Those with hardwood floors..

StarlitRN

Do you have any tricks for getting them clean?!?! Our entire condo is hardwood, which looks great, but is driving me nuts! I sweep every 2 -3 days and mop at least once a week.

I use water/vinegar to mop and one of those washable microfiber pads (which is supposed to help pick up anything...), but when I'm done I still find tons of lint & pet hair everywhere! It just looks like the mop pushes it in lines throughout the house.

Anybody figure out a trick? Or do you just have to accept dirty floors all the time?

bumpuser1691848

I sweep almost every other day basically and mop about once a week and it will look horrible again the next day. I don't know how people keep their floors so clean.

Dreamsicle23

The dry swiffer is the best thing ever!

bloverly

I grew up with hardwoods. We vacuumed them and then used a dust mop similar to what you described with Endust to keep them polished and help reduce dust. My mom has hardwoods now and got a Roomba. She runs it every few days and it REALLY helps to keep down on all the tumbleweeds of dust and dog fur.

jac*n*abe

Our house has hardwood throughout as well. Plus we have an incredibly hairy dog. PLUS we live in a very rural area with crops on two of four sides of our property so there's lots of dust most of the year. Yuck. We vacuum several times per week and mop with a steam mop (microfiber head, water/vinegar in the tank) but still notice hair and dust. I suppose we're just resigned to it at this point. Since it hasn't killed us or made us ill, we're okay with it I suppose.

Bri-N-Bri

Get some Murphy's Soap Oil. It make your floors shinny without making them slick.  That is what I use to mop.  I sweep once a week and mop every other week.  We don't have pets though.

beebcaf

I dry swiffer or vacuum a few times a week. I only mop when I have company coming over. ?:)

tarebear9891

We found some sort of Orange Cleaner (that is all natural) at Lowe's/Home Depot. It works so well!

jennifer_h_rn

I can't keep up with mine, either.  They look okay for 10 minutes after I'm done mopping (even less time if all I did was sweep) and it's very defeating.  I also have a darker wood (almost a chestnut shade?), so maybe that shows more?

Mrs.Rose

I have stained/polished concrete right now but we are about to cover them with hardwoods.  I bought one of those janitor grade looped dusters (the long one) that I use to get all the dust out of corners, under stuff.  I sweep it with that thing into a pile then use my handheld to vacuume it up.  Then I mop.  Seems to work ok.  I am  hoping it will work the same on hardwoods!

Azrayla

We had white tile in our old apt..the whole apt except bedroom was white tile and we had this problem... We had two dogs then also we had to sweep everyday and mop what seemed like every other..it was ridiculous..never found a trick but this place has carpet and hardwood in the bathrooms/kitchen.. Which is a lot easier to maintain..swiffers are friends

jennifer_h_rn

zukolivie:

I bought the Orange Glo system at Bed Bath and Beyond, after dealing with the same thing you are.  While I liked how the floors looked that day, it didn't last.

With the system, you get two bottles of liquid, a mop and two different cloth mop "heads".  The first liquid is a cleanser that you squirt on and wipe off (with the special mop).

Then you switch mop cloths, kind of like a swiffer, and use the second liquid, which is a sealer / refinisher type thing.

The cleanser is awesome for weekly cleaning and spills and the sealer I use about once a month, maybe even once every two months.

My floors look brand new!  It's totally worth the money!

Holloway House is great, too!  I can get the wood looking nice, I just can't seem to keep stuff from landing on it!

argonne

The key is to vacuum before mopping.  We get into all the corners, edges and underneath stuff with it.  It will pick up most of the hair, dust, etc.  We then mop with the Shark steam mop.  We just use water in it.  It works really well and doesn't leave a residue all over the floor like our old swiffer wetjet did.  The steam mop is also more environmentally friendly since you are not using chemicals to clean.

drewiekc

Definitely Orange Glo.  I use the swiffer vac daily, which keeps up most of the dog hair and dirt.  Then once a week I mop with the Orange Glo daily cleaner.  About once a month I follow that up with the Orange Glo polish (I think it's actually called restorer?).  A million times better than Murphys or anything else I've tried.  And I've tried it all

MrsBraun

I use the Swiffer Sweeper Vac and it is AMAZING. It picks up all the little crumbs, etc that the normal dry swiffer does not (plus it is super affordable). I use this daily just to "keep up" with the pet hair, and then I mop with warm water & vinegar once per week.

B-lineBride

Dreamsicle23:

The dry swiffer is the best thing ever!

This!

June2007

I would marry my roomba if I could, I llove him!

georgia_peachy

Bri-N-Bri:

Get some Murphy's Soap Oil. It make your floors shinny without making them slick.  That is what I use to mop.  I sweep once a week and mop every other week.  We don't have pets though.

For the love of all that is holy do not use Murphy's or "orange glo" on your floors -- especially if they are actual wood.  My husband installs and refinishes hardwood.  Both these products (and similar ones) coat the wood in a wax that actually attracts dirt over time forcing you to use it more and more frequently.  In addition it gums up his sandpaper for refinishing.  Forget about the cheaper refinishing option known as "screening".  It literally ruins the floors.  Use plain water on a well wrung mop or a bit of vinegar if you simply must use something other than water.  (DH is highly amused by the orange glo commercial where they simulate wear and tear with a sander -- the sander takes off all the gunk that makes them look dull!) 

