Are Steam Mops Safe To Use On Hardwood Floors

Be careful using a steam mop on other types of flooring even for non wood flooring you need to.

Are steam mops safe to use on hardwood floors.

Most hardwood floors are finished with polyurethane a moisture resistant finish. Steam exposes your wood floors to extreme heat and water. Alternatives to the steam mop to clean hardwood floors. But don t use steam mops on hardwood floors that aren t sealed.

If your wood flooring has a surface penetrating floor sealer use a damp cloth rather than a mop. Though durable on the surface engineered hardwoods are bonded using adhesives and the steam cleaning can affect the quality of those adhesives. In fact the steam mop comes into its own on these types of floors. Drastic temperature changes and moisture may warp the wood says steve stocki manager of marketing and merchandising at lumber liquidators.

The short answer is yes you can use steam mops on hardwood floors. If your floor is sealed you can clean it with steam at medium or low settings. Avoid using a steam mop on wood. This will outline how long the floor should last under normal usage and guarantees its replacement if the material fails due to structural problems.

Although it may be tempting to deep clean your hardwood floors with a steam mop don t. Mop manufacturers claim the mops are safe to use on a variety of flooring. It s common for steam mop manufacturers to warn against using steam mops on unsealed floors a vague direction. This can cause damage warping bending and rot.

The premise is that despite mop manufacturer claims the steam from the mop moves through cracks in the floor more easily than water which penetrates below the sealer and the moisture. While researching the use of steam mops on hardwood floors i came across article after article that cautioned against using a steam mop on hardwood floors. Avoid using steam mops on engineered hardwood floors. Using steam can void the flooring s warranty.

However even hairline gaps between boards are not bridged by the. Most hardwood flooring will come with a manufacturer s or a retailer s warranty. But ultimately it s not a good idea to use a steam mop on hardwood and you should be careful using a mop on laminate. The fact is there s no such thing as a completely sealed wood or laminate floor.