Winter Fun Outside Big Mess Inside
Winter snow is so much fun outside! It’s when it comes into your neat & clean home that it’s a big mess! Better get the mop ready…again! A bit of spray cleaner and a clean mop pad will remove melted snow and rock salt residue from most floors including finished hardwood, luxury vinyl plank or tile and sealed granite stone floors.
Especially with dogs and kids, it can be really tough to keep up with winter messes in your home. A doormat for wiping feet is a must have and does the best job when it’s out of the elements – in the garage, enclosed patio or inside your home in the entryway. For most households, one mat is a good first step to keep rock salt and melting snow from tracking inside. Place a second doormat or an old bath towel or two just inside the entrance door to catch wet hats, gloves, boots and coats, keeping as much moisture off the floor as possible.
At the end of each day, shake out the entry mats and towels to remove debris that found it’s way inside – you’ll want to do this outside, away from the walking path to the house or into a laundry sink if your drain can handle it. With the entry area matting lifted, sweep the floor. You’ll be amazed at how much dirt accumulated during the day as you, your pets and your family came in and out of the house. Last, using an appropriate floor cleaning spray and a flat mop, clean the entire floor or just the entry area – only you can be the judge of how much area to mop. Spray and wipe floor cleaning products dry quickly so you can replace your door mats and clean floor towels right away to be ready for the next day of winter fun!
At 1877FloorGuy, we often are asked if snow and ice melt products will damage resilient flooring. The answer is variable, yes and no, depending on the type of ice melt product that is used outside. If it’s the type of ice melt that erodes concrete, then yes, keep it off your home’s floors because it will cause damage. That said, most homeowners use non-corrosive types of ice melter and rock salt. These typically won’t cause long term damage but they will show white residue that can be slippery. To avoid slip and fall accidents, clean up the residue and bits of tracked in ice melt pellets or rock salt as soon as possible. Most neutral pH cleaners do a fine job of lifting this type of mess. For each cleaning, use a freshly laundered or new mop pad. For heavily soiled floors, use more than one cleaning mop pad to avoid spreading residue or dirt across the floor.
When selecting a brand of floor cleaner that’s right for your floor, choose the cleaning product recommended by your flooring manufacturer. Top brand-specific floor cleaners for sale at 1877floorguy include Mannington Ultra Clean for Mannington hardwood and laminate; Armstrong Hardwood & Laminate Cleaner for Armstrong brand floors and Prevail 1-Step Neutral Cleaner for Metroflor LVT flooring. Brand specific or generic mops with microfiber mop pads can be used with these floor cleaning solutions. Keep enough mop pads on hand so one is clean and ready for use, especially during the winter months when frequent cleanup is inevitable.
You may not know what brand of floor is in your home and that’s ok because 1877FloorGuy also maintains a selection of the general high performance hardwood, vinyl and tile cleaners include Bona, Basic Coatings and Hilway Direct for laminate, hardwood, vinyl and linoleum floor cleaning; AquaMix, Laticrete Stonetech and Miracle Sealants for cleaning natural stone floors such as marble or granite and for ceramic tile flooring. When you have questions about selecting product or how to clean a specific floor, help is available from 1877FloorGuy Customer Support specialists who really know about the products to help you make an educated choice.