5 Easy Ways to Keep Your Wooden Floors Looking Beautiful!

1. Protect your floors with a Hardwax Oil

There’s a good reason why our Hardwax Oils are our best-selling product. They really do work! Not only do they enhance the natural beauty of the timber but the wax coating offers protection as well. In fact, the protection is so effective that hard-waxed timber is water-resistant (so no major drama with spilt drinks or food). It’s also hard-wearing, meaning it works really well in high traffic areas such as kitchens.

2. Vacuum and then use Floor Care

Vacuuming your wooden floors regularly is important because it lifts abrasive sand particles which can often cause scratching. Once you’ve vacuumed, we highly recommend you use Floor Care, which is a mopping additive designed to both clean and maintain floors. The great advantage of Floor Care is that it leaves a thin replenishing, protective layer on the surface, without making the surface slippery. One bit of advice: try not to make your timber flooring too wet. This can be prevented by using our Spray & Glide mop.

Heavily soiled floors, i.e., with grease stains can be cleaned with Preparation Cleaner or by carefully using a steam mop which will lift grime without saturating the floor.

3. Give your floors a refreshing polish now and again

You’ll be amazed at how a coat of polish can revitalize a floor and bring it back to its former glory. Our easy-to-apply clear Wax Polish is designed to refresh dull wooden surfaces while also forming a durable, water repellent and non-slip finish. Wax Polish can also be used to remove fine scratches. Just apply it to a dry, clean floor and lightly polish. It is available in two sheen levels:

• Matte – to refresh all surfaces protected with matte Evolution Hardwax Oil
• Regular – for use on all the higher sheen levels.

4. Protect against scratches

Most wooden floors are probably going to get a few scratches over time. However, there are a few really important things you can do to keep this kind of damage down to a minimum. For example:

• Put felt pads on the feet of all your furniture
• Use rubber wheels on chairs
• Pick up furniture, don’t slide it
• Use rugs in high traffic areas
• Don’t wear high heels
• Check the soles of your shoes for gravel and grit

5. Fixing scratches

Inevitably, over time, some scratching is likely to occur. As mentioned, if there are light scratches then our Wax Polish (or Object Oil) will usually do the trick. However, very deep scratches or gouges may need professional attention. If possible, you want to avoid sanding down and recoating one area because it will be difficult to match up this redone section with the rest of the floor. Another alternative for fixing deeper scratches is wax touch-up crayons such as Waxstix which come in a variety of colours.

3 bonus tips:

• Wooden floors are sensitive to their surrounding climate. They expand in humid conditions and contract when the air is dry (usually due to heating) and this may cause cracking. Using a humidifier/dehumidifier in conjunction with the heating/cooling system is recommended to maintain a constant 30-50% humidity level. This will minimise shrinkage and cracking.
• Never place plants directly on a wooden floor even if they are in a waterproof saucer. Always use trivets or short stands under the pot and saucer so that air can circulate underneath. This will prevent condensation on the saucer from damaging the timber and it’s also easier to see if water has spilt onto the floor.
• Many people are surprised when a rug is moved and there is an outline of the rug on the floor. Luckily, there is no need to panic. This is due to oxidation which happens because the rest of floor has been exposed to UV light. Remove the rug and the colour will blend eventually. It will take a while so please be patient.