Can steam cleaner be used on hardwood flooring?

Steam cleaners have increasingly established themselves in recent years as an alternative to wiper mop and buckets in households.

Due to the power of steam, even stubborn dirt can be effectively removed without additional cleaning agents. But are steam cleaners also suitable for use on parquet?

The answer is basically yes – but not for every parquet.

Recommended products from this article:

For which parquet are steam cleaners suitable?

Steam cleaners may only be used on fully bonded, hard-sealed parquet surfaces – for all other types of parquet, steam cleaners not suitable.

With unsealed, but also oiled or waxed parquet the surface remains open-pored, so that the moisture of the steam would penetrate into the floor and cause permanent damage to the parquet.

The natural wood floor reacts to excessive contact with water with increased swelling behaviour – due to the moisture content during steam cleaning, this would sooner or later result in unattractive dents or bulges.

What should be considered when cleaning the steam of parquet floors?

But even with sealed or varnished parquet care must be taken when using steam cleaners:

It is important that the surface is fully intact and does not have any damage that could penetrate moisture. Therefore, before steam cleaning, the parquet should be thoroughly applied to cracks or scratches can be checked.

Before steam cleaning is started, the parquet should be carefully vacuumed with a vacuum cleaner, as coarser dirt and dust particles can cause scratches in the surface.

The lowest amount of steam and the lowest pressure should be set on the steam cleaner for the cleaning of parquet , in order to be able to wipe only with a damp cloth.

Therefore, only devices that can be regulated continuously or those that are clearly declared by the manufacturer as suitable for wooden floors are recommended. Steam cleaners without regulation possibilities are not recommended for hardwood flooring.

The cleaning process itself should be carried out as quickly and evenly as possible.

In order to keep the water film on the parquet as low as possible, it is best to use multilayer wipe covers.

Pausing too long in one place is best avoided. If, however, there is increased moisture, it is necessary to dry the parquet with a dry cloth.

A slight residual moisture, on the other hand, dries up by itself and leaves no streaks or streaks on the parquet floor due to the elimination of cleaning agent residues during steam cleaning.

* Last updated on  2024-03-29 / We are using affiliate links / All images are served from the Amazon Product Advertising API.

0 replies