How To Make Laminate Floors Shine Efficiently 2024

It is not complicated to know how to make laminate floors shine. Moreover, the methods to get a shiny laminate floor are straightforward to do. After following this post, you will become a professional in making laminate floors shine.

Nowadays, laminate flooring has become popular in a lot of households. It brings the aesthetic to your living spaces, but it is easy to get stained and dull if you do not maintain and clean properly. It is time to bring your laminate floors shine back.

Find Out The Reasons Making Your Floors Dull And Streaks

To get the right ideas and methods to make your laminate floors shine, you need to know the reasons and the mistakes that cause laminate floors to become dull and streaks. Remember to limit these causes later.

Apply Too Much And Wrong Cleaner On The Floors

The first cause of dirty and dull floors that many people suffer from is the wrong use of floor cleaners as well as overuse of them. Choosing the wrong cleaner will cause your floor to degrade and make it look dull and streaky.

If you use too much detergent, the floor will easily get sticky after mopping. In addition, residual cleaners will accumulate to form stubborn stains and residues on the floor surface, reducing the floor’s shine.

Therefore, you should carefully read the directions for using the cleaner and check it before using it. Apply the right amount of detergent for maximum effectiveness. You need to mop and vacuum the floor regularly to keep it clean.

Water Abuse When Mopping The Floors

I do not think using a lot of water to clean laminate floors will make them cleaner and shinier. On the contrary, your floors will suffer the harmful effects of water abuse when cleaning the laminate floors.

When you use too much water, it will seep into the floor through cracks or flooring joints. This will cause your floor to experience problems like buckling, haze, swelling, and even warp.

Low-Quality Cleaning Tools And Techniques

Laminate floors will get dull and streaky when using the wrong and poor-quality cleaning tools. The use of mops, brushes, steam cleaners, and vacuum cleaners incorrectly and in poor quality can easily cause damage to laminate floors.

You need to be careful in choosing cleaning techniques and equipment not to affect the quality of the floor surface. Too much water, mops, steam cleaners, and vacuum cleaners with roller brushes should be avoided on laminate floors.

Contact With Sunlight Directly

One genuine reason for floor deterioration and losing its shine is the sun. This is a common and unavoidable cause when your laminate floors are regularly exposed to direct sunlight. Laminate floors will fade and change color when exposed to sunlight.

To prevent and reduce this situation, you should install curtains to block direct sunlight from the sun.

Overfilled Water From Plant Pots And Pets

Potted plants placed on the floor are a factor affecting the quality of the floor. Primarily, when you water the plants, they will flow through the holes in the bottom of the pot and form black stains on the laminate floors.

Having a pet also makes your floors not retain their original shine. Pet’s claws and dishes will scratch your floor. Furthermore, they can cause your floor to buckle and warp. Therefore, you should put rubbers or protective layers under potted plants and pet areas.

Use Vacuum Cleaner And Broom Too Much

Regular floor cleaning with a vacuum cleaner and broom will help remove dirt and keep it clean. However, the downside of this is that it causes unwanted scratches and reduces the floor’s shine.

You should use a vacuum cleaner and broom to clean the floor about once a week. However, if you have kids and pets, you need to do this regularly. You can use a microfiber mop to reduce scratches on the floor.

How To Bring The Shiny Laminate Floor Back?

Do not worry and panic when you find out that your laminate floors are no longer keeping their original shine because you can get your floors back to their glow with a few simple steps and methods without spending too much money and effort.

Clean And Vacuum Before Working

The first step in restoring the shine to laminate flooring is to remove dust, residues, and debris from the floor surface. This is an essential step and determines the quality and effectiveness of the next steps.

To remove dust on the floor surface, you can use a vacuum cleaner or broom. The operation to use these 2 tools is pretty simple, but you need to be careful when using them because the vacuum cleaner and broom can cause scratches to the floor.

Note: You should not clean the floor with a vacuum cleaner with a roller brush because it is easy to scratch and damage the floor.

You should remove dirt on the floor surface with a soft broom for brooms to avoid damaging the floor.

The use of a microfiber mop will help remove dust and ensure more safety for laminate floors.

