Luxury vinyl tiles, frequently referred to as LVT, is becoming one of the most popular flooring types in the UK, and few places as quickly as York – our Viking capital. If you’re lucky enough to be a York resident, you might have even asked yourself this pressing question: how do you clean LVT flooring?
After withstanding the throws of hectic family or professional life – maybe the aftermath of a dinner party gone awry – your sticky LVT floor is probably crying out for some TLC. Which means a bit of disinfecting is in order to restore it to its former glory.
Learn exactly how to approach the problem with this guide for York-based residents. Time to crack out the rubber gloves.
Caring for LVT Flooring: Exactly How Much Maintenance is Necessary?
Whether you’re in rented accommodation with luxury vinyl tile floors, you’ve recently installed it in your York home, or you’re merely planning to, understanding how to clean LVT flooring is a safe ticket to a fresh, hygienic and durable home environment. Plus, if you’re in that latter camp, you’ll know exactly what you’re in store for.
Generally speaking, LVT needs the same level of day-to-day maintenance as any other flooring type. Thus, a bit of sweeping/hoovering every other day or whenever there are spillages and mess trodden across the floors. Deeper cleans aren’t needed quite so often, but when the dirt and grime build up, it’s worth getting out your mop and cleaning implements.
That said, there are plenty of life hacks you can employ to make the maintenance as infrequent and uncomplicated as possible:
- Taking off shoes as soon as you enter the house
- Limiting pets to certain areas, clipping their claws semi-regularly and giving their paws a wipe if they’re muddy after being outside
- Using mats at entrances – do note that rubber ones may discolour your gorgeous LVT flooring, so they’re best avoided for other materials!
- Add felt floor protectors to your furniture, avoid heavy pieces or those with wheels that might dent and mark the floorboards over time
How do you Clean LVT Floors?
Now, you still might be asking – how exactly do you clean LVT flooring? Not to worry, we’re about to get into the details.
Scheduled Cleaning
To stay on top of the mess, it’s best to approach how you clean your LVT flooring as a habitual practice and part of your weekly routine. Flooring specialists recommend brushing its surface every other day to keep it free from any bits of debris that could lead to minor marks and scratches if trodden into the flooring, but the same goes for hoovering. If your vacuum cleaner has a dedicated mode for hard floors, you can speed run the process, gently sucking up any dirt, dust or debris coating the surface.
In the arena of deep cleaning, the regularity required is more like once or twice a week at a push. Because of the layered composition of the LVT, it’s really important to prevent its over-exposure to water – yes, if you get it soaking or clean it using water too often, you risk damaging its integrity.
This means you should always use a modest amount of warm water to do a full room clean, being careful not to get the floor absolutely sopping wet. A damp, microfibre mop and a gentle floor cleaner (bonus points if environmentally friendly) are your weapons of choice. Give the floor a good wipe all round, section by section, and don’t forget to dry it once cleaned – a tea towel will do here, but airing out the room with open windows or a dehumidifier is a great way to help the process along.
Dealing with Spill, Dirt & Gunk
How do you clean LVT flooring in the interim of your scheduled sanitation sessions? Instead of mopping the entire floor, simply tend to the affected area – either with a mop and floor cleaner or a warm cloth dipped in a mild detergent. Wipe the mess away as normal and tap it dry with a tea towel. If you’re struggling to lift greasy, oily marks, lemon juice is a canny DIY solution.
What About Removing Stains?
If worse comes to worst and the marks on your LVT won’t budge, there are a few extra steps you can try out.
Number 1: do not – we repeat, do not – succumb to the pressure of using harsh cleaning products like bleach or abrasive scourers; they won’t help you here, and might even do the inverse, permanently damaging your luxury vinyl tile.
Instead, try the lemon juice method, simply squeezing a small amount of juice onto the stain and leaving it for a while before wiping it away with a damp cloth. For more stubborn stains, you could opt for a baking soda paste or white vinegar solution, both made from their respective ingredients plus water. Again, apply a small amount onto the mark, leave for 5 minutes and then wipe away fully before drying.
…And scuffs?
Similarly, you can tackle scuffs and marks from shoes or other rough surfaces like furniture that has been dragged around. What you’re going to have to do is grab some argon or some jojoba oil and apply a small amount to a cotton bud. With your damp cotton bud at the ready, you can then use it to work away at the mark, gently brushing it and dapping at any residual grime. Hopefully, it should lift or, at the very least, fade so as to be undetectable.
How to Clean LVT Flooring Without Damaging It: Dos & Don’ts
Before we leave you, here are some final tips on how to clean LVT flooring, to drill in the proper way of approaching pesky prints and built-up muck.
Do: Limit Sopping Wet Cleans
Remember, LVT is water-resistant, not water-tight. Always squeeze out your mop so it’s damp rather than sopping, and never pour buckets of cleaning solution and water directly onto the floor.
Don’t: Steam Clean
Unfortunately, LVT just isn’t suited to the steam cleaning method. The excessive heat and moisture involved risks warping your tiles and, ultimately, damaging them.
Do: Use a Suitable Non-Abrasive Cleaning Solution
While there’s no one perfect product for cleaning LVT, make sure to pick a cleaning solution that is gentle to your floors. If in doubt, always read the instructions specified by your selected brand.
Don’t: Forget to Hoover Using the Hard Flooring Mode
Last but not least, don’t forget that most hoovers now have dedicated modes for different flooring types. These settings allow you to optimise the vacuum’s performance with a suitable roll speed and suction pattern for your LVT floors – all at the push of a button.
So, To Recap: How do you Clean LVT Flooring Like a Pro?
Congratulations, you made it to the end of this guide! Knowing how to clean your LVT flooring professionally and safely will ensure that the material remains in tip-top condition for years to come, and keeps your landlord (or other half) off your back.
Fortunately, it’s just a matter of keeping on top of the hoovering, brushing and mopping up spills in the short term and then avoiding anything that risks scratching the top layer of the flooring. The rest is mostly down to remembering when to pop a deep clean with a mop and detergent in the diary, so adding a recurring task to your calendar is 100% recommended.
See, that wasn’t so hard? You’ll be an LVT maintenance pro in no time. Goodbye, dirt and grime, hello sparkling floors!
