How to Clean Concrete Floors
Concrete floors are known for its durability. Unlike tiles and linoleum, concrete floors don’t crack or split. Cleaning concrete not just enhances its service life but improves its beauty too. It is difficult to say when your concrete floor needs cleaning because of gradual accumulation of dirt and stains. If you are nearby a traffic congested area, then your floor might need periodic cleaning. Since it is difficult to determine the exact time for cleaning, you need to clean the concrete floors periodically. Remember, depending on the concrete floor type such as polished concrete floors, stamped concrete, decorative concrete and stain concrete floors, its cleaning process may slightly vary.
General cleaning processes that can be applied for all sorts of concrete floors are listed below:
– Always sweep the floor before starting the cleaning process to remove dust and coarse grid that can scratch the floor during cleaning.
– Warm water and soap can be used to get rid of mild stains and dirt that reside on the concrete floor surface. After washing, the floor needs to be rinsed off clearly using clean water to remove soap residues.
– Floors that are subjected to hard usage such as stamped concrete patios or decorative concrete driveways needs to be cleaned properly to get rid of dirt, oil stain, grease and other impurities. For cleaning oil and grease stain, you need to cover the stain area with hydrated lime which can absorb most of the oil.
– Too early troweling can cause continual dusting and it is one of the common problems with concrete floors. To avoid continual dusting, you can make use of chemical hardener which can form a seal with the lime in the concrete floor and harden the surface.
– Sealing and painting is also an effective way of protecting the concrete floors. Sealing and painting prevents oil and grease stains from penetrating into the concrete floor surface.
Polished concrete floor cleaning:
For cleaning a polished floor you must not use ordinary methods because polished surfaces can easily lose its glow due to improper cleaning techniques or tools. Nowadays, you can find different types of cleaners that are specifically designed for cleaning polished surfaces.
Some cleaners not just remove the dirt from the surface but also apply a dirt-resistant film. So, identify the best cleaners that can perform polished floor cleaning effectively.
These are some simple ways through which you can retain the elegant glow of your concrete floors for a long time.
Ben has been writing for the Kansas City Concrete for over 3 years now and has several years of experience in the concrete arena. He has also written many articles regarding stamped concrete patios and polished concrete floors in the past.