For OP: I have one of these and it's awesome.  I know it seems cheesy b/c it's as seen on tv but I am madly in love with mine.  I do use it every day though for dust bunnies and hair.  I find it works a lot better than a swiffer because it can catch the stuff in the corners really well.  Then about once a week I use my dust mop and spray bottle full of water to pick up the fine particulate stuff.

bloverly

Bri-N-Bri:

Get some Murphy's Soap Oil. It make your floors shinny without making them slick.  That is what I use to mop.  I sweep once a week and mop every other week.  We don't have pets though.

This too! My mom recently starting using this when she does house cleaning (not the daily stuff) and it works great!

summer_aka_chewchew

yeah, its a never ending battle keeping the floor clean. my dad at his house would sweep, mop then take wood polisher/cleaner and get on his hands/knees and go to town.

sarasek

I use a dry swifer and then the wet swifer afterward. But we have pets so... it doesn't stay perfect very long. It's just something you have to try and keep up with.

amanda31H

georgia_peachy:

Bri-N-Bri:

Get some Murphy's Soap Oil. It make your floors shinny without making them slick.  That is what I use to mop.  I sweep once a week and mop every other week.  We don't have pets though.

For the love of all that is holy do not use Murphy's or "orange glo" on your floors -- especially if they are actual wood. 

 

Thank you!  Murphy's Oil is the devil! 

Aloe0l

I dyson regulary, and then have a swiffer vac for when I see dust bunnies I want to pick up.  We have 3 cats, so believe me when I tell you our dust bunnies are rampant!

ZooBaby2010

It's a bear to keep clean.  I use a broom vac to keep up the dust.  When I mop I use the Pledge Wood Floor Cleaner.  It dries fast so stuff doesn't seem to stick as well.  I also use a swiffer to catch any dust before I mop. 

ETA: I have 4 cats.  I use a Dyson and Roomba also but I find the solution above works best.

jennifer_h_rn

georgia_peachy:

Bri-N-Bri:

Get some Murphy's Soap Oil. It make your floors shinny without making them slick.  That is what I use to mop.  I sweep once a week and mop every other week.  We don't have pets though.

For the love of all that is holy do not use Murphy's or "orange glo" on your floors -- especially if they are actual wood.  My husband installs and refinishes hardwood.  Both these products (and similar ones) coat the wood in a wax that actually attracts dirt over time forcing you to use it more and more frequently.  In addition it gums up his sandpaper for refinishing.  Forget about the cheaper refinishing option known as "screening".  It literally ruins the floors.  Use plain water on a well wrung mop or a bit of vinegar if you simply must use something other than water.  (DH is highly amused by the orange glo commercial where they simulate wear and tear with a sander -- the sander takes off all the gunk that makes them look dull!) 

For OP: I have one of these and it's awesome.  I know it seems cheesy b/c it's as seen on tv but I am madly in love with mine.  I do use it every day though for dust bunnies and hair.  I find it works a lot better than a swiffer because it can catch the stuff in the corners really well.  Then about once a week I use my dust mop and spray bottle full of water to pick up the fine particulate stuff.

   Sh!t, I hadn't even thought of that.  These floor were so awful when I moved in (DH lived here as a bachelor for years after his divorce) that I was happy to improve their appearance at all.  Maybe I'll just tell DH I want to have the floors refinished for Mother's Day?

aldyn

I love my roombas (we have one upstairs and one downstairs)

Also, I know all the dust, dirt, etc., is really easy to see with hardwoods, but then I think about carpet and how all that stuff is still there and you just can't see it.  Ick.

For the person with the stained and polished concrete, I'm jealous!  I have a dog and that kind of floor seems like the best option with pets.  If I had unlimited land and could design a house from scratch, I'd make it a one story home with stained & polished concrete floors with radiant heating underneath, wide hallways (for kids and animals to run up and down) and a deluxe mud room off the entrance complete with a pet / extra dirty child washing station! 

kg_08

I usually vacuum first to suck up all the hair I can, then I use a normal swiffer dipped in pinesol to go over them. They look a lot better when I'm done, but we can't keep the dog from shedding so it's pretty much a never ending task.

shanipants

Since we have a hairy dog too I will sweep with a normal broom and then have my DS dry swiffer the floors again. The double punch seems to keep them cleaner for a little bit longer. 

serarose

I use our cordless broom vac nearly every day to keep everyday stuff at bay, don't allow shoes inside, and then use a swiffer mop with modified Method microfiber cloths (I stuck velcro on them and then put the other velcro on the dry swiffer base) and use a 1/2 method Good for Wood floor cleaner and 1/2 water mix in a spray bottle - shiny and nontoxic!  It's too sticky at full strength but takes everything up like a charm with a little more viscosity added.

My dream: a scooba.  I actually have one on the baby registry because I feel like it will be able to keep up with pets, pollen, etc. to keep the floors nice for a kid to crawl on, and all while hands-free for me!

ta78

I just bought a microfiber dust mop from Lowes. Love it. I think it's a new product.. I can't remember the name of it though.

cindicasm

We run the Roomba almost every day and then use the full vac every few days to help get corners,stairs, etc... Also have a Hahn steamer that has been working great to clean once a week. I like the idea of plain water and steam that also dries instantly. We have a dog and a toddler and the roomba helps tremendously with pet hair and crumbs. We have dark hardwood with a very shiny finish and are always complimented on how clean they are. I love my Roomba for this reason alone.

NantucketSunset

Roomba!