What Is The Cheapest Way To Clean Hardwood Floors?

The secret to cleaning hardwood so they appear lovely and keep its gloss for years is to maintain them frequently and carefully.

Most hardwood floors are simple to maintain if they are cleaned properly to keep their gloss, and they give warmth and a distinctive look to any house decor.

Yet, constant shoe traffic tracks in dust and filth, accumulating on hardwood floors and making them appear dingy. Dust mites are likely to multiply if you have pets.

The cheapest way to clean hardwood floors is with water and a mop. If you want to deep clean the surface, you can also use a mild brush for that purpose. Regular general cleaning with a mop and water can all the dust away and prevent any chances of molds and mildew from developing.

Besides, for the dust and grime stuck between the spaces, a mild brush is the perfect way to remove them.

Let’s go through the in-depth cleaning guides for hardwood floors!

What Is The Cheapest Way To Clean Hardwood Floors?

Here are some inexpensive and eco-friendly ways to clean hardwood floors so you can avoid using harsh chemical cleaners.

By consistently cleaning hardwood floors with a few basic equipment and natural solutions, you can help them retain their shine for many years.

• Cleaning Hardwood Floors

1. Dusting agent (optional)

• Deep Cleaning Hardwood Floors

1. Water
2. Floor cleaning product

• Cleaning Hardwood Floors with Vinegar

1. Vinegar
2. Lukewarm water

• Removing Stains on Hardwood Floors

• No. 000 steel wool
• Bleach
• Vinegar
• Floor wax
• Dish detergent
• Fine sandpaper
• Mineral spirits

Putting aesthetics aside, having clean floors will make you healthier and safer. A thin layer of dust or filth can render wood floors slick and dangerous for falls.

Dirt and dust mite buildup aggravate asthma and other respiratory conditions.

If you don’t want to use any cleaning solution and rather go for cleaning floors naturally, I encourage you to go through this article on how to clean hardwood floors naturally in which I have shared 5 magical methods to clean wooden floors without any formulated cleaning solution.

Homemade Hardwood Cleaning Solution

Among the most economical and effective treatments for wood flooring is dilute vinegar. A suitable ratio is 1 gallon of boiling water to 1/2 cup of undiluted white vinegar.

To leave a pleasant fragrance behind while you clean, add a few drops of your preferred essential oil to the cleaning solution. The smell of vinegar will vanish as it dries.

Cleaning Hardwood Floor

Remove Dirt And Trash

Always begin by eliminating any loose dirt and dust before cleaning your floors. To remove the debris, use a sweep or a vacuum without a beating bar (the beater bar can harm hardwood surfaces).

But a microfiber dust mop is the finest option. The mop’s fibers attract and retain the dust, and you can wash the brush head for a clean mop.

Prepare the Homemade Cleaner

You should combine one gallon of water and 1 cup of pure white vinegar or half a cup of cleaning vinegar in a big bucket or sink.

Mop

It would be best if you dipped a clean microfibre mop into the solution, then wrung it out until it is barely damp but not leaking.

Applying too much moisture to the floor is not a good idea. Once you’ve cleaned the entire room, start from the far end and work towards the door.

Once the filth is transported from the floor, rinse the mop frequently (wring until barely moist!).

Let it Dry

Before you step on the floor, give it some time to air-dry.

Cleaning Hardwood Floor With Soap And Water

• To get rid of dirt, dust, and pet hair, use a broom or a vacuum on the hardwood setting.
• In a bucket, combine a few tablespoons of water and a few droplets of dish soap. Slowly stir until there are only a few faint bubbles of froth visible.
• Immerse your mop into the solution, then wring it out, so it is only moist.
• Scrub your floor with the brush in circular motions. Clean the floor completely by rinsing off debris, applying pressure until damp, and then repeating.
• After the floor has mostly dried, wipe it with a dry towel.

Tools for Cleaning Hardwood Floors

You can utilize a variety of cleaning tools. A sweeper with soft bristles is the finest choice for cleaning up dirt and debris from hardwood floors without causing further harm.

The bristles can be made from rubber or nylon. Both types of brushes have static charges and function to take up particles. Grab the accumulated dirt with a duster or hand vacuum.

Fiberglass mop heads are easier to clean and maintain than cloth or sponge mops and are more effective at attracting dust than those materials.

You can use a sweeper on wood floors, but to avoid scratching them, pick one with gentle rollers and an adjustable beater bar. Use the upholstered brush attachment to get to the room’s dusty corners.

Equipment Needed for Cleaning Hardwood Floor

• Soft-bristled toothbrush
• Dry microfiber dust mop
• Vacuum without a beater bar
• Wet microfiber mop
• Handheld vacuum

Hardwood Floor Cleaning Solution

Most wood floors are coated with polyethylene or polylactic acid urethane; therefore, it’s crucial to pick a wood floor cleaning that will leave the sealer streak-free and bright.

Don’t use toxic materials that haven’t been diluted, ammonium, pine oil, or chlorine bleach. Instead, pick a professional solution designed for varnished wood floors. Never use wet or solid wax on a polyurethane-sealed wood floor.

Considerations Before You Start Cleaning

• Verify Whether The Floor Is Sealed

Understanding the finish used on your hardwood floors is crucial before you start cleaning them. You can use a water-based cleaning solution to clean the floor if a droplet of water condenses on the surface, indicating that it is sealed.

If the water drop is quickly absorbed, the sealant was either not applied or has since worn off. The least amount of water is recommended while scrubbing an unprotected floor.

• Eliminate Clutter

To make cleaning quicker and simpler, pick up any debris and take small objects off the floor, including area rugs.

• Choose an Opportune Moment

Choose a time when there won’t be much foot traffic, for example, when your family is away from home.

