Hardwood Floors and Your Pets

Posted on October 11, 2011 by

This is a guest post from Rob Jones.

Even though it has been established by many that hardwood wood floors require regular attention when you have a pet, it is not a forgone conclusion that you must choose between your Faithful Friend and the beauty and class that hardwood wood floors can bring to an interior.

Taking care of hardwood wood floors will demand a certain level of attention, and as such it is just as easy to incorporate a few simple steps into a cleaning routine which takes your pets into account as well.  In some ways, having hardwood floors in a pet’s environment is a great alternative to carpeting.  Hardwood wood floors make the clearing away of animal hair and dander a much simpler exercise.  Pets enjoy the coolness of hardwood, and will often remain in those areas away from your carpeting.  This can save a lot of time and bother when it comes to vacuuming.

Be Vigilant

Overall, the key principle to remember about hardwood wood floors and pets is awareness and timely action.  Responsible pet owners are likely to find success when it comes to taking care of their hardwood floors as well as their furry friends.  Provided that you keep a few things in mind, you may well enjoy the company of your pets as well as the high quality a hardwood wood floor’s unique appearance will lend to your interior for years to come.  Some actions to take when it comes to pets and hardwood wood floors may include:

Considering some areas of your interior to be “no pet zones”
Clipping your pet’s claws to avoid scratching the surface of hardwood wood floors
Seeking ways of avoiding spillage from pet water dishes – buy broad-based water dishes or water dishes that come with a spill-resistant stand
Making use of strategically placed mats to protect from spills and wet paws fresh from outdoor exploration.  Make sure that wet mats don’t sit too long on your hardwood wood floor.
Assuming the worst when it comes to urine stains and lingering odors even before they happen.  Seek advice from pet store retailers and DIY experts about how to treat the surface of a hardwood wood floor in the event of an “accident”.  Always follow the Continue reading →

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Clean Hardwood Floors

Posted on October 11, 2011 by

This is a guest post from Rob Jones.

Hardwood flooring is looked upon by many as the flooring option that lends a sense of permanence to an interior.  Whether it’s a residential interior, or an office installation, hardwood flooring adds an air of class, as well as structural strength.  For these reasons, hardwood flooring remains to be a classic choice.  It is a flooring option that has the advantage of tradition behind it; many cultures and civilizations have used hardwood flooring, and have done so for centuries. But, there are reasons beyond those of tradition that make hardwood flooring a practical and decorative choice.

One of the most attractive attributes of hardwood flooring is the range of options open to you in terms of finish, surface, stain, and species. All of these aspects play a very important role in determining the look of your flooring.  With all of these choices, hardwood flooring is known to make for a unique effect in each interior.  To this point, an advantage you will experience will most likely be all of the compliments you’ll get because of your hardwood flooring for years to come.

Pre-finished and Unfinished Hardwood Flooring

Hardwood flooring can be purchased in either prefinished or unfinished varieties and there are distinct advantages in both.  For pre-finished hardwood flooring, the obvious advantage is that of convenience. No sanding is required for these types of hardwood floors, and therefore more time is saved on preparation as well a mess; sanding a hardwood floor involves both.  Also, no time must be allowed for the finish on your hardwood flooring to dry, a period which can take a half a day to longer, depending on the kind of finish you use.

As far as unfinished hardwood flooring goes, the most compelling advantage is that of a more uniform seal. This is the reason why many professionals offer unfinished hardwood flooring to clients; it is easier to make sure that all of the minute gaps between the hardwood flooring boards are sealed when finish is applied on the whole surface of the flooring, and not on a board-by-board basis.  This means extra protection against moisture, the hardwood floor’s most dangerous enemy. In this sense, all of the preparation and mess is worth the effort.

Hardwood Flooring Surfaces and Stains

The diversity of hardwood flooring extends not only to finish, but also in the range of surfaces and choices in stain available to the customer.  Some hardwood flooring is planed evenly at the mill, offering a smooth, refined surface that many consumers have come to admire in hardwood flooring.  But another variety of hardwood flooring that is becoming popular with flooring professionals and homeowners is that of the handscraped hardwood flooring. In this case, the hardwood plank is actually worked by hand to create a contoured, seasoned surface that gives the hardwood flooring a more rustic, lived-in appearance.

The variations in hardwood flooring are further extended by the variety of stains available as well.  Some stains serve to bring out the natural range of color in a chosen species.  Others effectively change the color altogether, allowing a consumer to enjoy the benefits offered by one species, while enjoying the color of another.  Hardwood flooring is probably one of the more flexible choices with regard to appearance and personal taste.

Hardwood Flooring: the Luxury of Choice

Overall, hardwood flooring is not Continue reading →

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Hardwood Floor Refinishing

Posted on April 12, 2011 by

Hardwood Floor Refinishing Tips That Work Wonders

Hardwood is among the most efficient and cosmopolitan flooring materials for homes. It gives off a very classic yet stylish finish that can last for decades. While hardwood flooring is reminiscent of old palaces in Europe and early American homes in the south, it still very much fits into modern homes.

But one slight drawback of having hardwood floors is it wears off over time. While the hardwood floor may last a lifetime, its polished finish may become dull and damaged as a result of overuse. This wearing off can be greatly observed on hardwood floors located in parts of the house with high foot traffic.

