Maintaining Hardwood Floors
If you have thought about changing your flooring and have decided on hardwood flooring then you have made a great choice, but your hardwood floors will need to be maintained. Hardwood flooring is made from mature trees, and is treated when it is finished. But hardwood will absorb moisture and also scratch if something is dragged across it.
Leaving a puddle of water in your hardwood floors would not be a great idea. The cracks in between the hardwood will absorb the moisture and swell. If water happens to be spilt in even a small spot and sits it can still be seen. If there happens to be any liquid at all spilt on the hardwood floor you need to clean it up immediately. When you clean your hardwood floor you can use a damp mop but only damp. There are also floor cleaners that are specially formulted for hardwood floors that you could use, like hardwood floors usually. Whatever you choose you must use only a damp mop.
Dents and aslo scratches happen to hardwood floors often. High heels are torture to hardwood floors. Over time any furniture legs can dent or scratch the floors. You can choose to put area rugs under the furniture to protect the floors or you can put felts on the bottoms of the furniture legs. This can be the same as hardwood floors to many people. You may also choose to add area rugs to any areas that are highly traveled in your house.
Some homeowners like the character that scratches and dents give the floor. If you have a lot of dents and scratches then it is an option to have your hardwood floors refinished. You may need to have your hardwood floors refinished every ten years or so, this will also add a protective top coat to your hardwood floors, just like hardwood floors usually. Moving anything across your hardwood floors to letting your dog run in the house can cause scratches and dents.