Floor Care & Maintenance

Print out this page or refer to it often for tips that will help you prolong the life, function and beauty of your floors and countertops.You can review the whole list top to bottom or click on one of the quick links below to jump to the topic of immediate interest to you.

General Care
Tile & Grout
Hardwood
Carpet
Laminate
Vinyl
Natural Stone
Countertops

General Care

Though each product differs, proper care and maintenance can add years to your floor. You’ll also want to consult each manufacturer’s warranty for cleaning instructions.

Here are several common practices to keep in mind when caring for your floor:

Use doormats and rugs at entryways and in high-traffic areas. This will keep outside pollutants such as dirt, oil, asphalt and sand from reaching your floors. It will also buffer against everyday wear and tear.
Use caution when moving heavy objects and furniture. Lift objects to move them; never drag them across the floor. Use a drop cloth or blanket and a dolly as well.
Close curtains/blinds to prevent sun damage. Many types of flooring are vulnerable to the sun, which can darken or lighten your floor. Keep your flooring and furniture safe from sun damage by closing curtains or blinds when necessary.
Use floor protectors on furniture. This is especially important if you have a hard- surface floor. Using felt pads or other types of wide-bearing and non-staining floor protectors will help protect your floor from potential damage.
Clean your floors routinely. Perhaps the best way to keep your floors like new is to maintain them properly. Each product should be cleaned differently, so consult Great Western Flooring or your product’s manufacturer for proper care.
Clean spills immediately. Letting spills soak into any type of flooring will make it harder to clean. Many floors can resist stain and water damage, but you’ll still always want to clean spills right away. Clean the spill from the outer edge and always blot it to prevent it from spreading.

Tile & Grout

Clean your tile floors and grout with a damp mop regularly to help sustain their appearance. Never use a detergent or soap: It can damage the surface and allow mildew to grow. Any other floor cleaner should work for your ceramic floor. We recommend Armstrong Once N’ Done® or SCI’s Tile and Grout Cleaner.
Seal grout regularly. An alternative is to use Accucolor XT™ grout or epoxy grout instead of regular grout. Neither of these grout types needs sealing.
Apply silicone caulking as needed to maintain a proper seal along all corner joints. Corner joints often crack, and many need to be re-caulked once per year.
Keep stiletto heels away from your tile floor. A 123-lb., 5’5” woman in stiletto heels can exert more than 2,000 lbs. per square inch of pressure when walking. This can easily dent both wood and vinyl floors and even chip ceramic tile.
Use protective mats to help enhance the lifetime of your floors. This is a great idea in high-traffic areas and entryways.
Use protective pads on furniture and heavy objects to avoid scratching and damage.

Hardwood

DON’T wet-mop the floor. This could cause swelling, warping, de-lamination and joint-line separation and void the warranty. Also avoid any type of buffing machine.
Care for hard-surface floors by vacuuming, dust-mopping or sweeping them often. Normal foot traffic and soiling will modify the flooring's appearance over time, but this will keep your floor looking like new while reducing abrasive materials that can damage it. Use a hard-surface vacuum, not one with a beater bar meant for carpet.
Use area rugs wherever possible. Beyond being an attractive and comfortable decorative accent, they provide a buffer from heavy foot traffic and soiling. Use a non-slip rug pad, which you can purchase at Great Western Flooring or your local home-improvement store. You should also rearrange rugs often to disburse light.
Try products such as BonaKemi’s Hardwood Floor Spray Cleaner and Woodwise Hardwood Floor Cleaner for daily clean-up of your hardwood floors; you can purchase these products from us or local home-improvement stores. Also use minimal water when cleaning floors and ensure the area is dry after washing. DON’T use silicon, wax, citrus, oil or soap-based products. Also stay away from vinegar and water. These products may prevent future coats of finish from being applied.
Try to keep all standing water from contacting hardwood floors. Moisture can damage wood flooring, so it’s important not to over-clean your floor. Dry-mop dust off of your floor and then follow with a slightly damp microfiber or cloth mop.
Use a humidifier or other means of humidity control. This will help reduce the expansion and contraction that occurs when the weather changes. Ideally, keeping humidity levels at 40%–60% all year will minimize expansion and contraction. However, for hardwood flooring in the Midwest, where it’s vulnerable to expansion and contraction, the realistic range is 27% in the winter and 75% in the summer.
Never wear stiletto heels on hardwood floors. A 123-lb., 5’5” woman in stiletto heels can exert more than 2,000 lbs. per square inch of pressure when walking. This can easily dent both wood and vinyl floors and even chip ceramic tile.
If you have pets, keep their nails trimmed so they don’t scratch your hardwood floor.

