Floor Cleaning Dublin | How To Clean All Types Of Floors

Floor Cleaning Dublin | How To Clean All Types Of Floors

From time to time we will all be faced with some kind of floor cleaning project. The floors that used to be very glossy are now very matt and the floors that used to be matt are now very glossy. The grout lines are also very dirty and in some cases the floors can change colour due to high porosity and high absorbency. From here onwards you will need to decide if you have the finances to use the services of a professional floor cleaning company or if you are brave enough to do the work yourself. The point of this article is to give you the basic information about how to do it safely and what tools you might need to achieve decent results without permanently damaging the floor. Your idea might be right but by not knowing what to use on what surface, an accident can easily happen and instead of deep cleaning the floor you might end up burning the floor. Read this article as a guide not as a step by step information. 

Firstly, let’s find out what type of floor cleaning techniques can be done and what kinds of tools are required. 

1. Deep Cleaning | In 99% of the cases the floor got dirty because its pores have opened up and the dirt has managed to attach to the surface. Step by step and day by day the original floor disappeared under a thick layer of dirt and the floor has become patchy looking and visually unpleasant. The issue can be easily sorted with a deep floor cleaning project. A deep floor cleaning project will require the use of a strong degreaser or a floor cleaner to emulsify and dissolve the dirt and some type of agitator. Depending on the size of the floor, the floor could be done with basic tools like a scrubbing brush and a normal mop or in the case of a large floor, a floor buffer and a wet vac might be required. There are many different types of floors and there is no one deep cleaning product that works on all of them. 
2. Floor Stripping | Some floors might have a coat or two of some type of protector or sealer that over time got damaged and has stopped protecting the floor. While in some cases a deep cleaning job and another coat of refresher could sort out the issue, in other cases the surface has to be stripped off, the old sealer removed in full and a new coat of floor polish or floor sealer applied. There are many types of floor strippers for many types of floor sealers. Some floor sealers are oiled based and can only be removed with solvent strippers, while others are water based and can be easily removed with a normal water based floor stripper. Stripping floors is pretty risky and it can really damage the floor and the surrounding areas if the floor strippers get in contact with painted surfaces or surfaces that do not require stripping. While stripping small floor areas can be easily done with basic tools like a mopping system and a few catering scourers, the situation changes dramatically when the floor has a few layers of floor polish, or the floor is very large or the floor polish might require a lot of weight to start breaking apart. 
3. Floor Grinding | Some floors might not look clean or right even after it was deep cleaned or stripped off. That can happen when there are deep scratches or serious dull patches. Not all floors can be grinded so this type of operation should not be undertaken by unqualified people. Most natural stone floors can be grinded with special diamond pads but the whole process of floor grinding and scratch removal requires the use of heavy and powerful equipment, a number of specific diamond floor pads and wet vacuums. 

The above three steps are the most basic steps used in the floor cleaning industry. Many other operations can be done to fully restore and polish all types of floors, but these three steps are the most essential in the process of floor cleaning and floor restoration. Below, we will detail the steps needed to deep clean most types of popular floors:

1. Laminate Floor Cleaning | Most new and old apartments and some houses have laminate floors. A laminate floor makes a lot of sense for a rented property or a property with intense daily traffic. A laminate floor is cheaper to buy than a real wood floor and it can be easily replaced when it gets damaged without a lot of disruption. But like any other type of floor, the laminate floor is likely to get dirty and patchy. There are three types of laminate floors available. The most popular laminate floor is the glossy or smooth one. Some people love their glossy laminate floors. The glossy laminate floors are likely to get stained very easily because its polished surface has little or no absorbency. The best way of cleaning a glossy laminate floor is in conjunction with a flat mopping system and a self evaporating low PH floor cleaning product. You need something that evaporates on its own within a few seconds. Many people use window cleaning products to clean glossy laminate floors. For deep cleaning of glossy laminate floors, the user should use a highly diluted degreaser and then maintain it with a self evaporating floor cleaner. When dealing with matt or semi gloss laminate floors, the user can use a wider range of low PH floor cleaners to break down the dirt. The secret is to use a mist of water and never over soak the floor. In most cases we recommend the use of flat mopping pads and flat mop heads fitted with a scourer. The glossy laminate floors should not be polished with any type of sealers because it will not last. 
