You need to use special techniques for cleaning heavily soiled hardwood floors without a finish.
Cleaning and refinishing hardwood floors.
Afterward mop using a micro cloth and concentrated cleaner specially made for hardwood floors.
Because different floor finishes have unique care requirements the best way to clean hardwood floors will depend on the type of finish rather than the wood species e g cherry maple oak.
Keep in mind steam water vinegar and cleaners like murphy s oil soap that produces suds should never be used to clean wood floors.
You can also use a spray and mop product or disposable wet pads that are safe for hardwood floors.
Steam can dull the finish and damage the wood.
Unfinished wood or floors with worn down finish are a very different story and require another approach.
Don t use straight ammonia alkaline products or abrasive cleaners.
This section looks at the best methods of cleaning old wood floors that need a new coat of finish.
Expect to spend at least one full day on this prep work for refinishing hardwood floors.
Method squirt and mop and bona hardwood floor cleaner are two good ones.
Unless you use a steam mop designed for cleaning hardwoods steam cleaning is not advised for hardwood floors.
You have to thoroughly clean the floor touch up any deep scratches and roughen the existing finish with sanding screens so the new finish will adhere well.