Hardwood Flooring Care & Maintenance
Note: All woods are affected by light. Some exotic species will darken while others species will tend to lighten over a period of time when exposed to natural and artificial light sources. Some wood species darken and/or lighten at a faster rate than others. This is a natural characteristic of wood and does not constitute any type of product defect.
Routine Maintenance
- Use a damp cloth to blot up spills as soon as they happen. Never allow liquids to stand on your floor.
- For tough spots, such as oil, paint, markers, lipstick, ink, or tar, use 10% acetone/nail polish remover on a clean white cloth, then wipe the area with a damp cloth to remove any remaining residue.
- Sweep, dust, or vacuum the floor regularly with the hard floor attachment (not the beater bar) to prevent accumulation of dirt and grit that can scratch or dull the floor finish.
- Periodically clean the floor with cleaning products made specifically for pre-finished hardwood floor care, such as Shaw’s R2X Hard Surface Cleaner.
- Do not wash or wet mop the floor with soap, water, oil-soap detergent, or any other liquid cleaning material. This could cause swelling, warping, delamination, and joint-line separation, and void the warranty.
- Do not use steel wool, abrasive cleaners, or strong ammoniated or chlorinated type cleaners.
- Do not use any type of buffing or polishing machine.
- For spots such as candle wax or chewing gum, harden the spot with ice and then gently scrape with a plastic scraper, such as a credit card. Be careful not to scratch the flooring surface. Wipe clean with a damp cloth.
- For tough stains, you may need to use a heavy-duty stain remover made specifically for hardwood floors.
- A more frequent dust-mopping or vacuuming schedule may be required in very sandy areas such as a beach home.