A laminate floor is now a popular type of flooring. This floor provides a beautiful look for your house. But when you want to know the cleaning process of the laminate floor, it is a little bit confusing. It would help if you were more careful to clean your floor. Though the laminate floor is water-resistant, using water to clean this floor is not safe. However, it is better to avoid steam cleaner to clean this floor. But if you occasionally use a steam cleaner with some precaution, you can clean the laminate floor efficiently with a steam cleaner.
Cleaning the laminate floor with a steam cleaner
A steam cleaner is the most efficient tool to clean floors and other applications of a house. Many people like to use this machine to steam clean the floor. Steam clean not only removes dirt but also kills bacteria and germs from the surface. But this process is not suitable for all types of flooring. A laminate floor is one of them. Our recommendation for this floor is to avoid steam clean. But if there are no options in your hand to deep clean your laminate floor, you can carefully use a steam mop or steam cleaner. But always try to choose best of the best steam mop for laminate floors. For details, keep reading the following topics.
Can I steam clean my laminate floor?
Before using a steam cleaner on the laminate floor, it is essential to know if you can use it for this flooring type. A laminate floor has three layers. The outermost layer is waterproof. But the inner layer is made of wood board and cannot tolerate water and heat. On the other hand, the steam cleaner produces heat, pressure, and steam to clean the floor. But continuous use of steam cleaner can damage the laminate floor with heat and moisture. If the humidity stuck into the inner layer, this layer could quickly rot. And heat causes the outer layer to fade. So, if possible, avoid steam cleaner on your laminate flooring.
How to clean laminate floor efficiently with a steam cleaner
To use a steam cleaner on the laminate floor, test a little area of the floor before starting the cleaning process. If you find any curling at the floor edge or any discoloration, you should not continue the process. But if there is no problem, you can steam clean the floor. For this, follow the steps below:
- At first, you need to vacuum your floor before steam clean. For this, remove the small and bigger things from the floor. Cover the furniture and its legs that are not possible to remove. Then use a vacuum cleaner to vacuum the floor. Vacuuming is essential because it helps you to remove the loosen dirt, pet hair, and other small particles from the surface. Besides, if you skip this step, the lifespan of your steam cleaner will lessen by stuck dirt on the cleaning pad.
- Now your floor is ready to steam. Prepare your steam cleaner. Take water in the water tank. Then plug-in the cleaner. Besides, you should use a soft fabric pad on the steamer head. The switch the steam cleaner.
- For laminate flooring, attach low temperature to the steam cleaner because high temperatures can damage the floor. Besides, it would help if you did not keep your cleaner idle on the floor while cleaning. It can leave more steam and heat on the floor. So, after starting the machine, try to complete the cleaning process as soon as possible.
- If you steam clean a large area, check the pad. If it gets dirty, change it and then again continue your work.
Tips for using a steam cleaner on laminate flooring
Laminate flooring has several types. Laminate floor containing laminate planks are not suitable for steam clean because moisture can quickly go through this floor and damage it easily. But the water-resistant laminate floor contains waterproof material in the core layer. For this type of floor, you can steam clean it occasionally.
- Before using a steam cleaner, use a vacuum cleaner to clean the laminate floor surface.
- Set low temperatures and try to complete the work quickly.
- Do not use a steam cleaner on the laminate floor more than one time in a month.
- Try to find out the alternative way rather than using a steam cleaner on the laminate floor.
Nowadays, many types of steam cleaner are available in the market with various features. Some are specially designed for particular flooring. But most of the manufacturers and experts recommend you to avoid steam cleaner on laminate flooring. Besides, steam cleaning voids the warranty for this flooring. So, when need, carefully steam clean laminate floor with a steam cleaner.
