A sparklingly clean business is important for impressing customers and clients, but keeping your business’s floors clean takes more effort than your kitchen at home. Mopping, sweeping, and vacuuming isn’t the only ways to clean a floor. Depending on the type of flooring you are dealing with, using a floor scrubber machine or wet-vac may be the most effective way to handle it. Check out this handy guide on how to clean various floor types found in both commercial and residential buildings.
Flat Tiles
Flat tile floors are commonly found in stores, schools, hospitals, and other large buildings. While it is not common for homes to have flat tiled floors, some kitchens and bathrooms do have them. Such floors are usually tiled with large square tiles, that do not have any (or much) visible grouting between tiles. Instead, the tiles more or less look to be entirely connected as a single piece.
Generally speaking, flat tiled floors are easier to clean than raised tiled floors. To clean small spaces, such as in a home or a building entryway, start by sweeping. This helps to get rid of most loose debris. Next, move on to using a mop or spray mop. If using a mop, get a floor cleaner instead of just using soap and water. Spray mops use special pads that already have water and cleaners inside, so no extra water is needed. This can both help the floor to smell better and make it easier to clean up sticky spots. Spray mops typically work better than traditional mops, but they are also more expensive. Once done, you can leave the floor to air dry. Open a window to make this process go by faster.
If you are trying to clean a larger space, then using a basic broom and mop can be more tedious than effective. In these cases, it’s best to use a floor scrubber. There is more than one type of scrubbing machine, but they all work in generally the same way. Large scrub brushes on the bottom of the machine work as both a broom and mop, cleaning up all debris on the floor. The biggest variant in these machines is in their size. Some are near in size to a push lawnmower and operated in much the same way by pushing them from behind, while others can be driven similarly to a riding lawnmower.
Raised Tiles
Raised tiles are usually smaller than flat tiles. They are more commonly found in small bathrooms or home kitchens but can also be used in more decorative areas of commercial buildings. With raised tiling, there is much more visible grout in the spaces between tiles. This is where the difference in cleaning techniques comes into play.
The tiles themselves can be cleaned in the same way as flat tiled floors, with brooms and mops. However, cleaning the grout is the tricky part. These areas of the floor usually need to be scrubbed separately; the deeper the grout, the more difficult this task can be. Luckily, there is a large range of cleaning products that can help with it.
Read the instructions on whatever product you buy before you use it, as various solutions must be used differently, though they all aim to keep the grout clean. Most grout-cleaning products are sprays that need to be applied directly onto the grout. The spray then either needs to set or be scrubbed into the floor with a grout brush, bristle brush, or toothbrush.
For larger spaces with raise tiles, a floor scrubbing machine can be the more effective solution, especially when it comes to keeping the tiles sparkling. The strength and durability of the bristles on the machine determine how well it can clean the grout.
Vinyl Flooring
While vinyl flooring might look delicate, it too can be cleaning with a scrubbing machine. This type of floor is more durable than it appears. Unless the vinyl is impaled with something sharp, which cannot happen with a scrubber, the floor should remain undamaged.
While simple tools may be sufficient for floors at home, commercial buildings often take more effort to keep clean. Business owners should keep in mind that any floor that can be swept and mopped, so long as the flooring is durable and uncracked, can also be cleaned with a scrubbing machine. Whether you are cleaning with a floor scrubber or something else, there is always something you can do to make your floors look like new again. Follow these tips the next time you clean and notice the difference first-hand!
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