“Housekeeping ain’t no joke,” Louisa May Alcott once wrote. Keeping a floor can seem like a cosmic joke sometimes — you do everything you can to keep things off it, placing shoes by the door and drinks in the kitchen — and then when you’re not home, your teenage daughter spills nailpolish on the carpet, or your spouse burns candles and doesn’t notice the wax spilling onto the floor.
Luckily, you can deliver the punchline on this joke. Clean floors don’t need to be impossible. For most floor cleaning-related headaches, there is usually a handy, and often quirky, solution available to clean up the mess. Here are three tips for common difficult spill and stain issues.
1. Getting Out Old Candles
Candles can be a lot of fun, and help set the mood of a romantic dinner or an intimate gathering. But once you blow them out, you might notice that not all the wax stayed with the candle itself. There’s no need to despair, though. Lay a sheet of paper or an old towel over the wax. Then, go over it with a hot iron. The paper or towel will remove the wax as it liquefies. Double check your iron’s setting — too high, and you risk burning or melting your carpet fibers.
2. Removing Nailpolish From Floors
Nailpolish can be a tricky spill to remove. Unlike wine and other liquids, polish is specifically formulated to quickly harden after it is spilled. As soon as you realize nailpolish has spilled, you should start to blot it — not rub it — with an old towel to pick up the excess nailpolish. A non-acetone nailpolish remover can be used to help remove the polish that remains. For the leftover stains, use hairspray or rubbing alcohol on the spot.
3. How to Clean Rubber Flooring
Did you know that a well maintained rubber floor can last 20 years or longer? The key, of course, is actually maintaining it. Although rubber floors are low-maintenance, they should still be routinely swept and wiped down. Otherwise, debris will slowly wear down on the floor, dulling it and shortening its lifespan. Rubber floor cleaning products should be used for cleaning rubber floors, because certain cleaning products, such as solvent cleaners and turpentine, can cause permanent damage.
Do you have tips for cleaning rubber? Let us know in the comments. See this link for more references.
