Special Who sells cleaning and maintenance products for wooden floors?

ADVISE CLIENTS PROPERLY

SOME TIPS TO KEEP WOODEN FLOORS LOOKING GOOD

Wood, including oak which is so popular in Europe, can lose its colour when exposed to cleaning and maintenance products which are not PH-neutral. For instance, some floor cleaning products on sale in supermarkets are often alkaline (with a high PH value). They clean effectively, but, in particular, they do cause the joints of the wood to become discoloured, and that’s not so attractive. Moreover, they are so aggressive that they affect the finish coat and they are not kind to human skin.

The message is quite clear: Don’t recommend just any product whatsoever for cleaning and maintaining wooden floors. You should also consider the fact that wooden floors have various finishes. For instance, an oiled floor may require a different approach to that of a lacquered floor.

Cleaning finished wooden floors

If we consider firstly the most common case, namely finished wooden floors, always remember that they might have a solid and durable coat of lacquer which protects the underlying wood. The most popular lacquers (polyurethane and polyacrylic) are both waterproof and therefore easy to maintain. Here you just clean with soapy water and a very mild soap.

The key message to give the client is always to keep the use of water to an absolute minimum. Moreover, some floors have only undergone a pre-treatment; this means that the planks were lacquered before the fitting. Various factors mean that untreated gaps will emerge between the planks and those gaps will not be waterproof. Cleaning with a mop is an option, but you must wring it out thoroughly so that it is only damp.

How do producers tackle various factors? For this edition, to get an example of the assortment, we called on Lecol, which offers a waterbased and solventless full range of cleaning and maintenance products for wooden floors. These maintenance products have been developed and produced by its exclusive producer LOBA from Germany. The products are tailored to the lacquers and oils from LOBA, although they can also be used on finishes of other brands.

Amongst other things, we note how for daily (or weekly) cleaning they offer a detergent based on acrylate to combine a cleaning and maintenance product in one. This is a 100% solventless product which makes it possible, for instance, to preserve and protect an extremely matt exterior. Specially for white oiled floors they offer a solventless soap, which is available in natural and white. What is special here is that the producers have thought not only of cleaning, but also nourishing the oiled floor. They do advise clients that it is better to provide extra nourishment with a thorough clean.

Cleaning untreated wooden floors

One special case is an untreated or merely lightly finished floor. This is very rare, but you might encounter it in older houses with an ‘old’ wooden floor. That’s why we consider it briefly here. In this case you have to make it clear to users that untreated wood will absorb water, and that in turn can lead to stains and even mould. The important point is not to use water to clean such a floor, but to use a special floor wax. Rub a small quantity of this floor wax into the floor with steel wool, for instance, until all stains have disappeared. As with water, you still have to take great care: Do not use too much of this wax; otherwise you risk creating even more stains!

What’s on the market ?

Bona

Maintaining wooden floors requires attention from all floor owners. Regular maintenance is needed to keep floors looking good for years. Bona offers all the necessary maintenance products of high quality for all lacquered and oiled wooden floors. Their maintenance range includes products for both professionals and consumers. The first condition for the choice of suitable products is whether we are talking about a lacquered or oiled wooden floor. The Bona assortment of maintenance products for lacquered parquet floors: - Regular cleaning: Bona Cleaner (soluble), Bona Spray Mop & assortment (ready for use, for daily use) - Deep cleaning: Bona Deep Clean (for machine use, with the Bona

Power Scrubber) - Protection: Bona Polish, Bona Polish D509. For oiled floors Bona has: - Regular cleaning: Bona Oil Soap (intensive cleaning), Bona Spray

Mop & oil assortment (for daily use) - Deep cleaning: Bona Deep Clean (for machine use, with the Bona

Power Scrubber) - Protection: Bona Oil Care (maintenance oil), Bona Hard Wax Oil (waterproof and dirt-proof).

Blanchon

Blanchon has a complete range of maintenance and renovation systems for sealed, oiled, and waxed parquet floors. This range is designed for specialist floor fitters, cleaning companies, and end users. We highlight the approach to sealed floors: 2 metallising agents: Renovator Metallic Satin for glossy floors and Renovator Metallic Metamat® for matt floors. Metallising agents are designed particularly for renovation because they fill in micro-scratches, renovate the surface of faded seals, and thereby restore the original look of sealed floors. 1 product for regular cleaning: Lisabril® Cleaner, which is used diluted and perfectly complements both metallising agents. Note: The new formula is ideal for big surfaces (e.g. restaurants, communal areas, or classrooms) and for wooden sports floors. 1 ultra-strong cleaner (safe on glazings), ideal for preparation before metallising, is Décapant Dégraissant (grease stripper), with a new formula and greater efficiency.

