What is the best homemade cleaner for wood floors?

Author: Linnie Kris  |  Last update: Wednesday, May 28, 2025

A combination of olive oil, hot water, and lemon juice does a great job of removing stains from floors while also living them looking rich and shiny. Combine 1/4 cup olive oil with 1/3 cup white vinegar and five cups of hot water. Add a few teaspoons of lemon juice (or lemon essential oil) to add a fresh citrus scent.

What is the best homemade cleaning solution for hardwood floors?

Natural Wood Floor Cleaner
  • Combine 1/2 cup white vinegar, 1 teaspoon olive oil or other vegetable oil, and 1 cup of water in a spray bottle.
  • Add a few drops of essential oil of choice for a nice scent if desired
  • Shake well and spray on a cleaning cloth.
  • Rub lightly into floors to bring back shine and clean spots.

What is the best thing to clean hardwood floors with?

The best method for cleaning hardwood flooring is to regularly sweep or vacuum to remove dust and debris, followed by damp mopping with a hardwood floor cleaner or a mixture of water and mild detergent. Avoid using excess water and harsh chemicals, and promptly wipe up any spills to prevent damage to the wood.

Can you use Dawn and vinegar on hardwood floors?

The combination of vinegar (acidic) and Dawn (slightly alkaline) can balance each other out, leading to a more neutral solution that is gentle yet effective on hardwood floors. This balance ensures that the cleaning mixture can cut through dirt without damaging the wood.

What is the best natural cleaner for wooden floors?

Natural Wood Floor Cleaner
  • Combine 1/2 cup white vinegar, 1 teaspoon olive oil or other vegetable oil, and 1 cup of water in a spray bottle.
  • Add a few drops of essential oil of choice for a nice scent if desired
  • Shake well and spray on a cleaning cloth.
  • Rub lightly into floors to bring back shine and clean spots.

Best Homemade Cleaners for Hardwood Floors

Is Murphy's oil soap good for wood floors?

Murphy® Original oil soap is the one Mom and Grandma used to clean wood to a natural shine. Pull out the bucket and get nostalgic while cleaning wooden floors and furniture, cabinets, tile and linoleum. Murphy® Original Formula Oil Soap 4.1 out of 5 stars, average rating value.

Is pine sol good for wood floors?

You can use Pine-Sol® on wood floors, though it is not recommended for use on unfinished, unsealed, unpainted, waxed, oiled or worn wood.

How not to clean hardwood floors?

Let's go over a few cleaning mistakes to avoid, so you can keep your hardwood floors clean for years.
  1. Using Too Much Water. ...
  2. Choosing Harsh Cleaners. ...
  3. Skipping Regular Dusting. ...
  4. Using the Wrong Vacuum Attachment. ...
  5. Ignoring Spills. ...
  6. Applying Wax or Oil on Polyurethane Finishes. ...
  7. Forgetting Protective Pads for Furniture.

What is a good natural floor cleaner?

Water + Vinegar + Vegetable Oil

If you're working with a wood floor, try adding half a cup of white vinegar and one teaspoon of vegetable oil to a cup of water[*]. Mix the components together and rub them on the floor with a cleaning rag, either covering the whole surface or just going for the occasional spot.

Is Dawn dish soap safe on wood?

Surfaces to avoid with Dawn® Powerwash:

Wood, including unsealed, varnished, stained, or painted wood surfaces & furniture. Safe on wood cutting boards if rinsed. Glass with UV coatings or other specialty treatments.

What is the fastest and easiest way to clean hardwood floors?

How to Clean Hardwood Floors
  1. Vacuum your floors.
  2. In a bucket, mix warm water with a few drops of natural dish soap. ...
  3. Dip your microfiber mop in the bucket. ...
  4. Mop your floors, working in small sections at a time.
  5. Go over the floors with a dry mop to prevent water damage and ensure a streak-free finish.

Is fabuloso good for hardwood floors?

Is Fabuloso® Professional safe on wood? Yes, Fabuloso® Professional's formula works on all non porous hard surfaces.

How do I get my hardwood floors to shine again?

An easy way to fill in microscratches and shine wood floors is to polish your floors after mopping. After dusting and spray mopping, use a designated microfiber mop pad to apply polish to wood floors to add shine. Bona floor polish is easy to use and adds a protection and shine with every application.

What is the best cleaner for very dirty hardwood floors?

Our Top Hardwood Floor Cleaner Picks
  • Best Spray: Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner.
  • Best Concentrate: Murphy Oil Soap Concentrated Wood Cleaner.
  • Best Natural: Aunt Fannie's Hardwood Floor Cleaner.
  • Best for Large Areas: Method Squirt + Mop Hardwood Floor Cleaner.
  • Best Multipurpose: Rejuvenate All-Floors Multipurpose Cleaner.

How do you clean hardwood floors that haven't been cleaned in years?

You can use a hardwood floor cleaner, such as Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner or Bruce Hardwood and Laminate Floor Cleaner. Home Depot carries both products in 32-ounce spray bottles — $7.97 for Bona's product and $4.48 for Bruce's. The spray products deliver a mist that you can wipe away with a mop while you are standing.

Is olive oil good for hardwood floors?

It might sound like a strange combo but lemon juice and olive oil will really bring out the shine of your hardwood floors. Add 175 ml of olive oil and 120 ml of lemon juice to 3.5 litres of warm water then just simply mop and leave to dry.

Is Dawn and vinegar a good floor cleaner?

Homemade cleaners like the hardwood floor cleaner vinegar dawn mixture are surprisingly effective. Vinegar's natural acidity helps to break down dirt and grime, while Dawn dish soap effectively cuts through grease. This combination ensures a thorough clean without leaving harmful residues behind.

What do professionals clean floors with?

From traditional mops to advanced steam cleaners, professionals employ diverse tools for cleaning floors. These methods include: Mopping: Using string, sponge, or microfiber mops combined with specialized solutions. Steam Cleaning: Utilizing gas-powered or electric steam cleaners for deep sanitization.

Can I use Dawn dish soap on hardwood floors?

Yes. Dish soap is a mild cleaning solution that can be safely used to clean hardwood floors. For best results, mix ¼ cup of dish soap into a bucket of warm water. After mopping with Dawn, mop again with just water to remove the excess soap.

Is it better to mop with cold water or hot water?

Hot water cannot bond with any insoluble dirt, making it a better medium to clean than cold water. Therefore, hot water is more effective for cleaning purposes than cold water as it has higher kinetic energy, extra space between its molecules, and is more compatible with detergents.

Does vinegar damage hardwood floors?

The finish is the protective layer of your wood floors. Since vinegar is an acid, it will actually break down the finish on the surface of your floor, and over time it will reduce the shine, and leave a dull appearance.

What should you not put on a hardwood floor?

DON'T: Do not use anything with ammonia in it to clean your wood floors. Stay away from wax based products, acrylic finishes, detergents, bleaches, polishes, oil soaps, and vinegar. Instead, get a hardwood cleaning solution (you can pick them up at any big hardware store), spray it on a dust mop and go to town.

Do you need to rinse after mopping with Pine-Sol?

If you must use pine sol, I'd definitely follow with a clean water washing to remove residue especially for safety of animals and children.

How to deep clean wooden floors?

You can use a putty knife to gently scrape out grime, then gently spot clean anywhere that needs extra attention. It's optional, but if you want to go the extra mile, use an antibacterial wood floor cleaner to disinfect the floor with a mop. Focus on small areas at a time, rather than racing to be done.

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