Cleaning laminate or vinyl floorings

[Michael L]

Got an oppurtinity to bid on floors for a church. Customer states that the floors are laminate or vinyl. They seem to be snap in planks and solid when i knock them. We mainly do floor stripping and waxing and we are a bit newer to this. My question is can i run this like a strip job and wet the.floor area by area and autoscrub with a red or blue pad and simply suck the water back up. Or how exactly do you clean these types of floors.

 

[Hack Attack]

different manufacterers have different recommendations as to how to care for there product.
You can probably run a scrubber over it but I wouldn't wet down an area (scrub extract each pass) without knowing exactly the recommendations

 

[Kenny Hayes]

Yes you can, but no need to put as much water as a strip. Just run your auto scrubber as normal, or do a pass or two without the vacuum like you would a scrub. My schools and churches have that and that’s what I do.

 

[Michael L]

Yes you can, but no need to put as much water as a strip. Just run your auto scrubber as normal, or do a pass or two without the vacuum like you would a scrub. My schools and churches have that and that’s what I do.

Any kind of chemical or would a neutral cleaner do the trick

 

[Kenny Hayes]

Neutral cleaner.

 

[Mikey P]

You really need to know exactly what it is.

If its a particle board core, those large gaps may cause huge problems

 

[Kenny Hayes]

True, but if you can autoscrub, it wouldn’t be.

 

[Old Coastie]

Michael, they will have a few extra in the janitor’s closet. If it is the snap type, I’d consider using compound and a CRB.

 

[steve_64]

Laminates can be damaged by excessive moisture and certain cleaning products. I wouldn't use a solvent base cleaner. The finish can peel or flake off and boards can swell.
Vinyl planks can trap moisture underneath but can handle solvents.
Either way don't over wet it and don't get to abrasive. They clean easily with a neutral cleaner usually.

 

[Mikey P]

A mist of a non residual and a bonnet is safest



Although limited.

 

[steve_64]

A spray bottle and micro fiber pads works good too on smaller jobs.
But I do use my floor wand and follow with micro fiber on a lot of jobs now. Low pressure and heat. Lots of dry passes too. It gets the joints cleaner that way.