Wall-to-wall carpets are losing ground to hardwood and laminates when homeowners come to select a type of floor covering for their home. While the beauty wooden floor is cited by many as a key criterion, hardwood flooring also make it to the top of the list for those after an easy to maintain and easy to clean option: sweeping and the occasional application of floor wax seems far more attractive than household chores like vacuuming and regular steam cleaning.



By applying a protective finish such as wax, you can easily seal and preserve the integrity of your wooden floor. Waxing will give the wood an attractive sheen, and if you use wax on a regular basis it will keep your hardwood, linoleum and other non-carpet flooring looking beautiful and in keeping with the rest of your home. As wax acts as a moisture repellent, it can even prevent warping from water and humidity. It also reduces the appearance of grooves, ridges and imperfections in hardwood and other floorings. Wax also gives the surface a beautifully glossy finish.

Wax protects your flooring by reducing the amount of abrasion and scratches it sustains: as the floor becomes more slippery when treated, it is therefore less likely to get damaged.

You will find that wax is mostly available in three forms: water-based, polymer and solvent-based. Like many homeowners you may be concerned about the adverse effect of chemicals such as formaldehyde on your home: manufacturers of floor wax are responding to this trend by becoming increasingly aware of the impact of their products, and it is good to know that environmentally safe floor wax is becoming more widely available.

To cater for both our health concerns and the limited amount of time that we have to devote to household chores each week, a type of “no-wax” flooring is becoming very popular. While it is true that some materials do not need waxing, they will still need to be cleaned regularly. Whether or not you use wax, most flooring will likely need to be touched-up every now and then to repair the minor damages caused by daily household activities.

Although waxing your floor protects it and makes it look beautiful, wax can sometimes build up and at times you may need to strip the flooring. As wax removers can contain irritating chemicals you should always give careful consideration to your choice of removing product.