Maintenance and cleaning of your new floor are as important as selection and installation. Please use our maintenance guide to ensure years of pleasure and service from your floors.
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Carpet |
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Vinyl |
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Laminate |
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Ceramic |
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Wood |
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Emergency Stain Removal Guide |
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Water-Based Stains |
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Special Water-Based Stains |
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Greasy, Oil-based Stains |
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General Carpet Care |
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Vacuum regularly. High traffic areas every day, medium traffic areas twice each week and all carpet at least once each week. |
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Change the bag on your vacuum regularly, and inspect the beater bar for nicks gouges and burs so you don't damage the fibers. |
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Use of furniture coasters is recommended. When moving furniture do not slide it. All chairs with casters should be on a protective barrier such as a chairmat. |
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Be careful with all cleansers and chemicals. They can damage or destroy your carpet. |
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PROFESSIONAL CLEANING! Regular vacuuming is not a replacement for professional cleaning. Over time dirt and oils will cling to carpet fibers and be ground into the carpet. Professional cleaning is recommended every 18-24 months to bring back the new appearance of your carpet. |
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Vinyl Floors |
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Vinyl floors today are extremely durable and long lasting with the proper care and maintenance. Here are some general guidelines to help your floor stay looking new. Contact the manufacturer of your floor for more detailed information. |
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Care After the Installation
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Protect all seams and don't touch seam sealer for the first 16 hours after installation. |
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For the first 48 hours keep traffic to a minimum |
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Any time you move heavy objects on your floor use plywood or underlayment to spread the weight. This is especially important for the first week. Heavy objects can cause a compression of the vinyl and adhesive, and will cause permanent damage. |
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Do not wash floor thoroughly for 1 week to allow all adhesives to setup and cure. |
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Check all furniture to make sure it does not have sharp edges that will damage your floor. Check all casters and rollers, and replace any that are worn (most manufacturers void there warranty because of any damage caused by rollers and casters). |
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General Floor Care |
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Sweep or vacuum regularly to remove any grit (do not use a vacuum with a beater bar). |
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Wash your floor periodically with the manufacturers cleaner, such as Armstrong's Once 'n Done No Rinse Cleaner, or Congoleum's Bright-N-Easy No Rinse Cleaner. |
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Wipe up all spills immediately. Use the manufacturer's recommended cleaner or luke warm water and clear ammonia. |
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Never use abrasive cleaners, soaps, paste waxes, dishwashing detergents, or solvents on your vinyl floor. |
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If your floor becomes dull looking try cleaning it with luke warm water and clear ammonia to remove any possible buildup, then try the manufacturers recommended floor polish. |
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When mopping your floor always use a damp mop, do not soak your floor. |
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If a seam opens up or if your floor gets a cut or gouge in it, cover the area immediately and call a professional installer. Most repairs can be made if properly protected. |
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Laminate Care
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Laminate floors will give years of performance if you follow some regular maintenance procedures. Even though these floors are extremely durable they can be scratched so protect your floor from grit and sharp objects. |
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Use felt pads, or wide based casters underneath all chair and furniture legs. |
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When moving heavy objects across the floor always use extra care and place walk off mats by all exterior doorways. |
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Vacuum your floor regularly using soft brush attachments and wipe with a damp cloth or mop when needed. |
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Do not polish or wax these floors. |
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Never try to refinish or sand a laminate floor. |
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Do not use steel wool or any harsh abrasive cleaners on the floor. |
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For additional care procedures always refer to the manufacturer's care and maintenance instructions and recommendations. |
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Laminate floors will give years of performance if you follow some regular maintenance procedures. Even though these floors are extremely durable they can be scratched so protect your floor from grit and sharp objects. |
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Ceramic Tile Care |
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Although glazed ceramic tile requires less floor care than most of the other flooring types, there are things you need to do to maintain the beauty of the ceramic tile floor. |
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Wash Regularly - Wash the floor regularly to remove any dirt or grit. Use a mild, diluted detergent solution, such as Mr. Clean or Spic & Span. If in doubt, call us to get the tile manufacturer's cleaning recommendations. |
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Vacuum Regularly - Sweep, or vacuum your glazed tile regularly. |
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Avoid Ammonia-based Cleaners - ammonia-based cleaners may discolor some types of colored grout.
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Always Rinse - After washing with a mild detergent you should thoroughly rinse the floor with clean, warm water. |
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Never Wax a Tile - The glazed ceramic finish should never be waxed. |
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Wipe Spills Immediately - Liquids spills may be wiped up with an all-purpose cleaners, such as Fantastic, or Top Job. This will also help the grout joints from becoming discolored from spilled liquids. |
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Grout Sealers - Non-epoxy grout joints should be treated with a silicone grout sealer twice a year to help preserve the grout color and to prevent discoloration from spilled liquids. |
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Wood Floor Care |
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Don't Damp Mop - Water and wood floors don't mix! Use only the manufacturer's recommended cleaning products on your hardwood floor. |
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Vacuum Regularly - Small stones, mud and gritty dirt tracked in from outside can scratch the finish of your wood floor's finish. To help combat this use long bristle welcome mats placed at all outside entrances for people to wipe their feet on before entering onto the floors. Also, vacuum using a soft bristle brush attachment. |
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Use the Proper Chair Glides - Narrow wheels, sharp wooden legs or metal furniture legs can scratch and dent hardwood floors. Any furniture that rests directly on top of a hardwood floor should have felt protectors, or furniture coasters under all it's feet. For extremely heavy objects such as a piano, use wide, non-staining rubber cups. Purchasing floor protectors is cheap insurance for protecting your hardwood floor investment. |
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Don't Use Oil Soaps - There are many over the counter oil-based soaps and wax based cleaning products that may damage or dull the finish of your wood floor. The best suggestion is to only use the manufacturers recommended cleaning products on your hardwood flooring. |
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Never Wax a Urethane Floor - If your hardwood floor has a polyurethane finish never use a paste wax on the floor's surface. A paste wax may form a sticky film on your floor and allow tracked in dirt to stick to your wood finish. Polyurethane finishes will not adhere to any wax and adding a fresh coat of polyurethane to your floor will be very difficult. |
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Wipe Spills Immediately - when accidents happen and some liquid gets spilled on your hardwood floor, you should use a slightly damp white cloth, or paper towel to immediately clean up and dry the effected area. For more difficult spots, follow the manufacturer's recommended cleaning procedures. |
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