Streaks on wood floors.... best way to clean hardwood?

[LarlaB]

what am I doing wrong?

 

I have a Wagner steamer that has a floor cleaning attachment. I use microfiber and/or terry cloth pads/rags and change several them times while cleaning my floors(we have heavy traffic/kid dirt, even though I clean floors once a week).

 

The problem is that no matter what type of cloth I use, or how often I clean, there are dull looking streaks on the floor after it dries. Is it too much water/steam being released? Its annoying to have the floor looking dull/dirty after having spent so much time cleaning it.

 

So is there a better steam mop? Or a better way to clean the floors? (I use my steam cleaner for a ton of things, not just floors, so I'm not entirely opposed to getting a new floor cleaner). Its a fairly large area (1200sf), so hands & knees isn't going to happen.

 

Thanks for the help!!!

[Lara in Colo]

What is your water like (hard?). Try using the bottled stuff for your iron (I can't think of it's name ).

 

When I had hardwood floors, I used Murphy's oil soap and when it dried, it too left steaks, I had thick socks and polished with them on.

[thood]

I use a good spalsh of white vinegar and a sink of water with an ordinary mop. Murphy's left streaks on mine too, but vinegar works great & your house doesn't stink. For really shining it up, I use Orange Glo for wood floors after I mop the floor with vinegar. I put on a yard-square area at once and spread it out, then move on. Everyone has to stay off until it dries. It does not make the floor slick. And don't drag chairs around or move furniture either until it's completely dry.

 

I will have to try that. I usually use vinegar and then sometime olive oil, but that is a pain and sometimes a little messy. We have dark hardwood and that makes it a bit difficult in dusty AZ.

[blondeviolin]

I used to do vinegar, but recently I found pine-sol for hardwood and am actually really liking it.

[Ellie]

Bona.

 

Sometimes there are streaks on my hardwood if I use my steam cleaner, although not always. I don't know what makes the difference.

 

Vinegar leaves streaks.

 

Bona. It's what works for me. :-)