2. Marble Floor Cleaning | The marble floors are by far the most prestigious floors a person can buy. All marble floors are manufactured from a natural stone that comes from the mountain in a large block, then is cut to size, shipped to Ireland and from there ends up in your home. All marble floors are very compact but even so, the stone has some level of porosity. To reduce its absorbency and to make sure that the stone stays spotless and beautiful for as long as possible, the stone has to be polished. The marble floor cleaning and marble floor polishing operation will entail the use of special diamond pads to grind the surface and to close off all its tiny pores that can absorb dirt. Depending on the level of sheen expected and the type of marble floor, the surface can be polished with diamond pads only or it can be impregnated with chemical sealers or polished with marble polishing powders. Each type of sealing will achieve a high gloss finish unless a matt impregnator is used. But overall, the idea is to fill up all the small pores and make sure that the marble floor cannot deposit dirt. The owner of a marble floor can maintain the polished surface by washing the floor with proper marble care products like the amazing Faber Neugel and by refreshing the worn areas with water based refreshers. Grinding marble floors, polishing marble floors with diamond pads and sealing marble floors with proper impregnators requires the use of heavy duty equipment and a lot of knowledge. Do not clean your marble floors with acidic or corrosive products. Do not use bleach based products to clean your marble floors. Do not scrub your marble floors with steel or catering scourers and do not drag heavy furniture on the newly polished marble floors. We recommend that you find a good marble polishing contractor to deal with your floors to avoid damage.
3. Marmoleum Floor Cleaning | While the marmoleum floors are usually fitted within the commercial units and schools, you can also find it in some residential properties. The marmoleum floors are very colourful, very easy to clean and maintain, available in all shapes and sizes and should be fully polished to provide the kind of protection expected from it. All marmoleum floors are already sealed but if the marmoleum floor is exposed to a lot of commercial traffic and daily use and abuse, it might require some additional coats of floor polish to make sure that the surface does not get stained or scratched. The basic initial sealing can be done by anyone and as long as only a few thin coats of water based floor polish is applied evenly, there is not a lot of knowledge required to do it right. The issue is removing the old sealer and the use of floor strippers. Maintaining the marmoleum floors is not hard at all but a bit of common sense is needed. The essential thing is to use low to medium PH floor cleaners and not a lot of water. Small to medium areas can be daily cleaned with a normal mopping system or a flat mopping system. From time to time, depending on the level of traffic, your marmoleum floor will require a nice deep clean with a stronger cleaning product to remove all kinds of residue that cannot be removed with a daily maintainer. The idea of all marmoleum floors is that the user does not walk on the floor but on the polish coat. Once in a while, again, traffic dependent, the floor polish has to be removed and a new coat of floor polish has to be applied. By doing this and by using proper floor cleaners and maintainers, your marmoleum floor will look nice for many years to come. All marmoleum floors, regardless of type, shape or colour, have to be buffed regularly. While the routine maintenance can be done by anyone with access to a mop and a bucket, stripping the old sealer and applying a new sealer is a bit more challenging. Stripping off old sealer from a marmoleum surface cannot be done without the use of low speed floor buffers and wet vacuums. Extreme caution is advised while dealing with marmoleum floors and floor strippers. The floor cannot be in contact with a diluted floor stripper for longer than 5 minutes. The floor stripper has to be diluted 1 to 10 to 1 to 50, depending on its strength. The floor has to be scrubbed, washed a number of times and then resealed. Depending on the condition of your marmoleum floor, a primer might be required before the final coat of floor polish is applied. We recommend the amazing Cleanfast Floor Polish 25% Acrylic as the most durable and easiest to apply. Allow 1-2 hours drying times between coats. If you have no access to any professional floor cleaning equi[ment and if you don’t know how to do it, please contact Floor Cleaning Dublin today and enquire about our amazing marmoleum floor cleaning services.
