Timber and wooden flooring is one of the most durable flooring styles available. Floor boards are popular and can give your home a natural and warm feel no matter what the size of room is. Hardwood floors and bamboo flooring are hardy, but they aren’t indestructable, and you need to take some steps to ensure their care and maintenance.

Dents and Scratches

One of the most common injuries that a wooden floor will suffer is that of the scratch and dent. Usually these injuries are caused by everyday living but there are some simple steps you can take to help prevent them.

The Where and How

Think about where you are going to place your wooden flooring. You may want to avoide laying wooden floors in areas that are going to be exposed to sharp object or constant moisture.

Prevention is better than cure

• Keep it dry – if you spill something on your floor boards, clean it up. Floor boards may be tough but they aren’t indestructible and they may absorb some of the spillage.
• Sweep it up – bit of dirt on the floor are a fact of life, but if the bit of dirt is stepped on and dragged through the house it may cause scratching to your floor.
• Lift, don’t drag – if you are moving furniture or any other item around the house, remember to lift and carry and not to drag. Dragging with scratch and mark the floor.
• Chairs – put felt or rubber tips on the bottom of your dining chairs. Pulling a chair back and forth across your floor will leave scratches.
• Shoes off! – asking family and guests to remove their shoes may be something you don’t feel comfortable with, but the smaller the heel base, the more damage they do.
• Pets – the claws on your dog or cat can cause real damage to floor boards if they are long enough to make contact. Keep Fido and Ginger’s nails clipped if you can, and don’t play fetch in the house.
• Refresh – your floors need to be polished to help the seal stay effective. Check your local hardware store to find out what is suitable for wooden floors.
• Mats – well placed matting in high level traffic areas will take the brunt of the punishment and reduce damage to your floors.

All floors will need maintenance and care to some degree, so don’t let a few guidelines scare you off wooden floors. Wooden floors have been popular for so long that you know they have to have something special to offer, so if you haven’t had wooden floors before, take the leap and give them a go.