Ciranova

Ciranova has a complete range of products for the maintenance of oiled, varnished, laminated and LVT floors. For the regular maintenance of oiled floors we recommend Flooring Soap Ciranova®. Flooring Soap cleans and nourishes the floor and provides extra water-resistant protection. For a dirty and dull floor it is recommended to treat the surface with Intensive Cleaner for removing stains and soap residue. After use of the Intensive Cleaner its recommended to treat the surface with Maintenance Oil. This Maintenance Oil nourishes the floor and gives extra protection and a new look. For the regular maintenance of varnished floors, laminate and LVT, Hard Floor Fresh can be used. Hard Floor Fresh cleans the floor and gives a fresh smell. UNICARE X-MATT or Hard Floor Polish can be used for periodical maintenance. Both products provide an extra protective film and hide micro-scratches, maintaining the original look of the floor. Hard Floor Cleaner is especially developed for the removal of old layers of polish. Hard Floor Cleaner can also be used as a degreaser to remove stains and stripes on varnished floors. The maintenance products for both floortypes are available in a convenient (useful) maintenance kit. Its the perfect way to promote the maintenance products and to stimulate sales through our distributors and parketshops.

Chimiver

VELUREX Cleaner Star is an intensive multiuse cleaner, recommended for maintenance of lacquered wooden floors. It also efficiently acts on PVC, linoleum, melamine, marble, etc. removing dirt, black heel mark, various stains; it doesn’t leave halos and perfume the environment. VELUREX Cleaner Star is a neutral cleaner with addition of special nanoparticles which guarantee to the treated surfaces a deep cleaning and a long lasting action, even in the presence of pets.

Osmo

Wooden flooring treated with Osmo Polyx®-Oil is hard-wearing, requires little maintenance and repels dirt and liquids. At the same time, the wood can still breathe. In this way, wooden flooring enjoys long-lasting and optimal protection. A further advantage: upkeep and care are easy. It is essential to choose the right care product: Aggressive all-purpose household cleaners damage the Polyx®-Oil layer, and so the flooring becomes more susceptible to dirt and grime. Therefore, Osmo recommends cleaning regularly with a damp mop and the moisturizing Osmo Wash and Care. For suborn dirt and stains or for regeneration, Osmo Liquid Wax Cleaner is suitable. It provides flooring natural hard waxes and regenerates the oil-wax layer without forming a film. For the simple and optimal application of cleaning and care products, Osmo offers a multitude of various tools, such as Osmo Spray-Mop.

Pallmann

The correct and tailored cleaning and accompanying care procedure can, in regular application, preserve the beauty of a wood floor and prolong its life for up to 5 times. For the day-to-day cleaning of wood floors Pallmann recommends Pallmann Clean, a neutral all-purpose cleaning agent for all types of floors. Pallmann Clean can be applied

with Pallmann Mop or cloth. The maintenance cleaning depends on the degree of soiling and the desired hygiene. For the thorough cleaning of wood floors Pallmann Clean Strong is available. Pallmann Magic Oil Care and Eco Oil Care are suitable for the surface care of all oiled hardwood and wood floors. For the surface care of all sealed wood floors, Pallmann recommends Pallmann Finish Care.

STAUF

AKZENT care and cleaning agents for wood flooring Protecting and caring for your wooden floor has never been easier than with the AKZENT cleaning and care products. The environmentally-friendly products ensure that you can enjoy a well-preserved, scratch-free floor for a long time. - AKZENT EASY CLEAN is your choice when it comes to basic cleaning.

This cleaning agent has excellent dirt removing properties and is suitable for use with floor cleaning machines. - AKZENT EASY OIL PROTECT is a water-based care product

containing wax, for open-pore oiled and impregnated wooden floors and wooden surfaces. It has optimal polishing properties after drying. - AKZENT EASY PROTECT is a water-based emulsion for the care of wooden floors, multi-layer wood flooring, laminate, PVC, linoleum and plastic. - AKZENT CARE OIL is a care and maintenance oil made of naturally refined oils, for open-pore oiled surfaces. It offers very effective care and protection, refreshes oiled surfaces and has an impregnating effect. The products are easy to use and suitable for all types of application. www.AKZENT-woodcare.com

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