Sweep or Vacuum the Hardwood Floors
Regardless of what type of hardwood floor you have, the first step you should take when trying to clean your floors is to sweep or vacuum your floors. Regardless if you are cleaning your floors or refinishing them, this should be the first step. Using a regular broom or vacuum tends to do the trick, but you can also you a microfiber dust mop, that can remove excess dust and help remove scratches on the floor. When vacuuming hardwood floors, turning the brush rolls off is very important. This will help prevent them from scratching the floors. Hardwood floors can hide certain types of dirt differently than carpet, so its important to sweep or vacuum regularly. 
Mopping the Floors
When mopping hardwood flooring, it is important to ensure you wring out the majority of the water before starting to mop. Too much water can result in the water damaging the floor. Furthermore, be sure to go over every spot multiple times; this is to help ensure that there are no water spots left on the hardwood, as this can result in damaging the surface. Steaming cleaning your floors is typically not encouraged for hardwood floors. Steam cleaning it can dull and ruin the finish of your floors, which can be pricey to repair. Lastly, when using floor cleaners, make sure you use hardwood floor cleaners specifically, avoid tile cleaners and vinyl cleaners.
Giving Your Floors a Refreshed Look
Keeping your floors clean is the first step, but keeping them looking fresh and removing the occasional scratch and dullness is another thing. You can use a liquid scratch concealer that you put on your floor after cleaning them. This will create a permanent seal on your floors that doesn’t come off during cleaning. You can also restore your floors and shine them by using any wood floor polish. This will help protect your floor from any wear and tear, and also help reduce the number of scratches.
Want to learn more about taking care of hardwood floors, or thinking of switching to hardwood? Connect with a team member today, and we would love to help you with the next steps!