4. Harlequin Floor Cleaning | This type of floor is a very specialized type of floor and is usually fitted in large dancing arenas. The harlequin floor cleaning and floor maintenance routine is a very risky one and it has to be done with proper equipment and proper tools only. The harlequin floors have a decent level of slipping on it just enough for a dancer to slide freely on it but not too slippery for the dancer to hurt themselves. While the daily floor cleaning routine can be easily done with a flat mopping system and a harlequin approved floor cleaning product, the once off deep cleans that are required once in a while cannot be done without proper floor cleaning equipment, proper harlequin floor cleaning products and proper knowledge. If your harlequin floor is too dull or too glossy, please call Floor Cleaning Dublin right now and book our amazing harlequin floor cleaning services and harlequin floor restoration services. Our company has completed many harlequin floor cleaning projects all over Ireland and we are well known for our top quality work, affordable prices and innovative cleaning solution. Do not use sealers to seal harlequin floors. Do not use strippers on your harlequin floors and do not use aggressive floor buffing pads to scrub floors. Do not over wet your harlequin floors. If you are not 100% confident that you can deep clean and maintain your harlequin floors, please call Floor Cleaning Dublin before even considering starting. 
5. Amtico Floor Cleaning | There are thousands of houses and commercial units fitted with Amtico floors. The Amtico floors are very heavy duty floors designed to take pretty much any type of commercial and residential traffic. Amtico floors imitate some other types of floors. You can see Amtico floors looking like real wood floors, or like laminate floors, or like porcelain or ceramic floors or like polished concrete floors. The Amtico floors are easy to clean and maintain and very easy to polish. Most Amtico floor owners can deal with the daily cleaning routine and with smaller polishing projects. The essential thing when polishing Amtico floors is to fully strip off all the old sealers and avoid applying a new coat of Amtico dressing or floor polish over a pre-existing finish. The daily cleaner and daily Amtico maintainer sold by Amtico, has to be diluted as recommended before using it to wash the floors. A major mistake most Amtico floor owners make is to use the Amtico Maintainer undiluted or with a too low dilution rate. The maintainer is designed to fill up all kinds of imperfections and repairs all kinds of dull patches. If you are not 100% confident that a great result is likely to happen, please call Floor Cleaning Dublin today and have us provide you with a free no obligation estimate for deep Amtico floor cleaning, Amtico floor sealing and Amtico floor polishing. If you have decided to go ahead and do it on your own, please make sure that your Amtico Floor stripper was diluted 1 to 20 in warm water before being applied to the floor area. Make sure not to touch any other surfaces that do not require stripping and do not work without hand protection. Do not walk on the other floors with your floor stripper impregnated shoes to avoid damages. Scrub all areas to make sure that the old sealer is fully dissolved and proceed to extract the waste. A wet vacuum would be handy but you can also use a good quality mop to extract the waste assuming that a small area is being treated. For large floor areas having a good quality floor buffer and a good quality wet vacuum is essential. After the initial stripping, the floor has to be washed a number of times with a good quality floor cleaner to remove all floor stripper residue and then the surface has to be sealed. Use 1-2 coats of Amtico Floor Dressing or a similar product to seal and protect the floor. Do not apply more than 2 coats to prevent creating an artificial glazing. 
6. Wood Floor Cleaning I Lacquered Floors I While the best treatment for any type of hardwood floor is a good quality floor sanding and a few coats of floor lacquer, some floors might not be that worn out and a nice deep cleaning plus a few coats of refresher is all is needed to restore the original look. There are hundreds of types of wood floor cleaners and wood floor refreshers all good and all suitable for pretty much the same type of job. The main reason why your lacquered wood floor gets dirty is the high porosity and intense traffic. Having a number of people walking on and off the wood floor on a daily basis is likely to cause some damage. As the traffic happens on the wood floor, the protective coat of floor lacquer is likely to crack or wear off. Those areas are likely to start absorbing dirt and the process of degradation is started. A quick deep clean with a quality wood floor cleaner from Chimiver, Bona, Junckers or Tover will emulsify the ingrained dirt and it will restore the original finish. A coat or two of a polyurethane based wood floor polish will seal the surface and it will restore the full protection. If you are not 100% sure of yourself or if you do not have the best tools and the best sealers please call Floor Cleaning Dublin and enquire about our amazing wood floor cleaning and wood floor polishing services. We use quick drying professional wood floor polishes from well established brands. If you have decided to do it on your own please make sure that you use as little water as possible, dilute the wood floor cleaner to the manufacturer’s recommendation and scrub the wood floors within 30 seconds after it is sprayed. Do not use catering scourers or metal scourers to scrub the wood floor. After the initial deep clean, allow the wood to dry for about 10-15 min and then proceed with the polishing. Use a good quality flat mopping system with a soft microfiber head. Apply one thin coat of wood floor polish moving along with the fiber of the wood. If you are applying more coats, please make sure that the first coat of wood floor polish or wood floor refresher has dried before a new coat of sealer is applied. After the floor has dried in full make sure not to drag items on the floor, do not use acidic floor cleaners and do not scrub the sealed surface.