Worn off and dilapidated hardwood floors are not only unpleasant to the eye, they are difficult to clean as well. This holds true particularly for hardwood floors that have polishes or coatings which are chipping away. In short, preserving the beauty and luster of hardwood floors depend on periodic maintenance or refinishing.

However, it is good to note that not all the dullness or chipping away of your hardwood floor would require a total refinishing job. Sometimes, all you need is plain old water and cloth to bring back the shine on your wooden floor. Luckily, there is a way of checking whether it is time for you to just stand and use the mop or start moving your furniture and get on your knees.

First thing you should do is to go to the hardwood floor that is most often used. Then drench this part with water, maybe a tablespoon or two. Then observe.

If the water suddenly forms into small beads, this means the protective polish of your hardwood floor is still working and you do not need a full scale refinishing; a wipe of wet cloth or stain remover is all it takes to bring back the shine. However, if the water percolated into the floor and caused it to become darker in color, the coating is already ruined and it is time for you to do hardwood floor refinishing.

Hardwood floor refinishing is not a walk in the park. It is always best to hire the services of flooring professionals who have both the knowledge gained from actual experience and power tools  to refresh your over worn hardwood floor. Nonetheless, if you like to refinish your floor by doing it yourself, you can start by going over the tips below.

First, measure the area of the hardwood floor you would like to refinish. Usually, floors measuring less than or equivalent to fifty square feet can be sanded manually. Sanding paper and a good pair of kneepads will help you finish the job. However, if the floor you are about to refinish is more than fifty square feet; you will definitely need a power sander unless you want to sacrifice your kneecaps and joints.

Second, after taking out all the furniture and fixture that will likely obstruct your refinishing work area, strike out the old coating on the floor, which is usually made of wax, varnish or paint. Wax covering can be easily eliminated by using ordinary wax stripper; while varnish or petroleum-based floor lamination can be removed by acetone or lacquer thinner. Removing the hardwood coating will prepare the floor for sanding.

Third, never forget to remove nails and carpet tacks sticking out on the floor surface.   Nails and tacks not only ruin sandpaper and power sander, they can harm your hands as well. Furthermore, nails and tacks that are not properly dislodged can seriously wreck your hardwood refinishing designs. After removing these things, remember to finish off the holes they left with commercial wood filler of matching color.

Fourth, after sanding the entire hardwood surface, wipe it using damp floor mop or cloth. It is better if you can procure a resin-coated cloth, which is available in your nearest hardware shop; this special material can easily take out microscopic dust pieces better than vacuum cleaners.

Finally, after the floor has dried, you can start applying a fresh coating of wax, varnish or paint. For instance, three coats of varnish are advisable. Allow the coating to dry and sand the floor lightly after each of the three applications. Before you call it a day, do not forget to again wipe the freshly refinished hardwood floor with damp or resin-coated cloth to bring out the shine.

Rob Buenaventura is a successful webmaster and publisher of HardwoodScene.com. He provides a website on   hardwood floor refinishing and tips on hardwood flooring. Check out http://www.hardwoodscene.com for your flooring needs.

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Avoid Using Vinegar to Clean Hardwood Floors!

Posted on April 11, 2011 by

Have you recently installed a hardwood floor? Bear in mind that in order to keep the shine and new look on your hardwood floor, you’ll have to clean it regularly and properly. You’ve probably heard some of the pros say that the best way to clean hardwood floors is to use chemical cleaning solutions.

They’re right, of course, but these cleaning solutions are rather expensive; they’ll eventually eat a hole through your pocket. In addition, they’re also tricky to use. If you use too much, you can damage your hardwood floor; if you use too little, your hardwood floor will look pretty old soon.

Since these professional solutions are basically hard to use, a lot of people turn to folk remedies, such as using vinegar to clean hardwood floors. It is possible to clean hardwood floors with vinegar. In fact, using vinegar is an effective and efficient way of cleaning hardwood but only for the short run. After all, vinegar is cheap and it does work.

However, cleaning with vinegar can be damaging your hardwood floors in the long term. Vinegar is basically acidic; acidic substances tend to slowly chew through surfaces. Thus, when you use vinegar to clean hardwood floors on a regular basis, the vinegar will eventually damage the finish, giving the floors an uneven look. Vinegar won’t drastically damage your hardwood floor’s finish if you use it to clean your floor once or twice a year. However, it will cause your floor’s quality to degrade if you repeatedly use vinegar for cleaning for two or more months.

In general, you should avoid using vinegar to clean hardwood floors frequently. That said, there are times when vinegar becomes a quick, inexpensive solution to cleaning problems. If you should ever run out of professional cleaning solutions or they are not readily available at stores, you can perhaps substitute vinegar just once or twice.

In case you have to use vinegar, don’t use too much of it. And remember, you should only use vinegar as a hardwood cleaning solution whenever necessary and as infrequent as you possibly can. You may not want to spend all that money on expensive hardwood cleaning solutions, but carefully weight the consequences of using vinegar on your hardwood floor.

You may save money, but your hardwood floor sure isn’t going to be shiny for long. In addition, make sure that the finish on your floor is strong so that it can withstand the effects of vinegar if you use it for cleaning.

Niv Orlian is an experienced Home Improvement Adviser who writes articles for his [http://www.myflooringhelper.com]Flooring & Carpet Cleaning online guides.
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