How can you keep your hardwood floors looking like new during the Holiday Season? Here are some helpful tips.
The Christmas Tree Mat
You may want to choose a live Christmas tree this year. To maintain and keep a live tree hydrated, you’ll need to have a tree stand that contains water. Any leakage or overflow from watering may get on the wood flooring causing sap marks, or water stains, and can even cause cupping, all warranting repairs.
The best and easiest way to protect your wood floors is to buy a high-quality Christmas tree stand mat. They can protect wood floors and other floor coverings, including carpet, from water damage, including any spills, leaks, or standing water. These same mats can be used for artificial Christmas trees by protecting hardwood floors from scratches.
Amazon.com Prime sells the DiversiTech Reversible Christmas Tree Stand Mat Accessory for Floor Protection, Red and Green, 30 inches for $18.00.
Cleaning Up Needles
Another concern with live trees is falling needles. You’ll want to clean your hardwood floors frequently using a microfiber mop, such as the Bona Hardwood Floor Care System or a Swiffer mop. A vacuum is another good option, but make sure to use one that has a head with bristles that are safe for cleaning wood flooring.
Amazon.com Prime sells this Bona Multi-Surface Floor Care Kit which includes microfiber cleaning pad, four pieces mop handle with mop head, a full-size Bona hardwood floor cleaner with the original formula and full-size Bona stone, tile and laminate floor cleaner for $29.97
Kick Off Your Heels
High heels are notorious for leaving indentation marks on wood floors, especially if they are in disrepair. They can also cause deep scratches through the finish and into the bare wood, which may warrant a refinish. Consider providing your guests with fun or festive socks. Maybe place a sock basket at the front door or hand out socks as a gift for each guest to wear during their visit. That will make being asked to remove shoes a pleasant and comfortable experience, and they may even feel a little pampered.
Amazon.com has this cute set of Fuzzy Socks – Fun Surprise Package! 4 Pairs of fuzzy socks chosen at random! You never know what you’re gonna get! $15 and free shipping.
Don’t Forget About Fido Too
If you have a live Christmas tree, the smell may entice your pets to urinate. Check to see if your pet is being overly curious about the tree, and make sure to wipe up “accidents” as they occur. Even urine sitting less than 24 hours can damage the wood floor finish, and if left unattended long enough, will go through the finish and stain the wood flooring.
If your guests bring any pets, make sure that they have trimmed their nails short before their Christmas stay. You can always give them a gift card to the groomer and book them an appointment for a nail trim. It’s not a bad idea to pamper the pooch too!
While the Christmas season may seem to pose a lot of challenges with wood floors, with a few easy tips, you can take away much of the stress. If you have any additional questions on how to protect and maintain your floors – any time of the year – feel free to reach out. We’d be glad to share.
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