7. Wood Floor Cleaning I Oiled Floor Cleaning I Many wooden floors in Ireland are sealed with a hardwax oil or a floor oil. A floor oil is a natural sealer that is used to impregnate the wood fiber and to create a barrier between the traffic itself and the floor. There are many types of floor oils and hardwax floor oils from many different brands but all have the same purpose. While a real wood floor that gets sealed with a floor oil or a hardwax oil will last for a good bit of time, once or twice per year the surface will require refreshing or re-oiling. The floor oil will likely start evaporating from the first day and the surface oil might evaporate even faster if the surface is in direct sunlight or used by a high number of people. The issue can be easily sorted by having the oiled floor surface refreshed once or twice per year. The refreshing can be done by pretty much anyone with access to a flat mop and a bit of refresher. There are also a number of waterborne oiled floor refreshers that can be applied to the surface by spraying it and allowing it to dry. But if you are planning to refresh a large floor area or a commercial floor area, maybe you should contact Floor Cleaning Dublin and enquire about our amazing oiled floor cleaning and oiled floor refinishing services. If you are ready to do it on your own please follow the following rules. 1. Deep clean the surface with a proper quality oiled floor cleaner to remove all the impregnated dirt and all the residue from the floor. 2. Dry the floor nicely and prepare all the equipment for refreshing. 3. Put on a pair of good quality nitrile gloves, spread a thin coat of refresher all over the floor with a flat mop head or with a microfiber cloth. Then do nothing for 15 min. 4. Go over the treated area with a dry cloth and extract all the excess oil that has not managed to penetrate the surface. Always move along with the fiber of the wood. Remember to clean your oiled floors with proper oiled floor cleaners and also remember to refresh your oiled floors at least once per year.
8. Porcelain Floor Cleaning I A porcelain floor is a low maintenance type of floor that looks prestigious and it lasts for very long periods of time. The porcelain tiles are available in a wide range of colours, shapes, thickness and level of sheen. Most residential and commercial units in Ireland have at least one type of porcelain tile fitted somewhere inside. The glossy porcelain floors are very popular because it imitates highly polished natural stone floors and with the right maintenance, it can look classy and elegant for long periods of time. The matt looking porcelain floors are incredibly durable, unaffected by harsh chemicals, high traffic or UV light. But like any other type of floor, eventually it will reach the condition where a bit of extra cleaning is required to restore the original looks. While most residential and commercial porcelain floor owners can deal with the day to day maintenance, deep cleaning porcelain floors, especially the glossy ones, is not an easy task. Floor Cleaning Dublin is one of the most highly recommended and widely used porcelain floor cleaning companies and porcelain floor restoration companies in Ireland. We are highly skilled and fully insured. We can deep clean and polish pretty much any type of porcelain floor in any condition. But if you are one of those handy people capable of dealing with pretty much any type of floor cleaning task, then you can do it yourself assuming that you have the right tools and the right cleaning products. Using the right porcelain floor cleaning products is very important. Use a low speed floor buffer and a white pad to scrub your porcelain floors until the dirt has dissolved. Use a grout cleaning brush to scrub the grout lines and extract all the dirt with a wet vacuum. Remember to buff the floor with a clean and dry floor pad after the floor has dried. You can also attempt to do a porcelain floor cleaning project with any floor buffers or wet vacs, but only if you are dealing with small areas. Remember, never use acidic cleaning products on ceramic floors. Use Faber Algafloor Maintainer for the day to day cleaning of all kinds of porcelain floors. 
