How to clean wood, laminate and vinyl floors without damaging them

Clean a wooden floor mainly dry: vacuum regularly with a soft brush head or sweep, and use a damp mop only when necessary, well wrung out so that the floor dries within a minute. Lacquered and oiled wood needs a different cleaner, while laminate and vinyl do not tolerate soap-based products. Use steam only where the manufacturer of your specific floor expressly permits it.

First, find out what floor you have

In homes, the term wooden floor covers four different materials, and each tolerates water and chemicals differently:

• Lacquered wood (solid wood or floating wooden flooring) has a continuous layer of lacquer on the surface, which protects the wood from water but is sensitive to scratches and strong stain removers.
• Oiled wood has open pores, and the oil needs to be renewed from time to time. Strong cleaners and scrubbing can leave lighter or darker patches on it.
• Laminate is a photograph of wood under a durable layer on a board core. The weak point is the joints, where water can penetrate.
• Vinyl is a plastic floor with a decor. It tolerates water better than laminate, but manufacturers also restrict steam and some cleaners for it.

You can find the type of floor in the documentation from installation, on the invoice or on the box with leftover planks. It usually also gives the manufacturer and range, which you can use to find the care guide. The guide always takes precedence over general advice, including this article.

Regular cleaning: what applies to all floors

The biggest enemy of a floor is sand and small particles of dirt, which act like sandpaper under the soles of shoes. The wooden flooring manufacturer Kährs recommends in its care guide vacuuming or sweeping regularly, and prefers dry cleaning to wet cleaning. For laminate, Quick-Step states in its cleaning instructions that you should vacuum once a week with a vacuum cleaner with soft wheels and a parquet brush head.

1. Vacuum or sweep the whole area, especially near the entrance and under the dining table.
2. As needed, go over it with a dry microfibre mop, which picks up fine dust.
3. Mop damp only when dry cleaning is not enough, and with a minimum of water.
4. Wipe up spilled liquid immediately; do not leave it standing near joints or skirting boards.

Prevention saves the most work. Kährs recommends a good-quality doormat both outside and inside to catch dirt and dry shoes, and soft pads under furniture legs instead of metal ones, which scratch the floor. For vinyl, Quick-Step advises in its cleaning guide lifting furniture when moving it, using felt pads and using office chairs with soft wheels.

Lacquered wooden floor

Lacquer is the most resistant of the surface finishes for wood, but the rule of as little water as possible still applies. Kährs states that a damp mop should be well wrung out and that a correctly dampened floor should dry in roughly a minute. Avoid cleaners with ammonia, vinegar or bleach, which the manufacturer does not recommend in the same guide.

• a cleaner intended for lacquered wood, diluted according to the label,
• two buckets or a mop with a wringer, so that dirty water does not return to the floor,
• for stubborn stains, according to Kährs, its cleaner, alcohol or white spirit, always first in an inconspicuous spot,
• a dry cloth to dry any places where water has remained.

Cleaning cannot repair dull, scratched lacquer. Manufacturers have their own products for restoring shine; deep scratches are usually dealt with by sanding and new lacquer, which is a job for a floor fitter.

Oiled wooden floor

Oiled wood is cleaned more gently than lacquered wood. Kährs recommends a cleaner diluted in water, warns that strong stain removers and scrubbing may cause discolouration, and states that oiled floors should be refreshed with oil roughly once a year. Choose only those soaps, waxes and oils that the manufacturer of your floor expressly lists.

Be particularly careful with beech and maple. Kährs describes them as woods more sensitive to moisture, and therefore recommends even more careful handling of water for them.

Laminate

Laminate has a durable surface but sensitive joints. In its laminate guide, Quick-Step recommends mopping only with a lightly dampened mop, rinsing it regularly in clean water and letting the floor dry naturally. The manufacturer also states:

• do not use soap-based products or cleaners with abrasive particles,
• do not use disposable pre-soaked wipes,
• mop in the direction of the planks so that no streaks remain after drying,
• place a doormat in rooms entered from outside.

Steam and wet mops are a sensitive topic with laminate, and the rules differ by manufacturer and by specific range. Unless the guide for your specific range expressly permits it, do not use a steam mop on laminate.

Vinyl

A vinyl floor is cleaned similarly to laminate. In its vinyl instructions, Quick-Step recommends vacuuming once a week, mopping with a mop rinsed in clean water, and avoiding soap-based products, abrasive cleaners and pre-soaked disposable wipes.

With steam, the specific range decides. In its answer to a question about steam cleaning, Quick-Step allows a steam mop only for the Alpha Vinyl range and only under strict conditions: with a suitable cloth over the steam outlet, on a low setting, without lingering in one place and on the joints, and in the direction of the planks. Other vinyl floors have their own guides, and you need to read them before you take the steam mop out of the cupboard.

Stains and scratches

On all types of floor, it is better to remove a stain immediately, before it dries. Proceed from the gentlest intervention:

1. Wipe up or pick up any residue with a dry cloth.
2. Try clean water on a well wrung-out cloth.
3. Only then use a cleaner intended for your type of floor, diluted according to the label.
4. Use solvents (alcohol, acetone, white spirit) only where the manufacturer permits them, and only on the stain itself, not in the joints.

A specific procedure for wine, which most often appears on floors, is described in the article on a red wine stain. After painting or building work, there is often fine dust and paint splashes on the floor; how to clean them without scratching the floor is in the guide to cleaning after painting.

Overview: what goes where

The table summarises the recommendations from the manufacturers' guides cited. If your floor has its own guide, follow it.

What to avoid

• A bucket of water on the floor. A wet mop and puddles seep into gaps and joints.
• Vinegar, ammonia and bleach on wood. Kährs does not recommend them in its guide.
• Soap-based and abrasive products on laminate and vinyl. Quick-Step rules them out for both materials.
• A steam mop without the manufacturer's consent. This applies to wood, laminate and vinyl alike.
• Metal pads and wheels. Choose soft or felt ones, which do not scratch the floor.
• Mixing cleaning products. Never combine products containing chlorine with acids or with ammonia.

If you do not have time for regular cleaning, it can be included in regular home cleaning; always tell us in advance what floor you have and what the manufacturer states for it.