How to Maintain Your Oiled Wooden Floors
Oiled wooden floors, both for interiors and exteriors, need a specific treatment to maintain optimal conditions. The oil is able to nourish the wood in depth, preventing it from turning gray or running the risk of splintering. This state of wood is called anhydrous.
The weather can be the great enemy of outdoor wooden floors. With the high temperatures and the days of intense sun, the wood suffers the incidence of the rays of the sun that in case of not being well protected, will end up damaging it. If we install wooden floors in an outdoor space, we must bear in mind that the frequency of maintenance will depend on the climatic conditions of the area, as well as the type of water.
Cleaning and Maintaining Oiled Floors
Oiled floors, require regular and appropriate maintenance in order to ensure ultimate durability and performance. Normally, this means regular buffing and re-oiling every 6-12 months, depending on the usage and maintenance. This will ensure that your wooden floors look in perfect condition with all the brightness that this type of treatment brings. We must ensure that the floor is thoroughly cleaned before proceeding to apply the oil. In the case where the oiled wood floor is in places where there is a greater risk of getting wet, such as at the entrance or on the floor of the kitchen, specific products can be used to give them an extra layer of protection. It is also highly advisable that those areas are further protected by entrance mats for example.
The wooden floors treated with oil are able to enhance the natural beauty of the floor and despite the more intensive maintenance that they require, are still a very popular flooring choice. They bring more warmth and highlight the personality and character of natural wood. Specific cleaners with a high pH usually give very good results when we want to clean a very dirty wooden floor. The problem is that it will eliminate the oil by dissolving it. Therefore, it is recommended that oiled floors are cleaned and maintained with specific products such as Osmo wood floor cleaner.
There are products that in addition to having a low pH, also contain oil in their composition, so that they remove dirt while they are providing the nutrients needed by our oiled wood floor. It will not be advisable to clean oiled wooden floors with water only, as we can end up damaging them. The best thing if the floor is not very dirty is to perform cleanings in dry, passing a cloth or a mop. With an oiled wood floor, we must be careful with liquids. If any of them falls on our floor, we should dry it immediately to avoid permanent markings. Adequate maintenance and cleaning helps to preserve our wooden floor for much longer and prolongs the time until overall sanding of wooden floors is required.
