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Laminate floors are a great option for homes if you don't want carpet but don't want to put down any dramatic hardwood floors. They are, however, a little bit more sensitive than other flooring types, and as a result, have to be cleaned very carefully. This leaves a lot of homeowners and renters alike wondering how to clean laminate floors without damaging them. Here's everything you need to know about getting your laminate floors bright and pretty again.
Tips For Maintaining Your Laminate Floors
Be Sure To Familiarise Yourself With The Cleaning Instructions Or Manual That Came With Your Laminate Flooring
Laminate is not as simple as wood or carpet, and so most laminate floors will come with manufacturer's instructions to help you maintain your laminate flooring. The manufacturer will likely provide a series of specific recommendations that are the least likely to damage the materials used to create the laminate floors.
It is always a good idea to familiarise yourself with these instructions as soon as you can once your laminate floors have been fitted.
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Try To Keep On Top Of Regular Cleaning And Maintenance
Regularly cleaning laminate floors can be really beneficial in maintaining their natural look. You can carefully mop laminate floors with a damp mop (sometimes referred to as a microfiber mop). Just be sure that you do not use too much water. You want the damp mop head to be almost dry when you use it to save from damaging the laminate.
Act Fast On Stains And Marks
Arguably the best piece of advice for cleaning laminate floors is to be sure that you act fast on any drops or marks on your laminate wood floors. Laminate can stain, and those marks can be much harder to remove. To prevent yourself from having to fight to remove stains, you should be sure to keep a watchful eye on what gets dropped or spilled onto your laminate floors so that you can clean laminate floors as quickly as possible.
Lift Furniture Legs And Don't Drag Furniture Across The Floor
If you tend to move things around a lot, this tip is particularly useful. Laminate floors scratch pretty easily, and this can really damage the look and feel of your laminate flooring. To make sure you keep clean laminate floors, you should try to minimise the damage that your furniture does to the laminate floor.
Furniture legs, especially heavy furniture, scrape along the laminate floor when moved and can dent and scratch up the surface. Lifting furniture when moving it helps to preserve the laminate floor.
You can also invest in soft furnishings to go beneath furniture, such as rugs or specially designed products to stop furniture legs from scratching the laminate flooring.
What Products Can Be Used On Laminate Flooring?
There's a lot of reasons why you should be careful when picking products to use on laminate flooring. But what products can you use to clean laminate floors? We know that too much water damages the laminate floor, so what are the other options?
Vinegar And Water
Trusty vinegar can be used for a whole range of cleaning processes, in place of highly chemical cleaning products. You can use a solution of vinegar and water to remove stains from laminate flooring by mixing around 60 ml of white vinegar in a 940 ml t0 1000 ml water spray bottle.
This method is the best way to clean laminate flooring when there are tough stains that are not coming out with a dry mop. Just be sure to dilute the vinegar, as on its own it is too abrasive for laminate. Abrasive cleaners can be really damaging to the laminate floors. You can use your solution in small areas at a time and wipe it up with a damp cloth or damp mop. Be sure not to leave it on the laminate floors for too long. You should dry the laminate floors when you're done.
Mild Detergent Or Laminate Floor Cleaner
Generally speaking, if you are buying a commercial product to clean your laminate floor with, you should be sure that it is marketed as laminate floor cleaner in order to prevent any damage to the laminate floors. In some cases, you can use baby shampoo.
Mix your detergent or laminate floor cleaner into some hot water and use a microfiber mop or microfiber cloth to wipe the floors, ensuring that you've squeezed most of the water out of the damp cloth.
Just A Soft Broom
Sometimes, your laminate flooring will just be in need of a sweep. You can save all the mopping and deep cleaning laminate floors for when they really need it and just give your laminate floors a dry dust mop or sweep with a soft broom if you've noticed pet hair or debris building up.
How To Remove Stains From Laminate Floor
Sometimes, using a damp cloth just won't do, and you will have to break out the big guns. For most stains, there is a way to remove them from your laminate flooring in order to get your laminate flooring clean again. If you've tried a dust mop and a damp or slightly wet mop, then these are the next port of call.
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Removing Blood Stains
To remove blood from laminate floors, use a window cleaner and a damp cloth, then dry the laminate floor with a dry cloth.
Remove Nail Polish
To remove pesky nail polish stains, you should use rubbing alcohol or a very small amount of nail polish remover.
Remove Red Wine
You should catch this as soon as it happens and wipe off red wine using a damp microfiber cloth
Remove Shoe Polish
To remove shoe polish you will need to use a gentle cloth and a small amount of rubbing alcohol.
