- Whenever possible place a non-staining door mat outside each entrance to your home to prevent dirt, sand, grit, and other substances such as oil, asphalt, and driveway sealer from being tracked onto your floor. Do not use latex-backed, rubber-backed or coco-fiber mats on your vinyl floor.
- Sweep your vinyl floor regularly (at least once a week).
- Vinyl manufacturers recommend the use of latex-based driveway sealers
to minimize the potential staining from asphalt sealer tracking.
- To avoid sunlight causing your floor to fade or discolor you should
always close your curtains or blinds where extreme sunlight hits the floor.
- Replace all narrow furniture rests with wide-bearing ones. Support
furniture with wide-bearing, non-staining floor protectors. It
is recommended that all furniture protectors be at least one inch in diameter, made of
non-pigmented, hard plastic, and rest flat on the floor. Non-staining
felt protectors are also acceptable. Casters with a minimum ¾"
flat surface width or floor protectors are recommended for all
moveable furniture. Metal floor protectors are generally not
recommended.
- Always use strips of 1/4" ply wood or sheets of underlayment as runways to protect the floor if you need to move heavy objects, such as your refrigerator, across your vinyl floor. Runways should always be used even with furniture dollies, or even if the heavy objects are equipped with wheels or rollers.
- Wipe up spills immediately to help prevent stains. The longer a stain sits the tougher it will be to remove from the surface.
- To prevent
dirt build up occasionally mop your floor with the manufacturer's
recommended floor cleaner. Follow the instructions on the bottle
and do not over mix or your cleaning
solution may leave a dulling film. Avoid soaps, cleaning powders
and detergent
products as they will leave a dulling film. Although the
no-rinse cleaners do not need rinsing, rinsing will provide the
better shine. If you do notice a dulling film after cleaning the
floor, try a thorough rinse with warm, clean water.
- To restore the
hi-gloss on a urethane vinyl floor most manufacturer's do
recommend the use of a polish. Do not use paste wax and do not
try to buff a urethane vinyl floor. Be sure the floor is thoroughly
clean and completely dry before applying the manufacturer's
recommended floor polish. (If all the dirt is not removed prior
to applying the polish the dirt will become trapped underneath.)
- Vinyl floors can become slippery when wet. Use extreme caution when walking on a wet floor.
- Some of the
newer vinyl floors have a low-gloss finish and the use of a
floor polish may make the floor shiny.
- It may be
necessary after several applications of polish to strip the entire floor and reapply a new coat of polish. This may also be necessary for excessive
dirt and grime build-up. Use the manufacturer's recommended recommend
heavy duty floor cleaner and stripper product. Once the floor is
thorough cleaned, rinse, dry, and then apply a new coat of
polish. High traffic areas may require more than one application
of polish. Allow polish to dry "tack-free" between coats.
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