How to make a Visible Difference when Cleaning Hard Surfaces like Wood

Wood floors are almost always finished with a urethane surface coat.

The urethane surface coat can be further hardened with aluminum oxide.

Typically, most wood floors with this type of finish do not look dirty; they are typically cleaned with a cotton or microfiber pad using a neutral floor cleaner or with a Swiffer.

The challenge with these surfaces is that they slowly become soiled because conventional maintenance methods typically spread out soil without removing most of it. The cleaning solutions for some of these maintenance methods also build up over time, further dulling the floor.

for over 20 years, Aramco has had a system to clean and add a preservation finish over the current urethane finish.

The preservation finish adds a layer of finish to wear through before the base finish is further compromised. In the last decade, a low moisture extraction system replaced the buffing system to prepare the floor to enhance the bonding of the preservation finish to the original urethane finish.

Wood cleaning application

The first time I used this low moisture extraction system, I was amazed at how clean the wood looked without adding the preservation finish. Of course, with the two-step low moisture extraction cleaning the dullness from the buildup of residues was readily removed, bringing back the sheen of the satin and gloss finishes.

From that point forward, I was a proponent of cleaning a wood floor more often without needing to add the preservation finish every time.

Conclusion

I have recommended that many professionals make a habit of cleaning wood whenever possible.

One obvious tie-in is with rug washers who take rugs away from the house. This is a perfect time to clean all of the wood floors in the house!

Add wood cleaning to your services:

Step 1. Sweep and vacuum the wood floor.

Step 2. Add alkaline cleaner to the low moisture extraction machine and move over all of the wood. Mop up excess moisture immediately that is not extracted by the machine.

Step 3. Add neutral cleaner to the low moisture extraction machine and move over all of the wood. Mop up excess moisture immediately that is not extracted by the machine.

Step 4 (Optional). Buff the floor with the white polishing pad and rotary floor machine to enhance the sheen of the floor.