Cleaning/Restoring Solid Wood Floor

[bigalxyz]

I fitted solid wood floors about 5 years ago. There’s quite a noticeable grain in the wood, which looked nice when new, but over time it has been a magnet for dust (if I’d known this would happen I would probably have used different flooring, but hey ho). Also a couple of times I’ve been doing bits of plastering work and despite my best efforts, some fine plaster dust has found its way into the wood grain as well. Also I’ve had a few small bits of paint (water based) splashing on there - again, tiny bits of that get stuck in the grain.

5 years on, the flooring is rock solid but looks dull & a bit scruffy in places.

Regular cleaning & mopping doesn’t really shift this stuff. I’ve found that cleaning with water/white vinegar can help shift some of the plaster/dust, but it still doesn’t look great. It looks dull and pale in places.

There’s a huge array of cleaning products out there and I’m tempted to try some of these, but I don’t know where to start.

I’m thinking that once I’ve got it really clean, I ought to apply some kind of finish to it (wax?) to help it keep its shine and protect it from dust etc. in the future. Also in one of two spots the floor is scuffed and has lost a bit of its colour, so could maybe do with a bit of wood stain on there. Again, loads of products for doing this sort of thing and I don’t know where to start.

Can anyone offer any guidance please? I’m scratching my head trying to work out what to do.

Thank you.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Is this timber oak, by any chance? The problem with open pore timbers, as you have discovered, is that the pores are magnets for muck

It sounds like it might be due for a resand, this time with a pore filler afterwards, and then refinish.

Then don't mop it - that never does solid wood any favours

 

[wobs]

This guy is an authority on wood flooring, and what to apply:
https://newellwoodworks.co.uk/guides/guide-to-wood-floor-sanding/

https://newellwoodworks.co.uk/guides/guide-to-wood-finishing/

 

[bigalxyz]

This guy is an authority on wood flooring, and what to apply:
https://newellwoodworks.co.uk/guides/guide-to-wood-floor-sanding/

https://newellwoodworks.co.uk/guides/guide-to-wood-finishing/

Thank you. He’s actually not far from me so I might just give him a ring…getting him in to do a bit of a restoration job & advise me on future maintenance (techniques, good products to use, etc.) might be a good investment.

 

[bigalxyz]

Is this timber oak, by any chance? The problem with open pore timbers, as you have discovered, is that the pores are magnets for muck

It sounds like it might be due for a resand, this time with a pore filler afterwards, and then refinish.

Then don't mop it - that never does solid wood any favours

Thank you. It’s actually this stuff:

https://kable8684.bitbucket.io/schreiber-caramel-real-wood-flooring--147-sq-m-per-pack.html?

came from Homebase but they don’t sell it any more. It’s made from “wood”, whatever that means! Looks lovely straight from the pack, but has proved difficult to keep it looking that way.

 

[crazydaze]

Sounds like you have an open grained oiled or waxed floor.

It will need a light sand and re-finish in an oil or wax but this will need topping up to keep the protection up. An alternative would be to have a specialist seal the floor with a coating to permanently protect the surface and stop future ingraining of dust and dirt.

Real wood and Laminate floors should never be mopped with water or detergents, instead a Natural wood floor spray cleaner should be use, these will clean without leaving excessive moisture and won't remove existing natural oil/wax protectants.

 

[bigalxyz]

Sounds like you have an open grained oiled or waxed floor.

It will need a light sand and re-finish in an oil or wax but this will need topping up to keep the protection up. An alternative would be to have a specialist seal the floor with a coating to permanently protect the surface and stop future ingraining of dust and dirt.

Real wood and Laminate floors should never be mopped with water or detergents, instead a Natural wood floor spray cleaner should be use, these will clean without leaving excessive moisture and won't remove existing natural oil/wax protectants.

Thank you. I'd be interested in having a seal coating applied to avoid this sort of thing happening in future. Do you have any examples of the type of product that might be used for that?

 

[crazydaze]

Thank you. I'd be interested in having a seal coating applied to avoid this sort of thing happening in future. Do you have any examples of the type of product that might be used for that?

definitely speak to a floor renovation specialist, tgeybwill nnow what is best for retaining the character of the floor and giving the protection that you need.