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For this reason, one of the most striking features of installing hardwood floors is the clean, natural look and solidity. But, for you to keep it that way, or else get that soft and shiny surface back, it would be wise if you occasionally scrub your hardwood deck. In that case, you will require having the best cleaner in the market for hardwood floors to achieve the ultimate cleanliness and hygiene.
Hence, this article consists of a comprehensive buying guide for the Best Hardwood Floor Cleaner. But before we delve into the product reviews, it is crucial to understand why a Hardwood Floor Cleaner is necessary.
Why do you Need a Cleaner for a Hardwood Floor?
A cleaning solution for hardwood floors is essential in taking care of this fragile yet durable hardwood flooring. These floors are fragile because if you clean them like other floor types, they might soak in excessive moisture, making them swell. Also, the usual soap and water may make the floor tedious to clean due to rinsing. Therefore, a hardwood floor cleaner is essential in ensuring minimal dampness and quick drying for your floors.
Additionally, a cleaner for your hardwood floor with oil will help old and lacquered floors to maintain or restore their soft and immaculate appearance. Considering that washing a hardwood deck is semi-regular, you will need a well-mixed formula to do an effective job when it's due for a clean. An extra benefit of hardwood floor cleaners is that most are bio-degradable and safe for humans and pets.
Having understood the importance of a hardwood surface cleaner, let's look at the 5 best hardwood floor cleaners.
1. Rejuvenate High Performance All-Floors and Hardwood Floor Cleaner
Our first choice of the best hardwood floor cleaner is the Rejuvenate High Performance All-Floors and Hardwood Floor Cleaner. Additionally, its residue-free feature makes it completely safe for domestic purposes.
Asides from cleaning hardwood floors, this cleaner is also ideal for laminated floors. It is also an easy cleaning agent because it can be easily mopped after pouring or spraying. Additionally, you will find it easy to use because you don't have to rinse your floor mop microfiber or ropes every time it's dipped in this cleaning solution.
All in all, you can count on the Rejuvenate High Performance All-Floors and Hardwood Floor Cleaner for clean, hygienic, beautiful, and immaculate wood floors.
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2. Libman Hardwood Concentrated Floor Cleaner
- Libman Hardwood Concentrated Floor Cleaner 16 Oz
- Libman Hardwood Concentrated Floor Cleaner 16 Oz
- Libman Hardwood Concentrated Floor Cleaner 16 Oz
- Country of origin is United States
If you prefer to dilute your wood floor cleaner, the Libman cleaning concentrate is an ideal option for mixing with water. The advantage of such a concentrate is that you can use it for a longer time than a pre-mixed solution. In addition, you can opt to dilute it in your cleaning bucket or a Libman's Freedom Dispensing microfiber mop. Either way, you can expect this cleaner to do a remarkable job in dissolving scuff marks and sticky soil stains.
In addition to its easy cleaning functionality, it is also easy to handle because of its easy-to-carry handle located on its bottle top. Moreover, it has a built-in measuring cup for mess-free pouring. Therefore, you squeeze the Libman concentrate into the measuring cap depending on the recommended dose and pouring it into your washing container. In the end, this hardwood cleaning concentrate is economical because one cleaner bottle can make four gallons of washing liquid and also eliminates spillage and wastage with its custom measuring cap.
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3. Zep Hardwood & Laminate Floor Cleaner
Another excellent choice for hardwood cleaner, is the Zep Hardwood & Laminate Floor Cleaner. This heavy-duty cleaning liquid is suitable for high-traffic hardwood floors such as workplaces and homes as well. As a professional-grade cleaning formula, it is effective for either a light or deep clean. Its cleansing effectiveness covers stains, dirt, dust, scuffs, and spots with a light, fresh air scent.
As you clean your floor with this Zep cleaner, no residue is left behind. It is recommended for use on polyurethane, varnish, and acrylic-finished hardwood, as well as baseboards, crown molding, cabinet doors, and laminate floors. It is easy to use with the alternative options of mopping or spraying.
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4. Method Squirt + Mop Wood Floor Cleaner
- Contains (1) 68 ounce refill bottle of hardwood floor cleaner.
- Refills your method wood floor cleaner bottle 2.72 times (to be...
- One-step clean plus gleam, no rinsing required.
- Use to clean sealed hardwood and laminate floors.
- Cruelty free, Tested by people, not on animals.
The Method + Mop wood formula is also the best hardwood floor cleaner because of its natural composition yet all-purpose cleaning effectiveness on hardwood surfaces. It is made with bio-degradable plant extracts, water, organic solvents, coconut oil, and baking soda. You can easily dispense it using its squirt mechanism and then wipe it dry to leave your wood floors clean, deodorized, safe, and shiny. Its ease of application is also featured in its rinse-free utility, making work easier as you clean your floors.
After cleansing, this cleaner doesn't leave chemical residues behind but gives you a delightful almond scent for freshness. This natural cleaner comes in one 68 ounce refill container, which is also recyclable except for its lid.
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5. Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner Spray
- Safe for all unwaxed, unoiled, polyurethane finished wood floors
- Waterbased cleaning formula dries fast, is residue-free, and...
- Ready-to-use, just spray and mop
- Meets the U.S. EPA product standards and is Safer Choice...
- Packaging may vary
As one of the best hardwood floor cleaner sprays, the Bona cleaner is an all-around suitable solution for your household. As its name suggests, you can easily use it through its sprayer. The sprayer will also help you make even applications of this solution to avoid over-wetting your wood floors. Moreover, this cleaner is a fast-drying formula that leaves no residues, dirt, and stains behind.
