Mopping laminate with washing-up liquid.
Please do not do this – you wouldn’t wash yourself in washing-up liquid, would you? Washing-up liquid as the name suggests is for washing up. It can corrode the surface of your laminate floor and lead to unsightly discolourations and grey smears. Dishwasher liquid leaches your laminate floor with the result that it can reach its end of life after just a few years. The supposedly affordable floor cleaner substitute can therefore ultimately give rise to significantly higher costs as the laminate floor has to be replaced fully. Such improper cleaning also results in expiry of the warranty.
Bleach will get rid of stains.
That is no doubt correct, but you will also destroy your floor in the process. What good is removing a stain if you need a new floor covering afterwards? The aggressive ingredients in bleaching agents corrode the entire material of your floor and damage it permanently. Therefore, do not use bleach or strong solvents and avoid stains on your floor in the first place.
A splash of vinegar or vinegar essence does no harm.
“We cleaned everything with vinegar-based cleaners in the past.” – Yes, in the past. The same wealth of new floor coverings also did not exist then, all of which need special care. Vinegar-based cleaners are strongly advised against in particular in the case of timber. Timber becomes rough and cracked as a result of the vinegar and using vinegar to mop floors can cause irreparable damage.
Rinse aid from the dishwasher will prevent streaks when mopping.
The name in this case also tells you the best use of this agent. Rinse aid for the dishwasher will produce sparkling glasses and prevent water stains. But dishwasher rinse aid has no business being in your mop water for your timber, cork or laminate floor. Many household tips certainly promise that you will be able to mop without streaks and your floor will be left gleaming afterwards. What they do not tell you, however, is that it will also damage your floor. The ingredients in the rinse aid corrode the surface of your floor covering and destroy it.
Shower gel is an effective substitute for laminate cleaner.
No! Shower gel is generally matched to the ph value of the skin. This value is 5.5. Shower and wash lotions are generally ph-neutral or ph-skin-neutral. Fragrances and colourants may provide for a great shower experience, but you should spare your laminate floor this experience at all cost. That’s because the colourants used in the shower gel can penetrate the surface of laminate and cause unsightly discolourations. This effect is intensified especially if the laminate floor was cleaned improperly beforehand and the surface is therefore already corroded.
Fabric softeners give extra special shine.
It is certainly true that using fabric softeners in the mop water leaves a beautiful shine on your timber floor, but at what price? The fabric softener is deposited deep inside the pores in your timber and is very difficult to remove again. If you then also use the wrong floor cleaner, which in the worst case scenario reacts with the deposited fabric softener, your timber will discolour unattractively and these discolourations can also no longer be removed again. In the case of engineered timber, in particular, where the wear and tear layer is designed for up to three repeated sanding, the mix of fabric softener and floor cleaner penetrates so deeply that your floor becomes permanently damaged.
You should, therefore, use clean & green natural timber cleaner immediately – it cleans gently and thoroughly and leaves a natural shine and optimal protective film on your timber floor. Moreover, fabric softeners usually also leave unsightly smears following mopping.
Spraying floors with glass cleaners prior to mopping – this prevents streaks.
Please no! You can achieve a streak-free result after mopping by using the right floor cleaner and a clean, softener-free wiping cloth – even without the use of glass cleaners. Moreover, most glass cleaners contain spirit so as to achieve this streak-free appearance. However, this attacks the surface of laminate, timber, etc. and can lead to irreparable damage to your floor in the long term. A high price for streak-free floors, especially as clean & green active and natural cleaners deliver streak-free results at a cost of just 20 cents per mopping.
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