinfectant, it won’t protect the tiles forever. So, you’ll still need to clean them to bring their whiteness back. It’ll just be less frequently required.
Hiring a maid service is something that a person considers when they’re overwhelmed, time-constrained, and need a little help at home. A maid service can clean the place, refresh the linen, and make life simpler.
Here are 7 Things to Know or Consider Before Hiring a Maid Service.
Ask Around for Recommendations
In a Toronto cleaning company’s website is full of useful information to clarify what they do and how they do it. But it’s important to ask colleagues, friends, and other people who have hired a cleaning company about their thoughts too.
People who have hired a maid service before will likely have unbiased, informed opinions about whether it worked out for them. They may even have a recommendation or suggest things to watch out for.
Think About Insurance Coverage
You’re about to let someone else’s employees into your home. You could be at work at the time, and they’re given the entry code to gain access.
Their staff could have an accident while at your home. Or they could damage something valuable while cleaning it. To protect you from these outcomes, bonding, and insurance are needed by the company. Also, decent workers’ compensation packages must ensure their staff doesn’t come out worse off from any accident too.
It will add to the cost, but it protects you better than hiring a personal cleaner without such legal protections in place.
Reviews and Testimonials Aren’t Bulletproof
Whether it’s testimonials or customer reviews, some of these can be gamed with placed reviews or courtesy testimonials. Do consider that when reading them.
Also, bear in mind that most people don’t find the time to leave a positive review. It’s far likelier that someone will leave a negative one. Therefore, maid services with some good reviews and the odd disgruntled one, where they expected small cleaning miracles, is to be expected.
Flexible Service or One Size Fits All?
Some cleaning or maid services are franchise operations where that offer an identical list of services at every location. Others are family-owned with a range of services, along with bespoke cleaning options tailored to individual customers.
Be sure to hire a maid service that’s flexible if that’ll meet your needs better.
What About Any Awards, etc.?
Has the company received any industry awards for its service levels?
Or have they received accreditation validating their services? Not all companies will have these but it’s useful to check them out if they do.
What Type of Cleaning Supplies Do They Use?
Do they use cleaning products with harsh chemicals in them? Or are they non-abrasive and unlikely to cause skin reactions?
Are their supplies eco-friendly or not? Will they be switching over to these soon?
Do they use the same cleaning cloths in multiple rooms or have a system to avoid potential cross-contamination of different living spaces?
Will the Same Cleaning Staff Visit Each Time?
Some companies try to provide consistency by offering the same cleaning team for repeat visits. Others just send whoever is available.
Cleaning Heights is a top-rated cleaning company in Canada that’s changing the cleaning industry. When we’re not cleaning, we’re sharing helpful content to help clients, communities, and cleaners feel happier, healthier, and safer!