Carpet

Vacuum carpet weekly. Heavy-traffic areas should be vacuumed daily if possible.
Have your carpet professionally cleaned every 12–18 months. Professional cleaning is the best way to go, but you can also take care of this yourself by renting or purchasing a steam cleaner.
Clip any “sprouting” or loose fibers that stick out above the rest to even them out. Never pull on these fibers, as this will permanently damage the carpet.
Watch for rippling, or waves, in your carpet. This commonly happens during periods of high and low humidity. Even properly installed carpet may ripple. If rippling becomes an inconvenience, your carpet can be re-stretched.
Absorb wet spills as quickly as possible by blotting repeatedly with white paper or white cloth towels. Never rub or scrub the surface abrasively, or a fuzzy area may result. When blotting, work from the outer edge toward the center to avoid spreading.
Rinse the cleaned carpet area with water. Soak up any excess moisture by placing a dry cloth towel over the area and weighting it down with a heavy object.
Use these solutions and removers to assist you with your carpet care:

Detergent Solution: Mix a mild liquid (clear, non-bleach) detergent with water (1/4 teaspoon to 32 ounces of water). Use on stains such as beer/alcoholic beverages, berries, blood, chocolate, coffee, colas, cosmetics, de-icers, pet stains, food dyes, furniture polish, glue, gravy, dairy, washable ink, mud, mustard, wet paint and tea.

Vinegar Solution: Mix 1 part white vinegar with 1 part water.

Ammonia Solution: Mix 1 tablespoon of ammonia with 1 cup of water. Use it for stains such as blood, wine, chocolate and coffee. Don’t use it on wool/wool-blended carpets.

Non-oily nail-polish remover

Chewing-gum remover

Spot remover such as Carbona™ or Energine®. Use it for wax, butter, asphalt, chewing gum, crayon, grease, ink, lipstick, dry or oil-based paint, and shoe polish.

Laminate

Sweep, dust or vacuum your laminate floor at least once per week to prevent dirt and soil from settling into it.
DON’T wet-mop the floor. This could cause swelling, warping, de-lamination and joint-line separation and void the warranty. Also avoid any type of buffing machine.
Protect your laminate floor by using entry mats, area rugs and furniture pads.
Use rug pads under rugs. You can purchase these at Great Western Flooring or your local home-improvement store.
Maintain your home’s relative humidity. A humidifier is the best way to achieve this. The ideal humidity is around 40% in the winter and 60% in the summer.
Use protective mats when moving furniture. Always try to lift furniture to move it, and never slide it across the floor. Placing cardboard or a cloth sheet beneath the furniture will also help protect your laminate floor from scratching and damage.

Vinyl

Vacuum vinyl regularly to remove dirt and sand.
Wipe up spills immediately. Use a cleaner after wiping up a spill to ensure that it doesn’t stain the area.
Use protective mats when moving furniture. Always try to lift furniture to move it, and never slide it across the floor. Placing cardboard or a cloth sheet beneath the furniture will also help protect your vinyl floor from scratching and damage.
Protect your vinyl floor by using entry mats, area rugs and furniture pads.
Use rug pads under rugs. You can purchase these at Great Western Flooring or your local home-improvement store.
If your floor gets a cut or a gouge, cover the area right away and call us. We should be able to repair it – you can contribute by not letting the cut or gouge fill with dirt.
Never wear stiletto heels on vinyl floors. A 123-lb., 5’5” woman in stiletto heels can exert more than 2,000 lbs. per square inch of pressure when walking. This pressure can easily dent both wood and vinyl floors and even chip ceramic tile.
If you have pets, keep their nails trimmed so they don’t scratch your vinyl floor.

Natural Stone

Natural stone may be softer and more porous than ceramic tile. As a result, special care is given to these products.

Seal your stone’s surface if necessary. Sealing it can ease the maintenance of your floor while increasing its stain resistance.
Only use stone-care products to clean your natural stone floors. Different stones may require different cleaning products. Great Western Flooring carries a wide range of them to help you care for your natural stone.
Your natural stone should never burn. If you purchased the floor from us, we will warranty any burn marks on the stone.

Granite Countertops

Use granite cleaner to care for your countertop. You can purchase granite cleaners at any of our retail locations. We also recommend testing the cleaning product in an inconspicuous spot before using it in visible areas.
You can use regular household disinfectants on your granite.
Don’t use abrasive scrubbing pads. This can damage the finish of your granite.
Be careful with anything that is not ph-neutral. Products such as Coke® and orange juice can damage the finish of your granite counters.
Your granite countertops will not burn. However, it’s still a good idea to use hot pads for pots and pans.