9. Ceramic Floor Cleaning I By far the most popular type of floor in Ireland and probably the world. The ceramic floors are affordable, pretty much maintenance free and suitable for all kinds of commercial and residential use. The ceramic floors can be deep cleaned with pretty much any type of floor cleaning product, it can be easily stained, it can be buffed and after every deep cleaning project it looks like new again. There is little wonder that ceramic floors were and are in such big demand. All ceramic floors have some level of porosity so from time to time it will require a nice deep clean to get rid of all the impregnated dirt from the tile and the grout lines. While a professional floor cleaning company like Floor Cleaning Dublin will have your ceramic tiles deep cleaned and restored in no time for a very reasonable fee, you can also deep clean your ceramic floors by using a combination of brushes, a flat mop and some great quality floor cleaning products like Faber 30 or Cleanfast Shift Degreaser. The secret is to soak the floor nicely in a cleaning solution that was diluted to the recommended dilution, to allow a few minutes of direct contact, to scrub all the grout lines and all the surfaces, extract the waste and the job is done. Or just check out our amazing ceramic floor cleaning services and ceramic floor restoration prices. Floor Cleaning Dublin can deep clean your floors first and then we can apply a protective sealer to prevent the floor from absorbing dirt as fast. Floor Cleaning Dublin is happy to deal with commercial and residential ceramic floor cleaning projects and we are also happy to provide free no obligation estimates. 
10. Microcement Floor Cleaning I The microcement floors are the new type of floors that have changed the way people fit floors. The microcement floors are professional quality floors based on a special composition that contains rapid drying cements, fine fillers such as calcium carbonates or fine quartz powder and an adhesive polymer. The product can be applied over pre-existing surfaces or it can be applied as the main floor or wall finish. The microcement floors are available in a wide variety of colours, designs, shapes and different levels of absorbency. The microcement floors are new to Ireland and there are not a lot of places that have such floors. The price of these floors is very high and the maintenance is very specific. Floor Cleaning Dublin is one of the very few floor cleaning companies that provide microcement floor cleaning services in Ireland. We use a number of heavy duty microcement floor cleaners from Chimiver. We can remove impregnated dirt, we can remove some types of stains from the microcement floors and we can increase or decrease the level sheen according to the customer requirements. If you are the lucky owner of a microcement floor, please do not attempt to deep clean it on your own to avoid causing permanent damages. Hire your local Microcement Floor Cleaning Specialist today and let us deal with all your deep cleaning, maintenance and polishing needs. Floor Cleaning Dublin uses only certified microcement floor cleaners and sealers. 
11. Terracotta Floor Cleaning | The elegance of a terracotta floor cannot be matched by any other type of floor. A well maintained and well sealed terracotta floor is the ideal floor for a classic home or a classic shop. The terracotta floors are pretty expensive floors but the high expense is a once off expense because the floors are likely to last for generations. A terracotta floor is a type of clay floor made from a natural mixture of soils baked in an oven. Some terracotta tiles are sold unsealed while other terracotta floors are sold with a thick glazing. Maintaining a terracotta floor properly is not that hard but the surface has to be 100% sealed to be able to stop the stains. The type of terracotta floor cleaner and floor cleaning maintainer needed for the daily clean will vary from surface to surface and it is usually based on the type of sealer used to seal or impregnate the terracotta. Some people use waxes, other people use solvent impregnators and other people use water based sealers. The day to day floor terracotta floor cleaning and terracotta floor maintenance can be easily done by anyone. The deep cleaning and terracotta sealing is a very messy job and it should be avoided at any cost unless the user has done it before and owns the heavy duty equipment needed. When an old terracotta floor is being restored, there is a lot of sanding involved, stripping, scrubbing and polishing. To avoid staining or creating uneven patches on terracotta floors please contact Floor Cleaning Dublin today and enquire about our professional terracotta floor cleaning services. We will provide you with a free no obligation estimate and a step by step guide to the process. 
