Are dark wood floors hard to keep clean?
They require work but it is not hard work to keep dark wood floors clean. Considering I have had my dark cherry wood floors for over 10 years and still get complements I would say no, they are not hard to keep clean.
But this also depends on the shine of your hardwood floors. If you have a more matte look on your floors, you can see every foot print and little ding, but with shiner wood floors the shine can mask and hide those things.
This post may contain affiliate links. For my full disclosure please see my privacy policy.
| Products To Help |
|---|
1. Microfiber mop  |
2. Wood vacuum  |
3. brass wool   |
Want to get these items in 2 days or less? Get yourself an Amazon Prime FREE trial. 30 days of 2 day shipping and same day shipping.
How to keep foot prints from dark wood floors
You can keep your shoes off while inside your home, as well as wear socks inside to keep foot prints from showing.
You can also ask guest to keep their shoes off or wear shoe covers to keep your floors from showing foot prints.
Why does my hardwood floor always look dirty?
Your dark hardwood floors may always look dirty if you are using a broom instead of a microfiber mop on the daily.
And if you are not sticking to a cleaning schedule for your floors.
Some dark wood floors also look dirty because you can see the dust settle from day to day movement.
How do you clean and polish dark wood floors?
Cleaning and polishing your dark wood floors is an easy 3 step system that anyone can do.
- Remove dirt with a dry microfiber mop
- Lightly wet microfiber mop to clean up
- Buff floors again with a dry microfiber mop (for scratches or spots that are tough to remove)
It’s that easy trust me. My floors look so good, I get compliments on them all the time and they are 10 years old dark wood floors.
How to buff wood floors to keep them clean
To buff your wood floors by hand you will need some brass wool, and you’ll have to go back and forth over the area that has a scratch or mess until it is evened out. Then you’ll want to add wood wax to the buffed area.
You’ll want to buff your wood floors if you have scratch marks or spots that you need to remove (candy, dried juice, gum..etc)
Tips to keep your hard wood dark wood floors clean
1. ✅Use a vacuum instead of a broom
Doing this can make sure that your sealer and your wood don’t get scratched from the bristles of a regular broom.
Here is the wood vacuum we love and use weekly.
2. ✅Add felt pads on chairs and tables
Doing this can make sure that you are not scratching off the sealer from your wood or laminate. and it makes sliding the chairs and tables easier.
I used these felt pads for this.
3. ✅Keep to a cleaning schedule
Every single day at the end of the day I microfiber broom the house. I do this because I have little kids and they are just very messy kids.
Every Friday when my husband gets home from work, he takes the kids outside and I vacuum the floors and wipe them down with the microfiber mop.
That’s it.
I understand some people cannot do this daily but aim for at least once a week to vacuum and microfiber mop the floors to avoid any sticky, black and footprint-y floors.
Doing these simple cleaning hacks will make sure your dark hardwood floors stay clean.
