I love hardwood floors.
They make a room look and feel more open and spacious.
Not to mention they can make a room look clean or dirty depending on how well you care for them.
Depending on the style and installation of your flooring the care can vary.
The thing with hardwood floors is that if they are not properly protected they can easy be scratched and damaged over time.
The first thing to know and be aware of is the furniture that is placed on the floor.
You may have to use felt pads to protect the floor from get scratched or rubber feet to hold furniture in place.
If you move furniture around a lot using felt pads can really help.
It makes moving furniture easy enough for one person and prevents scratching the floor.
But only if there is not dirt on the floor.
Get one grain of sand on those felt pads and instant scratches will appear.
So to make sure your hardwood floors are clean and dirt free is really simple.
It requires a bit more time and effort than carpet, but once you get the process down it's fast.
The first thing I do is vacuum the floor.
Don't use a broom, it only pushes the dirt around and can create more of a mess.
And if you have inspected a floor after sweeping there is always dirt left over.
When you vacuum you are not using a regular vacuum, because the spinning brush can scratch the floor.
So if you can turn it off do so otherwise use a vacuum hose and suck up the dirt on the floor.
The next step is to mop the floor.
I like to use the new mops.
With a microfiber cloth.
This will scrub the floor and pick any left over dirt.
For cleaning solution you can use straight water or water and mild soap.
Always go with the grain and rinse often.
It may seem like a lot of work but the end result is a dirt free floor with a new shine.