12. Terrazzo Floor Cleaning | The terrazzo floors are a mixture of concrete and marble pebbles. The concrete is mixed with some type of marble pebbles, then poured in whatever shape is needed and then grinded and polished. The terrazzo floors are very durable, very fancy and very easy to clean and maintain. Due to the high initial cost of installing, the terrazzo floors are not as popular as they used to be but there are still many public and commercial buildings that have these kinds of floors. In most cases, the terrazzo floors have to be maintained with proper neutral floor cleaners and buffed once in a while to maintain the natural appearance. The terrazzo floors can be polished with water based sealers, solvent based sealers or waxes. It all depends on the customer requirements or expectations. The daily maintenance does not require the use of heavy duty equipment unless the surface is large or in poor shape. Grinding and sealing the terrazzo floors is a very delicate operation and it has to be done by professionals only, with professionals tools only. If your terrazzo floor has lost its unique looks or it looks dull and patchy, you should contact Floor Cleaning Dublin today and find out more information about our professional terrazzo floor cleaning services, terrazzo floor grinding, terrazzo floor buffing and terrazzo floor polishing. We will assess your floors for free and we will provide you with the best options possible. For the daily terrazzo maintenance please avoid using steamers, acidic floor cleaning products, floor cleaning products that leave a residue behind and bleach based products. 
13. Natural Stone Carpet Cleaning | Natural stone carpets arrived in Ireland about 30 years ago. It was a big hit from the start because it was affordable, it looks amazing and it is very easy to clean and maintain. The natural stone carpets are available in a wide range of colours and shapes and are suitable for intense traffic. There are a number of products that clean those kinds of floors hassle free and for the day to day cleaning and maintenance there are no specific tools required. Floor Cleaning Dublin deals with all types of natural stone carpet cleaning projects all over Ireland. We can deep clean natural stone carpet floors, we can remove stains and we can restore hopeless looking floors. Our prices are affordable and our work quality will impress even the most demanding customer. Do not undertake a deep natural stone carpet cleaning project unless you own a wet vac and some kind of scrubbing machine. The water used for deep cleaning has to be extracted fast otherwise the floor will absorb it in full. Receive a free no obligation estimate in a matter of minutes and book one of the most well established and most highly recommended natural stone carpet cleaning companies in Ireland.
14. Travertine Floor Cleaning | The travertine floors are in big demand now and it was in big demand for the past 3000 years. These particular types of floors are extremely durable, very natural looking and suitable for all kinds of traffic. The travertine floors have low or high porosity and have to be sealed to prevent dirt absorption. Floor Cleaning Dublin is one of the most popular travertine floor cleaning and travertine floor polishing contractors in Ireland. We deal with hundreds of travertine floor cleaning and travertine floor polishing projects every year. Our company is fully insured and highly recommended. If you are the lucky owner of a travertine floor, you need to strictly respect the maintenance to avoid staining and damaging the glazing of the floor. The travertine floors are not naturally glossy. The glossy finish is created by the mechanical polishing with a diamond pad or with some kind of sealer. From time to time all travertine floors will require a deep cleaning with specialized products and buffing or sealing with another coat of protector to reduce porosity. The day to day travertine floor cleaning maintenance can be easily done by anyone but the grinding, polishing and buffing has to be done by a professional contractor. If you are not happy with the way your travertine floor looks right now, please call Floor Cleaning Dublin and enquire about our travertine floor cleaning services. We are affordable, we are insured and we are happy to deal with any type of travertine floors.
15. Commercial Floor Cleaning | Floor Cleaning Dublin is a professional floor cleaning contractor that is happy to contract any type of heavy duty floor cleaning contracts, commercial floor cleaning contracts, residential floor cleaning contracts and industrial floor cleaning contracts. We are a team of highly skilled professionals happy to deal with any type of floor cleaning & floor polishing contracts. Receive a free no obligation estimate within minutes. Have your floors restored to a new condition in a matter of hours.

Floor Cleaning Dublin | How To Clean All Types Of Floors