Importance of Maintenance of Specialty Finishes

SPECIALTY FINISHES
Wax Finishes
Maintenance tips specific to wax-type finishes include:
• As with any wood floor, follow a program of sweeping and vacuuming.
• Wipe up spills immediately with a dry cloth. Buffing may be required.
• To remove white spots caused by water spills, use a fine steel wool, a soft cloth or synthetic pad and a small amount of mineral spirits. Rub gently in a circular motion until the spot is gone. Then rewax the area and rebuff.
• When the floor loses its luster in heavy traffic areas, buff those areas with a polishing brush or pad. If that does not restore luster, rewax only those areas and buff. Note that too much wax causes the floor to scuff easily.
• Eventually the floor will need to be stripped and rewaxed. Even if waxed floors are completely sanded down, they may be very difficult to coat over with a surface finish.
• Use only a professional carnauba-based wax designed for wood floors.

Oil Finishes
Maintenance tips for oil-type finishes include:
• As with any wood floor, follow a program of sweeping and vacuuming.
• Wipe up spills immediately with a dry cloth.
• The oil finish will need to be periodically reapplied by a professional. There are many types of oil finishes (see glossary); follow the directions for that specific product.

Non-Urethane-Coated Acrylic Impregnated Floors The care of non-urethane-coated acrylic impregnated floors differs significantly from most other floor finishes:

• Use a low-speed buffing machine with the appropriate pad and recommended cleaning product as necessary. Depending on the manufacturer, different pads may be recommended for different steps in the cleaning process.
• Use recommended dust mop treatments to enhance dust mopping.
• For white/bleached products, always use an untreated mop—never use water or petroleumbased products. The floor should be buffed with a low-speed buffer and a recommended product specifically for white/bleached floors. (More maintenance will be required of white/bleached floors than other colors.)
• Some manufacturers recommend that floors that have become dull be lightly screened. Then, a recommended cleaner and recommended conditioning product should be used.
• Follow the manufacturer’s directions for spotcleaning stubborn stains. Methods include spot sanding or screening and then applying the recommended cleaner and conditioner. Other methods include using mineral spirits or hydrogen peroxide and a hand-sized piece of synthetic pad to remove the stain.
• Note that recoating such floors with urethane will void the manufacturer’s warranty.