How to Maintain & Restore Your Concrete Floor

Concrete flooring is among the oldest known type of flooring that is cheap and non-complicated in design.  In the past decades, concrete floors were suitable only for places with high traffic and heavy loads such as garages, stores, foyer, and outdoor floors. Thanks to the new technology that has made concrete floor one of the most attractive flooring with limitless use in your home. Waxing, staining, polishing are some common ways of adding more attractiveness to your concrete floors. However, proper concrete floor maintenance practices are essential to restore the elegance of your floor.

Maintenance of plain concrete

Did you know that concrete floor surfaces with no attractive finishes such as polishing and staining also need regular maintenance? Like in polished and stained floors, the magnitude of maintenance will depend on the exposure to wear ranging from light foot traffic to heavy equipment and machine use, as it is the case of the garage. You can often clean this type of floor using the following practices:

• Clean the dust and lose debris on the surface of the floor using a soft broom, garden hose, or a blower. Alternatively, microfiber pads are perfect for both dry and damp surfaces.
• For floor stains, use warm water with a soft scrub brush and gradually use mild soap and finally ammonia.
• Use degreaser or chemicals to clean the stairs.
• You can use power washing for exterior flooring such as in garages.
• Always clean up spills immediately to avoid stains on your floor.
• Repair the floor to make the next round of cleaning hassle-free. You can use a chisel to widen the area of filling and remove any debris with a vacuum cleaner or a broom. After that, use a concrete mix to cover the crack, smoothen, and clean the spot after 10-12 hours. Finally, apply a sealant. The sealant can be applied to mild cracks and joints after 2 to 3 years to make them waterproof.

Stained Concrete Floor Maintenance

Stained concrete can be an excellent choice for your residential house. Due to light foot traffic experienced in residential stained floors, a simple cleaning may renew their fresh look for many years.

• Stain removal

Owing to the porous nature of concrete floors, you should quickly clean any stain when still fresh to prevent the problem of permanent staining. Moreover, you should choose an appropriate cleaning product to avoid discoloration of the stained floor. For grease stains removal, apply baking soda on the surface and allow it for a while and later use a grease cleaner to remove the stain. Rusts, dirt and mold stains can be removed by simple scrubbing while steam can be used to eliminate other kinds of stains on the surface.

• Basic methods of cleaning

Ideally, you can clean a concrete floor by use of formulated chemical cleaners that are specific to stained floor cleaning. Also, always read the manufacturer’s instruction for the compound. Mechanically, you can clean the stained floor using abrasive cleaners or brushes to scour the floor surface. Finally, use steam to sterilize the surface of the floor as well as cleaning it. More often, the floor should be thoroughly dried afterward to prevent dampness.

• Regular floor cleaning method

It is a daily cleaning method to remove mild stains. You can use typical floor cleaning products such as vinegar, liquid soap, and ammonia. Always clean the stains using soap and water and only revert to ammonia when the stain persists. Also, the long-handled broom is still appropriate for the activity.

• Sealing of stained concrete floors

Out of many floor sealants available in home improvement stores, the wax is commonly used as a sealant on stained concrete floors due to its ability to produce a smooth finish. After your floor is clean, you can apply an even coat of floor wax and allow it to soak overnight for you to re-apply it. With three coats of wax applied after cleaning, you can maintain it through the biannual application. The wax layer does not only give a smooth finish but also makes your floor waterproof.

Maintenance of Polished concrete floor 

Polishing makes your floor dense, waterproof, and long-lasting. The polished floor does not require other maintenance practices such as sealing, or wax application. Instead, regular concrete floor maintenance may be adequate to keep its luster. You can use regular dust mopping to remove dirt and grit. Occasionally, damp-mop using special cleaner, pH neutral cleaner, and conditioners formulated for the polish floor. If you notice that your floor is losing the shine after sometimes, you need to apply the commercial polish to keep the glitter.