A beautiful wooden finishing

What you need to know:

Rustic. Wooden furniture looks nice but a wooden floor looks even better if properly maintained.

A wooden floor is one of the unique aspects a house can have, it does not only cover the floor but gives the house a beautiful finishing.
Isabel Odida, an interior designer at Miss Odida, says you should not hesitate to use a wooden floor in all your rooms because it gives the house a rustic look.
Wood has different colours and this depends on the kind of tree it is extracted from, these include peak, ebony, walnut, fruitwood, golden oak, natural oak and several others to choose from.
You may choose to leave your floor with the natural wooden colour or better still paint it with any colour of your choice to suit your taste.
Sometimes the designs found on the wooden floors are created while it is being fixed or even bought when it has already been designed. It needs a lot of expertise to make it look perfect.
The wood should be specifically made for the floor which means it should be hard so as to avoid any damage or breakage that may be caused by soft wood.
The wood texture should be fine and smooth so as to ease cleaning and create comfort for the person who is stepping on the floor.
Wooden floors need proper care in order to keep it in good shape for a long time.

How to clean a wooden floor
Eric Muwonge an interior designer at African Arts Décor, Ntinda says most wooden floors are vanished so as to coat it and prevent water or any moisture from getting into the wood.
“You can use any detergent to clean a vanished wooden floor but make sure that when cleaning it you use little water so the floor vanish is not affected,” says Muwonge.
He states that the reason why vanish is used is because it does not let water or moisture get into the wood because it has no absorbing agent.

In case the vanish fades due to poor maintenance, use sand paper to remove the spoilt vanish and then replace it with fresh vanish to avoid further damage.
He also adds that before replacing the vanish, the wood should be smooth so that the floor can have that shiny and smooth look.
Use a broom that cleans the floor thoroughly to sweep of the dirt regularly because you cannot mop the floor on a daily basis.

In case any substance drops on the floor, clean it immediately to avoid any possibility of it leaving a mark on the floor or even leaving it soaked.
In case you are to use paint as a coating for your floor, make sure you use the water resistant paint.
There are some cleaning products that are suitable for your floor, these products are chosen depending on the finishing of the wooden floor and make sure you follow the instructions for use of the cleaning product.
Odida explains that you can use neutral floor polish.
“For a long period of time, neutral wood polish has been the product used for cleaning wooden floors and I do not know if there is any other one” says Odida.

She says she would not recommend water and soap though some people use it for cleaning the floor it.
Odida advises that spilt water should not take long on the floor. It should be cleaned immediately and make sure you start from the edges of the spill not the middle.
She says in order for the finishing to last, make sure you dust it frequently with a fur free cloth and limit it from direct exposure to sunshine. You can use sheer curtains to protect the room from sunshine. Strictly follow the manufacturer’s care instructions so as to maintain the original look of the floor.

Caution
Lift furniture
Carefully lift all the furniture from the floor so that the floor to be cleaned is left vacant and this avoids careless pulling of the furniture which may leave scratches on the floor.

Minimal use of water
Use little water or better still a dump mop in case you are to mop the floor.

Go slow on cleaning products
Use the recommended measurements of the cleaning product so as to avoid making mistakes.

Shield the floor
You can put carpets on the places that have furniture and anything that may destroy the floor.