Furthermore, it also removes dust, dirt, stains, and stuck grime, among other wood stains, effortlessly. You can rest assure that your unoiled, polyurethane-finished, and unwaxed floors are safe with this Bona cleaner. After drying, your floors are left with an appealing natural sheen. Safe for all unwaxed, unoiled, polyurethane finished wood floors
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How to Care for Hardwood Floors
Cleaning hardwood floors is not an easy task, and luckily, it is best done on a semi-regular basis. Every week, you can vacuum or dust mop your hardwood floor, and in the case of high traffic surfaces, mop the floor once every one-to-two weeks. In the case of using a hardwood cleaner, it is ideal to wash your hardwood deck at best one to two times a month. Essentially, a hardwood surface should be damp cleaned when necessary based on the traffic they receive.
Nevertheless, in the process of damp cleaning your wood floor, they are certain precautions to observe. Foremost, you should avoid washing your hardwood deck with vinegar to avoid dulling your floor's finish over time. Additionally, when using the appropriate cleaning solutions, you should work with light applications and apply them on small areas of three square foot, to avoid over-setting your wood floor. Light applications ensure that prompt drying is done to avoid damaging your floor with excessive moisture.
Moreover, for quick cleaning, you should wash along the floor's wood planks. On the other hand, you should go across and along the flooring panels to rid dirt and stains within the crevices when doing a deep clean. Another precaution to take is avoiding the use of sandpaper or steel wool to scrub your wood floor because they can cause permanent damage.
After cleaning, you should ensure your pet's nails are trimmed to avoid any scratch on your wood flooring. Finally, despite using non-corrosive cleaners, your hardwood deck is bound to lose its shine and luster over time. Therefore, you can consider applying a polish after some time, depending on how your floor looks.
What Do You Consider Before Buying the Best Hardwood Floor Cleaner?
1. Concentration
Hardwood floor cleaning solutions either come as ready-to-use products or concentrate cleaning products. The difference between the two formulations is that the latter will require you to dilute by adding water, depending on the product's specifications. However, you can apply the ready-to-use hardwood floor cleaners direct from your bottle, making them ideal for quick cleaning processes and easy for everyday use.
2. Ingredients
While shopping for the best hardwood floor cleaner, it is important to be vigilant about the components in a product. Primarily, you need to know a cleaner's ingredients to protect your hardwood surface's elegance and ensure the safety of the floor users, including yourself. First, avoid cleaning solutions that contain corrosive chemicals such as strong acids and bases like sodium hydroxide or nitric acid. A strong base or acid tends to remove the finish off a surface-sealed flooring.
Secondly, you should not use any hardwood surface cleaners that contain oil since they tend to form a sticky film on the surface. Thirdly, you should consider buying a floor cleaning solution that is healthy and safe for your pet and children.
Preferably, go for cleaners with weak bases, weak acids, and non-corrosive components such as water, sodium bicarbonate, and nitric acid. Opt to clean your floors naturally with products containing organic ingredients and essential oils, among other natural components. Therefore, the best overall hardwood cleaner should be natural, bio-degradable, safe for all floor users, and an optimal retainer of your hardwood floor's magnificence.
3. Packaging
Additionally, you will find hardwood floor cleaners in different packages, including spray bottles, squirt bottles, and refill bottles. Regarding spray bottles, they come with a spraying nozzle for easy and fine application of a cleaning solution, which you then mop with a scrub floor mop or wiper. This first product packaging makes your work easier and spontaneous for a small area or spot cleaning.
Another type of packaging is the squirt bottle which dispenses a small puddle of washing solution onto the floor, which you then mop. Its dispensation can be likened to the mouths of sauce or shampoo bottles. This type of packaging is ideal for both large and small floor surfaces.
The third type of packaging is the refill bottles which have larger solution quantities. These cleaner options are money-saving which you can pour into a spray bottle, reusable spray mop, or a fluid cartridge. However, you should avoid pouring directly from a refill bottle because you might accidentally pour more solution, making your hardwood surface swell due to the absorption of the excess fluid.
4. Type of Hardwood Floor
You should also consider the type of Hardwood floor in your premises and choose the most appropriate cleaning formula for its optimal maintenance. New hardwood surfaces are usually sealed with polyurethane varnish and painted for surface protection. Subsequently, these are the easiest to clean due to their resistance to water damage and stain resistance. However, you should avoid using cleaners with wax or oil on such floors because they can become hazardously slippery.
When it comes to old wood floors, they will often have an oiled and soft finish. Therefore, they are best suited by cleaners with oil and wax, which will then be absorbed by the wood's grain, forming a hardened top seal. The same cleansing treatment should be given for varnished or lacquered wood floors because they can absorb moisture.
Accordingly, if your floor absorbs moisture, it would be best to clean it with an oil-based solution to hardened its surface, unlike more water content which will make hardwood flooring swell.
5. Scented vs. Non-Scented
Most wood floor cleaners come as aromatic due to their contents of organic components and essential oils. Therefore, if you are sensitive to smells, you should be careful while choosing a washing formula for your premises. The advantage of hardwood cleaners is that you have the option of aromatic or non-aromatic products.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS) on Hardwood Floor Cleaners
1. What is the best thing to use to clean hardwood floors?
It is recommended that you use hardwood cleaning solutions made with safe, eco-friendly, and non-corrosive chemicals. The effectiveness of such products occurs when you apply the manufacturer's instructions. You can also use quick home solutions with diluted vinegar, but it is not ideal because you might not dilute it properly for your hardwood floors. Therefore, make your hardwood washing process easy with a ready washing formula.
2. How do you clean dull hardwood floors?
Vacuum and then mop your hardwood deck with a commercial wood floor cleaner. Again, make sure to avoid over-wetting your floors for maximum benefit to your wood planks. Finally, ensure it is properly dried for longer-lasting wood surfaces. You might also apply some polish after cleaning to restore its sheen.
