5 Summertime Tips For Protecting Your Hardwood Floors

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The summer months bring longer days and warmer weather, but they also present unique dangers for your hardwood floors. To protect your investment in those shiny planks, follow these 5 helpful tips.

1. Create a Foot-Washing Station

If your kids (or your spouse) love to play outside without any shoes, ask them to wipe their feet before they return to the house. Dirt, dust, and other contaminants are easily tracked inside on the soles of feet, and they can damage your floors.

When you know your family members are barefoot outdoors:

• Set a bucket of soapy water on the porch along with a few old towels
• Encourage family members to wash off at the hose or to use disposable wipes on their feet
• Place mats outside each of the doors for wiping off dirty feet

2. Fill Coolers on the Counter

Before you head to the beach or to a state park, think twice about where you prepare your cooler. Placing it on the floor and dumping ice inside is a recipe for disaster, as cubes can fall onto the floor and cause water damage.

A better option is to fill your cooler on the kitchen counter—or, for extra safety, outdoors. Keep an eye out for stray cubes that might still fall and make sure to wipe up any spills immediately. Protect your floors from other water hazards by:

• Wrapping paper towels around cold beverages so they don't "sweat" all over the floor
• Carrying foods and drinks on serving trays when heading into another room or outside for a snack
• Monitoring the humidity levels in your home to prevent long-term damage

3. Close the Blinds and Drapes

UV light isn't just a sunburn waiting to happen during the summertime. It's also dangerous to hardwood floors, which might fade or discolor over time if exposed to the sun for too many hours every day.

Enjoy the natural light whenever you are home, but shut the curtains and blinds before you leave. Other methods to protect your floors from sun damage include:

• Using low-e glass or protective films when you replace your windows
• Spreading rugs in places where the sunlight hits the floor
• Landscaping your yard so that sunlight doesn't come directly through your windows and doors

4. Invest in a Water Bowl Mat and Vacuum Cleaner

Just like your other family members, Fido and Fluffy get thirsty during the summertime. To protect your hardwood flooring, set their water bowls on rubber or plastic mats to prevent drips and drool from sitting on the wood.

You might also see more shedding from your pets in the summer than during the rest of the year. Dander can drift between hardwood planks where it is more difficult to reach, so vacuum more frequently to pull up those fibers. When vacuuming, protect your floors by:

• Using the "bare floor" setting so that the nozzle housing doesn't damage the wood
• Avoid the attachment brushes, which can scratch wood floors
• Lift the vacuum over transition strips so you don't nick or scratch them

5. Lay Down Rugs

One way to protect your hardwood floors from the activity of summer is to spread rugs over them until fall arrives. Rugs protect your floors by:

• Preventing dents and dings from heavy impacts
• Capturing dirt, dust, and animal hair
• Avoiding damage from moving furniture over the floor

Place rugs at all entry points to your home so visitors can wipe their feet before entering. This will also catch the inevitable drips when your family returns home from a visit to the beach or the neighborhood pool.

Summertime can be dangerous for your floors, but only if you don't care for them properly. If your floors have been damaged, meet with an expert hardwood flooring dealer to discuss your options for repairs or replacements. Check out sites like http://www.nationalcarpetmilloutlet.com for more information.

15 October 2014