How to Clean a Polished Concrete Floor

How to Clean a Polished Concrete Floor

A polished concrete floor brings beauty, little maintenance, and a simple and easy cleaning regimen. Cleaning a polished concrete floor is less about skill and more about knowledge. What cleaners to use on polished concrete and what not to use? What cleaning tools are best, and what can cause permanent damage to your floor?

To keep your concrete floor looking nice and new, here is what the professionals have to say about cleaning a polished concrete floor.

Sweep Regularly

The secret to polished concrete flooring that looks amazing is removing the dust, dirt, and grime that can accumulate on the surface daily. Left there, they can be abrasive and dull the finish. Sweep regularly and safely remove all of this coverage before it potentially sticks to your floor and damage sets in.

Vacuum Regularly

Buy and program a robot vacuum to vacuum your polished concrete floor daily. They are efficient, reliable, and require no manpower to remove many contaminants with every session. If you prefer to do it manually, using a microfiber dust mop that is either dry or clean water works, too.

Use Rugs

Have rugs at your entryways to avoid tracking in more dirt and debris than necessary. This will greatly reduce the amount of contaminants that come into the room. It is best to find rugs with felt-style backing or no backing instead of rubber. The rubber can dull the shine of polished concrete. That said, polished concrete is not slippery, so no backing should work fine.

Clean Liquid Spills Quickly

Don’t leave liquid spills sitting there for long. Especially if they dry up, they can seep into the floor and cause stains. Liquids such as soap, vinegar, or wine are notorious for being able to quickly damage polished concrete. Oil stains are common and should be addressed with the same urgency.

Use the Right Cleaner

Be sure to check any floor cleaner you use to verify that it is acceptable for polished concrete. The best cleaner often is natural soap. A castile soap is gentle, almost pH-neutral, and concentrated, so a couple of drops in a bucket of water is all you need for an optimal cleaning solution. It’s also very inexpensive.

Follow Cleaner Instructions

If you buy a specific floor cleaning product, follow the instructions on the packaging. In many cases, a cleaner must sit on the floor for a few minutes to break down grime before being removed. That said, always adhere to what it says on the package about how to use it.

Never Wax Polished Concrete

Polished concrete should never be waxed. Wax is, in fact, a contaminant and can cause near-irreparable repairs. The wax buildup will be difficult to strip off the floor, and although it will temporarily look like it’s done an excellent job, in the long term, you will be in trouble trying to improve its appearance as it wears down.

Never Use Bleach

Never use bleach, vinegar, ammonia, or Pine-Sol on a polished concrete floor. They will dull and discolour your polished floor slowly over time. This is also why you do not want to use Windex or Swiffer products either.

Don’t Rely On Natural Products

Just because something is marketed as natural, eco-friendly, or environmentally safe does not mean it won’t damage your polished concrete floor if it’s applied. Do your research. Vinegar is the best example.

An excellent homemade cleaning solution can be made from vinegar and water. However, it should never be applied to a polished concrete floor. It is too harsh and abrasive and can dull the floor and change its colour.

Never Stick Tape to It

Never stick tape to the floor if you are working on polished concrete. It can damage the surface if left for an extended period. Tape damage, as it turns out, is one of the most common and costly polished concrete maintenance issues.

Service by a Professional

A polished concrete floor does not need servicing very often. However, once every 2-3 years, it is recommended to have a professional inspection done. This way, if a floor looks dull or different than when you first installed it, an expert can tell you what’s happening and how to fix it.

What a Deep-Clean Looks Like

If you schedule a deep clean for polished concrete flooring, a professional will thoroughly clean it with a water-based stripping agent. Then, specialty cleaners may restore colour and shine before a floor protectant is applied to seal the polished concrete and make it less likely to absorb a stain.

How Often to Clean Polished Concrete

While a deep clean can be performed when needed, and on-the-go cleaning helps to remove dirt and debris, a focused, polished concrete floor cleaning should happen at least once a week. If it’s a high-foot-traffic area, you may have to clean your concrete floors every other day.

This way, you get the shine you paid for when the concrete floor was installed and keep it in the best possible condition without letting messes build.

Share:

You might also like …