Step up to the stage. Come on, don’t be afraid. Timbertown Austin has some amazing things you can do to show your hardwood floors some unconditional love. It doesn’t have to come in a bottle like a salesman’s Elixir, sold from the back of a covered wagon.
It’s not called something like Dr. Dervishes Miracle Cure. No siree. Won’t cost you a month’s wages. As a matter of fact, it’s something you can literally brew at home. Do we have your curiosity begging for more. Step a little closer and we’ll reveal all.
Have a Cup of Tea
Pretty creative stuff we have here. Set a kettle of water on the stove, bringing it to a boil. Once it begins whistling, pour two cups of bubbling H2O in a large bowl. Stick in a teabag. Let the magic begin.
While you’re waiting for it to cool, enjoy a cup of orange pekoe yourself. Now that the stuff in the basin has cooled to room temperature, grab an old bath towel and submerge it in the tea. Wring out the cloth.
A Little Dab’ll Do Ya
Tea has this stuff in it called tannic acid. While you’re on your knees wiping down the floor, two things will happen. The hardwood will get cleaned and that tannic acid from the brew will bring an unbelievable shine to the surface. Make sure you don’t let the liquid sit on the wood. Dry it quickly with a clean, soft cloth.
Even More Love
There are a few little things you can do to likewise keep the exotic hardwood from going belly-up. Our first tip comes from Asia:
- Whenever you enter the house, slip out of your shoes. Serves a purpose shedding your footwear before you walk on a hardwood floor. Gives your dogs a chance to breath. But more importantly you’re not scattering and grinding what’s on the soles into the surface.
- Most of us already have door mats outside our door. Spring for a couple more to place inside the entrance ways. That way you’ll catch a large percentage of the outdoors from scratching the surface.
- Don’t want to rub the hardwood floor with tea? That simply calls for you to do a little dusting or vacuuming before you wash the surface. If you’re using a mop, make sure you apply some hardwood-safe dusting agent.
- Gramma used to have this stinky way of cleaning her hardwood floors. What she’d do is get a gallon bucket and toss-in a cup of white vinegar. The mop should be clean and you’ll need to wring the instrument dry. Then merely sweep the surface in the direction of the grain. Remember, anytime you use a water-based solution on a hardwood floor, dry it immediately when you’re finished swabbing the deck.
Pre-Existing Condition
For those hardwood floors that have taken a beating, revealing a couple of scratches, go get a box of crayons. Find the color that matches the floor. Rub it into the offending area. Use a blow dryer on its highest setting to melt the wax into the gap. Take a soft, clean cloth and buff the area. That’ll do the trick.
See, you don’t need the help of the Great and Powerful Oz when he was back in Kansas. You’ve just taken care of the wicked witches that plague your beautiful hardwood floors without shelling-out any money on some magic traveling road show quick fix.
Original Source: http://timbertownaustin.com/maintenance/hardwood-floors-need-love-too