A steam mop can be pretty tempting, but do not do it! Luxury vinyl plank flooring is not steam resistant. Yes, it can handle water at some levels but not steam. Vinyl is plastic at the end of the day and exposure to high temperatures can cause it to lose shape and it can ruin the top layer of your flooring.
An important cleaning tip for cleaning vinyl plank floors? Whatever you do, do not use steam mops. Steam cleaning is tempting because of its reputation for sanitizing. But the hot steam can penetrate the layers of your vinyl and cause them to bend and warp as well as loosen the glue that holds them together.
If you have a stain on your luxury vinyl floor, try water and baking soda paste or use 3-percent hydrogen peroxide with a soft-bristle nylon brush.
Any mop with a microfiber cloth or built-in sprayer can be used on vinyl flooring, including LVT and LVP vinyl. However, steam cleaners should not be used on vinyl. The heat and moisture can penetrate the inner layers and damage surfaces.
Steam mops are great for sealed hard floors like tile, stone, marble and hardwood, but heat and steam can penetrate some types of flooring and cause damage. Don't use a steam mop on unsealed wood, unglazed ceramic tile or vinyl plank flooring. If you're not sure, check with your flooring manufacturer.
Swiffers are safe on luxury vinyl planks, yes. This includes the Swiffer wetjet, which is perfect for removing stains and grease from luxury vinyl plank flooring. If you need to test out any Swiffer product, it has to be on vinyl plank floors.
Bona's hard surface floor cleaner is the best floor cleaner for laminate, vinyl, tile, stone and other hard surface floors.
Avoid Hardwood and Laminate Floors
It's common for steam-mop manufacturers to warn against using steam mops on "unsealed" floors, a vague direction.
The steam that comes out of a steam mop can be detrimental to your luxury vinyl floor. The heat, steam and moisture can penetrate into the LVT flooring tiles and cause damage. Remember that LVT flooring is synthetic so the surface coating or any of the underneath layers can become affected with heat and steam.
Avoid Using Too Much Soap
Soap only lifts dirt and oil into water, making them suspend in water. Therefore, the more soap you use, the more your mop gets saturated with dirt. So, if you do not remove all the soapy water from the floor, the dirt remains, forming streaks on the floor.
Sealed hardwood floors can withstand the moisture and heat from a steam mop, and they clean really nicely with a streak-free finish. However, avoid using a steam mop on unsealed hardwoods, as they're more vulnerable and easily damaged by excessive moisture.
But while a wet mop is a definite no, do steam cleaners have the same damaging effects? Unfortunately, no. Laminate flooring is sensitive to heat and moisture, so the humidity from your steam mop can cause harm. It won't cause as much damage as a wet mop, but could eventually cause your floor to warp, loosen or peel.
The verdict
They'll likely leave less water behind, leaving a clean and shiny streak-free floor, but don't really have any magic bacteria-busting powers over a regular mop and bucket. If the convenience factor is important to you, ensure you choose a steam mop model that scores well in CHOICE reviews for ease of use.
Keeping Your Vinyl Plank Flooring Clean is Easy
For instance, a daily task is to sweep up debris. A weekly task is to use a damp mop and get rid of some of the built-up dirt and grime. And always take care of stains when they happen so they do not actually become a permanent stain.
Bona Pro Series Luxury Vinyl Floor Cleaner is a professional, environmentally responsible, pH neutral cleaner that is specially formulated to clean luxury vinyl tile (LVT), luxury vinyl plank (LVP), and wood plastic composite (WPC) floors.
Avoid using ammonia-based cleaning solutions. Don't use bleach as an overall vinyl floor cleaner. Keep away from highly abrasive scrubbers or detergents on vinyl. They can damage the floor, causing cracks or scratches.
Luxury vinyl planks (or tiles) are, in themselves, completely water-proof and cannot be damaged by exposure to moisture.
Dip a microfiber mop into your cleaning solution and wring it out until it's barely damp. Using a dripping mop can allow water to work its way into seams, cracks, and edges in your flooring and cause damage. Keep your mop as clean as possible with frequent rinsing and remember to wring it out thoroughly each time.
Professionals clean vinyl floors using specially formulated cleaning solutions and hot water extraction. The combination of these methods delivers powerful vinyl floor cleaning action that leaves your vinyl look brand new.
If a vinegar solution or dish soap mixture doesn't quite cut it when cleaning the vinyl floors in your kitchen, then you might want to upgrade your cleaning solution to include Dawn dish soap. Dawn is great at cutting through grease in dirty pans, but it also does the same thing on vinyl floors.