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[V24]Vacuums For Hardwood Floors

by Mel Beauchamp Beauchamp, Mel

Thanks for visiting and finding my article. What follows is information that I have pulled together from numerous different sources. I hope you find it both interesting and helpful.

As a general rule, installing hardwood flooring is quite a job. There are not many do it yourselfers who succeed perfectly during their first try. The truth is, installing hardwood flooring is a talent, but it can be less of a challenge and a headache if you go with prefinished hardwood flooring in the first place.

Prefinished means it has already been coated and sealed with translucent film which serves as its protection from daily wear. What finishings can do is shield your hardwood floor from spills and scratches, and make it easier for you to wipe or mop clean.

If you are thinking of installing hardwood flooring yourself, you can enjoy the greatest ease and convenience with prefinished planks. With prefinished hardwood floors, the task of nailing the flooring to your subfloor ends after the drilling is done.
If you purchased pure hardwood whether it be oak or maple you will have to apply finishings, sand it down and put on wax and polishers after. The amount of time to perform the task of installing a hardwood floor is double to what it would be if prefinished wood is used.

In addition,prefinished floors also have a better finish than most independently finished floors. Because the application is uniform and the volumes of coating controlled and predetermined, you are sure that every prefinished hardwood floor plank is of the highest quality. Normally, prefinished floors are sanded three times and coated with aluminum oxide finish eight times. They are also likely to have been tested for various normal wear situations and made more resilient.

Prefinished flooring is a little more expensive than pure hardwood planks. However, when you do the math on everything that has to be done to make the basic form shine to your liking, you'll actually eventually spend a lot more with the latter, not to mention the heavy labor that you need to put into it.

Sure, you can argue that you can always hire professionals to do the job for you, but if cost is an issue, then you'll be thanking the high heavens that somebody had enough foresight to come up with prefinished hardwood flooring. Be a wise and practical consumer. Sanding and finishing entire floorings is a thing of the past. Now that prefinished floors are available, you should spare yourself from the hassle.

So that's the information I have on that subject. I hope it was helpful and you were able to get something out of it.

It is very true that hardwood floors will increase the value of your home. However, if your wood floors are damaged they could actually detract from your home's overall value not to mention aesthetic appeal. Scratches, scuffs and gouges are the most common problems wood floor owners face. Squeaking can also be an annoying issue. Before you can begin repairing, you need to determine the extent of the damage. If the stain or scratch has not penetrated the wood, you're dealing with a surface problem, these are generally easier to deal with. If the stain or scratch has penetrated into the wood the fix is bit more involved but still not too difficult.

Surface scratches can usually be repaired with touch-up kit made for urethane finishes, you can find these at just about any wood flooring retailer or online. Removing surface stains depends on the type of stain it is. Most commonly you'll be dealing with water and pet stains. For these use a wood floor cleaner developed specifically for urethane finishes to remove the stain. More stubborn stains may require additional scrubbing with the cleaner and a wood flooring scrub pad made for urethane floors.
For scratches that have penetrated into the wood you should be able simply wax the area until the scratch is no longer visible. Scuff marks can be taken care by using steel wool to rub in the wax and then hand buffing the area. Just be careful when using something abrasive like steel wool on your wood floors, if you rub too hard you could cause more damage to the wood. For water stains rub the spot with fine steel wool and then wax. If this doesn't get the stain out completely, lightly sand the area with fine sandpaper, and clean it using steel wool and mineral spirits or a wood floor cleaner . Once the floor is dry, apply stain, wax it and then hand buff it.

For penetrated pet stains rub the spot with fine steel wool and wax. If this doesn't get the stain out completely, lightly sand the area with fine sandpaper, and clean it using steel wool and mineral spirits or a wood floor cleaner . Once the floor is dry, apply stain, wax it and then hand buff it. If the stain is really stubborn, apply a household bleach or vinegar and allow it to soak for an hour. Rinse the floor with a damp cloth, wipe dry and smooth with fine sandpaper. Once again apply stain, wax it and hand buff it.

Regular maintenance can help prevent scratches and stains from penetrating into the wood. Be sure to vacuum and/or dry mop your wood flooring once a week. Be sure never to wax a floor that has been coated with a polyurethane finish. That would make it impossible to re-coat your wood floor in the future without first sanding it.

Article Source : Pg. 66

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Both Mel Beauchamp Beauchamp & Mark Winchester are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Mel Beauchamp Beauchamp has sinced written about articles on various topics from Home Management. For more information on hardwood floor care,refinishing,installation,and more visit my site