There are many excellent commercial wood floor cleaners available that give cleaning and well as shine options or, you can make your own cleaning solution by using a small amount of all-purpose cleaner (with a neutral pH) and water, or make a mixture of ¼ cup white vinegar to 1 gallon of warm water. Test your solution on a small sample of the floor in an inconspicuous place before washing the entire floor.

DO’S AND DON'T

• Do use cleaners that won’t leave a film or residue
• Do clean sticky spots with a damp towel or sponge
• Do minimize water exposure. Use a microfiber towel that has been rung dry on a rotating op handle
• Do use a dry microfiber towel to absorb excess water
• Don’t use a wax on a wood floor with a urethane finish
• Don’t use ammonia cleaners or oil soaps on a wood floor — they’ll dull the finish and affect your ability to recoat later..
• Don’t wet mop or use excessive water to clean your floor (wood naturally expands when it’s wet and can cause your floor to crack or splinter).

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:

• White Vinegar or All-Purpose-Cleaner
• Rotating Microfiber mop handle
• Microfiber Towels
• Vacuum with rotating brush deactivated or Dust Mop
• Bucket
• Water

STEP BY STEP RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Vacuum or dust mop wood floor surface to remove any dirt particles.
2. Fill a bucket with a gallon of warm water and mix in a ¼ cup of white vinegar, or a small amount of All-Purpose-Cleaner. Change the solution when it gets cloudy or dirty.
3. Take a microfiber towel, dip into the water mixture, ring thoroughly, attach to the mop handle and begin cleaning, wiping along with the grain of the wood. Remember to never get wood floors too wet and wipe off any excess water.

What Does The Data Say?

 Average Time To Clean a Wood Floor is 7 minutes for an average sized room.

Note About Wood Floors

Wood floors have been around for a long time...a really long time.  There are two primary forms of wood floors today: solid wood flooring and engineered wood flooring (learn more if you like).  Over 90% of all wood flooring is engineered, which means that there is one or more layer of wood on top of a structural floor element, such as concrete.  What is important to know about how to clean these floors, is whether they are wood, laminate, or vinyl flooring.  Laminate floors use the image of wood grain to look like wood.  Vinyl is plastic flooring in the shape, color, and texture of wood.  This guide is for true, wood floors.

For other helpful cleaning tips:

http://www.wfca.org/Pages/How-To-Clean-Hardwood-Floors.aspx

http://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/cleaning/more-techniques/clean-hardwood-floors

‍