We receive a lot of questions from homeowners and one of the most
popular is how to care for their new or existing flooring. Specifically
customers ask if it is okay to use a steamer, Shark, or Swiffer to clean
their new hardwoods, bamboo, cork, or laminate flooring. Unfortunately
when you look around you will see most of the information you will find
says that it is perfectly okay to use a steamer. Our answer when our
customers ask this is a big no!
We do not recommend the use of steamers, Swiffers, Sharks, etc. The
problem is when you steam hardwood type flooring you are pumping
moisture into the floor and moisture is the enemy. Some will argue that
since it a pre-finished material the moisture cannot penetrate into the
wood. The issue is that the material is pre-finished on just the
surface. Most products are not finished all the way around and the steam
that is under pressure will find a way into the floor. After the
flooring absorbs the moisture from the steam it will start to warp and
swell. When flooring warps it is impossible to get it completely flat
without the ordeal of doing a full sand and finish. If the material is a
laminate or a engineered hardwood that has a thin wear layer you are
looking at ripping out and replacing the whole area. In conclusion use
the steamer on your tile and vinyl areas all day but please keep it far
away from your hardwood flooring.
We do not like:
Sharks
Steamers
Swiffers
Murphy's Oil
Orange Glo
We do like:
Bona Kemi
Woodwise
Vinegar & water
Micro fiber mops
