Begin by dusting or sweeping your floors well. Then make a cleaning mixture using 4 cups warm water and a few drops of castile soap or dish soap. Do not shake, but gently mix this, then mop or scrub small sections at a time, drying them with a clean cloth or dry mop after."
Vegetable Oil & White Vinegar: Mix equal parts vegetable oil and white vinegar together to make a simple, yet effective, cleaner for your hardwood floor. Vinegar is a natural polish that is perfect for cleaning. It's acidity will help break down dirt and grime.
In most homes, the best wood floor cleaner is plain old soap and water, and the only tools you need are a broom, vacuum, and mop. The best mop for wood floors is a microfiber flat-head or string mop you can easily wring out.
Vinegar is an acid and hardwood floors need a pH neutral or close to it cleaner. When mixed with water, the solution's acidity is drastically lowered and it becomes an effective method to wash hardwood floors. The vinegar and water mixture cuts through dirt and grime, leaving a streak-free and naturally clean floor.
Whether you're cleaning one area or all of your flooring, Murphy® Oil Soap is safe to use on hardwood floors.
Vinegar makes an excellent wood cleaner because it won't damage wood finish or warp wood like other products do. Cleaning with vinegar is a green alternative to the sometimes toxic and expensive cleaners offered at the store.
An alternative natural cleaning solution is warm water and dish soap (1/4 cup of dish washing liquid for a bucket of warm water). For spot cleaning needs, sprinkle baking soda on the affected area and scrub with a sponge. To ensure the area is thoroughly clean, rinse with warm water and dry.
Don't use straight ammonia, alkaline products or abrasive cleaners. They'll dull or scratch the finish. Don't rely on lemon juice or a vinegar-and-water solution to clean hardwood floors. "I don't recommend using vinegar or lemon juice, at least not in large quantities, as these can damage the floor's seal," said Wise.
Apple cider vinegar offers the same benefits as plain white vinegar and a more pleasant smell. Both have a similar acidity level and can be used to clean and disinfect around the house, on everything from floors to drains. Apple cider vinegar is a nontoxic, biodegradable cleaning alternative.
Pine-Sol is safe on hardwood floors and can be used to clean and disinfect them. What is essential is to use the right concentration and correctly follow the instructions: Sweep or vacuum the floor to remove loose dirt and debris. Take ¼ cup of Pine-Sol and mix with a gallon of water in a bucket.
Sweep or vacuum, then mop with a commercial wood floor cleaner or solution of a quarter-cup of dish soap and a gallon of warm water to lift any lingering grime. Give the floors a final pass with a clean, water-dampened mop to remove any cleaner residue. Dry completely with a soft, clean towel.
Use a damp-mop with a flat-head mop and microfiber pad or a microfiber string mop that has been thoroughly wrung out when it looks dingy. Move with the grain, and control the amount of cleaning solution by using a spray bottle, aiming for a heavy mist or gentle squirt of about a half teaspoon per 2 square feet.
Vinegar and vegetable oil both disinfect and protect wood floors. You can use vinegar and vegetable oil to clean hardwood floors and leave them with a shine.
Water You Using to Clean Your Floors? You can safely use Swiffer products on hardwood floors. For a quick clean, try Swiffer WetJet Wood Starter Kit. With just the right amount of solution, it breaks up tough, sticky messes, brings out the natural beauty of your floors and won't damage them.
Do not wet mop wood flooring.
Excess water will lead to damage of the floor, and even the subfloor.
Why Laundry Detergent isn't appropriate for floors
pH: The alkalis in laundry detergent are too strong for your floors. If you have hardwood floors, luxury vinyl plank, or tile, your floors will prefer a neutral pH cleaner.
If you see a laundry detergent stain on the hardwood floor, you use water and white vinegar to clean it properly. Yes, You can use laundry detergent to clean the garage floor. Garage floor made with hard material. So you can clean the garage floor with laundry detergent without any problem.
Lauren explained: “Depending on what wood you have, the baking soda can have a chemical reaction with the tannins in the wood. “This chemical reaction darkens the wood, causing stains which you can't get out.”
The abrasiveness of baking soda can ruin sealants and finishes of wood and even cause staining. Instead, opt for a mixture of dish soap and water to clean any wood surfaces. If you have used baking soda and stained the wood, you will likely have to sand back the area and reseal it to fix it.
For heavier cleaning and to restore a durable shine, use a regular microfiber mop and gentle cleaner specifically designed for finished wood floors, such as Murphy® Oil Soap.
Using a two sided bucket method (one side soap, one side rinse) or two buckets, mop with 1/2 cup vinegar with a drop of deter- gent or Murphy's Oil Soap mixed with warm water. The clean vinegar odor will go away shortly after the floor dries.