• Create a Route

To avoid leaving footprints on a spotless floor, start in one of the space’s corners and work toward the door.

Shorten the Drying Period

Turn on roof heaters or add a rotating fan to shorten the drying period.

Do’s and Don’ts While Cleaning Hardwood Floors

Don’ts

With a simple spray, you can transform your favorite area of your house into the most stressful. Let’s get into the maintenance mistakes you shouldn’t make with wood floors.

Avoid Allowing Moisture to Remain There

It’s never a good idea to have stagnant water on the hardwood floors. Moisture seeps into the wood’s crevices and between the floorboards because of spills, cubes, or even excessively wet mop heads.

It will lead the wood to blister or warp over time.

Avoid Steam Cleaning Wooden Flooring

Heat, which ultimately turns into moisture, can saturate wood similarly to how stagnant water may do so. For acrylic, tile, or laminate floors alone, never use steam cleaning.

Don’t Disregard Spills

Anyone with kids will understand that spills happen frequently. The deadliest enemies of your wood floor are sippy cups that leak or cereal dishes that fly through the air.

If a spill occurs (that’s okay, they happen in life), clean it up immediately. That includes cubes that drop out of the freezer, muddy dog claw marks, and muddy footwear.

Use the Proper Cleaning Supplies

The effects of paste waxed and lacquer treatments on wood floors are more negative than positive. They strip the wood of its polyurethane, which can even render the floor slick and hazardous.

Avoid Using Heavy Machinery

To prevent harming your wood floors, switch to an interior hard-brush broom from an outdoor one.

Similar to how a floor cleansing machine designed for harder surfaces could harm your wood forever.

Do’s

Your wood floors can be cleaned and preserved in several methods, each of which is straightforward.

PH Level

Choose a detergent with a PH of approximately 7. Anything lower is appropriate for your wood floors, while anything higher includes too much alkaline for your multipurpose surfaces.

Use a Dustpan and a Broom

It’s crucial to sweep frequently. If you stick to this schedule, your wood floors will only have time to accumulate filth and grime.

A simple broom and dustpan are effective, but for even better results, we advise using a Sweeper.

Its wet cloth dissolves filth and traps it for an excellent clean, while its dry cloth contains ridges that fit into the creases in your floor and trap and lock dirt and hair.

Use a Vacuum Cleaner

Also, think about vacuuming a minimum of once every week. Use the hard floor setting on your vacuum if it has one for the strongest suction. On the other hand, utilizing the brush roll setting might cause your floors to scratch, which is not good.

Use a Microfiber Mop

Look for a mop with a dusting agent that resembles microfiber for cleaning with dust and dirt.

Microfibers are made of very soft synthetic strands that can absorb dirt and grime without leaving any scratches.

Guidelines for Maintaining Your Hardwood Floor

Although not every household prefers to remove shoes at the entrance, experts claim that doing so will keep your surfaces clean and protect them from harm.

After all, each step you take causes a small amount of grit to be embedded in the wood.

Whether you wish to have a shoe-free home, frequent sweeping and vacuuming will help keep your floors spotless.

To keep your floors clean and gleaming, we advise utilizing our low-maintenance damp-mop approach once every two to three weeks.

Put an end to the dangerous chemicals and use this simple cleaning technique to maintain the condition of your wood flooring.

How to Clean Stains From Hardwood Flooring?

You can remove surface stains on hard-surfaced floors with a gentle, clean cloth. Never use steel wool, sandpaper, or strong chemicals since they can harm the finish permanently.

Before attempting to erase a spot from wood floors, consider the finish of your flooring. If the stain is visible on the floor’s surface, it most likely has a tough finish like urethane.

The floor likely has a soft oiled finish, common in older homes where the floors have yet to be refinished and resealed if the finish stain has seeped through the wood.

Dark Spot and Discoloration

Use steel wool and floor wax to scour the area. Use vinegar or bleach and let it soak into the hardwood for around an hour if the region is still dark. Use a moist cloth to rinse.

Get Heel Marks Out

• Rub in floor wax using fine steel wool.
• Eliminate Stains Made of Oil

To dissolve the grease:

• Use a microfiber cloth and dish soap to rub the area gently.
• Use pure water to rinse.
• Retry the process if one request doesn’t work.
• Pets and kids should only enter the space once you are finished. Let the area dry before using fine sandpaper to flatten the high grain.

Eliminate White Stains or Watermarks

Use steel dust and floor wax to scour the area. If the stain is more severe, the floor should be lightly sanded and cleaned with fine steel wool and odorless mineral spirits.

Should Hardwood Flooring Be Steam Cleaned?

If your hardwood floors have been sealed, you can use a steam mop to clean them at a low temperature.

Cleaning non-porous surfaces like polished concrete, ceramic tile, stone, and sheet vinyl is a breeze using steam mops.

However, suppose the wood needs to be properly sealed. High temperatures and excessive moisture can eventually lead hardwood floors to discolor, distort, and fracture.

Make sure your hardwood floors are properly sealed and free of wear patches if you plan to use a steam mop.

Avoid steam bursts while mopping by setting the brush to a lower temperature and never putting the brush in one place for an extended period.

Final Thoughts

Determine the finish of the flooring before searching for the best and cheapest way to wash hardwood floors.

The types of cleansers and cleaning techniques that you can use safely to clean the floor, depending on the finish type. Also, if you are wondering about going for safer options for disinfecting your floor, check out my article on what is a safe disinfectant for hardwood floors.

While a thorough cleaning service can help rebuild the appearance of wood, this only has to be done occasionally each year.

Regular mopping, scrubbing, and vacuuming can help maintain the polish and keep floors looking their best between cleanings.