Hardwood floors can be a beautiful feature in a home. However, they require a lot of maintenance and upkeep to keep them looking nice. They are also not quite as durable as other flooring and can get damaged fairly easily, even without you noticing. Here are a few ways you might be ruining your hardwood floors:

1. You Don’t Sweep Or Vacuum Regularly

Consistent cleaning is important with hardwood floors. It’s important to get rid of the dust and dirt that has accumulated on the flooring because it can scratch it. This can dull the floor’s finish, leaving your hardwood floors looking worn and tired.

Depending on how busy your home is, your floors might require daily sweeping to keep dust and dirt at bay. If you’re tired of this level of maintenance, this might be a reason hardwood flooring might not be right for your home.

2. You Use the Wrong Vacuum Attachments

How you plan to clean your floors is one of the things to consider when choosing flooring. If you use your vacuum cleaner to sweep up dirt from your hardwood floors, you need to be careful which attachments you are using.

Vacuuming is a great way to get all of the dust and dirt out of any cracks and crevices, but the beater bar of your vacuum might be damaging your flooring. To avoid gouging your floors, try an attachment that is suitable for hardwood flooring, such as a brush attachment.

3. You Mop With Water

Most flooring can withstand a good mopping with soap and water. However, water is extremely harmful to hardwood floors. Water can seep down between the wooden planks and cause the boards to swell, warp, or even separate. This is why mopping with water is one of the ways you might be ruining your hardwood floors.

If you need to clean your wood floors, use a barely damp cloth or cleaners designed specifically for hardwood flooring, then dry the floor immediately with a dry towel. Using the wrong cleaners or cleaning methods is a common home maintenance mistake that can damage floors and surfaces.

4. Spills Aren’t Cleaned Up Immediately

If something spills on your hardwood floor, it needs to be cleaned up immediately. Not only can liquids damage your wooden floors, but dried or caked-on messes and spills can take a lot of work to remove.

These dried spills can damage your floor’s finish, leading to scratches or gouges. Other types of flooring, like luxury vinyl flooring or tile, can handle spills and messes and are often easier to clean. A variety of cleaners work on these floors, making cleanup a breeze.

5. You Wear Shoes Inside

Wearing shoes inside is another way you might be ruining your hardwood floors. Not only do shoes drag in dirt or other small particles that can scratch your floors, but even the shoes themselves can damage your floors. Shoes with heels are especially damaging to wood floors.

Not considering your lifestyle is a mistake to avoid with new flooring. If instituting a no-shoes policy in your home doesn’t work with your lifestyle, you may want to consider a different type of flooring that is durable and can withstand lots of foot traffic.

6. You Don’t Have Pads Under Your Furniture

Heavy furniture can cause dents and scuffs on hardwood floors. If you have furniture resting on a hardwood floor, you should invest in a high-quality furniture pad. These can help protect your hardwood floors, especially if you move furniture around fairly often. This investment will go a long way in protecting your floors, and is a good idea no matter what type of floor you have.

7. You Don’t Reseal Your Hardwood Floors

In addition to regular cleaning and care, you also need to reseal and refinish your hardwood floors to keep them looking great. Over time, the protective finish and seal wear off on hardwood flooring, which leaves it even more vulnerable to damage.

Typically, hardwood flooring should be refinished every 7-10 years. However, some may need to be resealed annually or every 3-5 years based on the quality of the original finish, maintenance, foot traffic, frequency of use, and more. On the other hand, luxury vinyl flooring, planks or tiles, do not need to be refinished.

Update Your Floors With Zephyr Thomas

If you currently have hardwood floors in your home, but are tired of the maintenance and lack of durability, you may want to consider updating your floors. There are many different options available to suit your lifestyle.

If you have a lot of foot traffic in your home, luxury vinyl flooring is a great option. These floors are made to mimic much higher-end materials while keeping maintenance levels and costs low. Plus, they are versatile and customizable, which means you can implement creative patterns or other design trends in luxury vinyl flooring to get the look you want.

If you’re ready to change your flooring or you see damage, warping, or any of the other signs it’s time to replace your flooring, give Zephyr Thomas a call! We can help you choose the right flooring material for your lifestyle and provide excellent installation. Call us at 717-399-4708 to schedule a free estimate!