Methods To Deep Clean With Proper Cleaners

If you want a glossy laminate floor, you need to do a deep and thorough cleaning with cleaners. The choice of cleaner needs to be suitable for the laminate flooring to avoid damaging the floors.

You should not use cleaners that contain oils, soaps, or strong chemicals. It is best to use specialized cleaners for laminate floors. You should also test cleaners on hidden areas before using them on the laminate floor.

You should not overdo the expensive commercial cleaners because they are not guaranteed to make your floors shine. Using warm water to clean laminate floors is better than hot water.

Method 1: Make Your Laminate Floor Shine With Vinegar And Warm Water

Cleaning solutions contain many harsh chemicals that can harm your floors. You can use them with a hardwood floor because you can wax the floor. However, when you want to make the laminate floor shine, you need more specific techniques.

White vinegar is a perfect choice for you in this case. Vinegar’s mild acidic content of about 5 to 8 percent will help remove stubborn stains and bring shine to your laminate floors ⁽¹⁾.

Preparation

• 1 cup white vinegar
• 1-gallon warm water
• Bucket
• Sponge mop
• Microfiber cloth

Directions

• Step 1: Prepare a cleaning solution with 1 gallon of warm water and 1 cup of white vinegar. You can add a little essential oil to create a fragrance when cleaning streak-free floors.
• Step 3: Wring excess water out of the mop.
• Step 4: Mop the laminate floor with a damp sponge mop from the furthest part to the front of the room. You should not step on wet floors when mopping.

Note: You should clean the mop to remove all dirt before using it to avoid causing sticky floors after cleaning.

• Step 5: When the water in the bucket is dirty, you will empty the old water and replace it with new clean water.
• Step 6: Continue mopping the floor as you did before until the floor is clean and shiny.
• Step 7: Dry the floor with a microfiber cloth in a circular motion.

Method 2: Make Your Laminate Floor Glossy With Rubbing Alcohol

If you have rubbing alcohol in your home, you should take advantage of its sanitizing abilities to get a shiny and clean laminate flooring. This option is often combined with vinegar for better effectiveness.

Preparation

• ½ cup white vinegar
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup rubbing alcohol
• Spray bottle
• Microfiber mop

Directions

• Step 1: Add water, white vinegar, and rubbing alcohol to the spray bottle.
• Step 2: Shake the spray bottle to mix the component evenly.
• Step 3: Spray cleaning solution on the floor surface in each area; you should only spray a moderate amount to sufficiently damp the floor.
• Step 4: Mop the laminate floor to remove dust and stubborn stains according to the grain of the laminate. If the microfiber mop is not available in your home, you will need a spray mop in this case.
• Step 5: Continue the above process until the floor is clean and shiny.
• Step 6: Wait for the floor to dry or use a dry towel to wipe the floor. You should not use the floor until it is dry.

Learn how to get a shiny laminate floor with rubbing alcohol and white
vinegar.

Method 3: Castile Soap Is A Safe Choice For You

Cleaners that contain soap will affect the quality of laminate floors if you use them to bring shine to the floors. However, you can use castile soap on laminate floors without making them streaky because of its very low natural soap.

Preparation

• Castile soap (liquid form)
• 2 cups warm water
• Spray bottle
• Lemon essential oils (optional)
• Microfiber cloth

Directions

• Step 1: Put warm water and castile soap into the spray bottle. You can add essential oils with a citrus scent to create a fragrance to the floor.
• Step 2: Spray the mixture onto laminate floors.
• Step 3: Use a microfiber cloth to wipe the floor in a circular motion.
• Step 4: Use a dry cloth to wipe the entire floor or let it dry.

Method 4: Polish With White Vinegar And Vegetable Oil

You can ultimately create a mixture for polishing floors at home with vinegar and vegetable oil. This solution will help polish the floor and discard stubborn scruffs on the floor surface. Let’s see how to polish laminate floors with vegetable oil.

Preparation

• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 2 cups hot water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• Microfiber cloth
• Spray bottle

Directions

• Step 1: Pour white vinegar, vegetable oil, and water into a spray bottle.
• Step 2: Shake well to form a hygienic mixture.
• Step 3: Spray cleaning solution on the laminate flooring surface. You should work from the back area to the front of the room. Remember not to spray too much cleaning mixture.
• Step 4: Use a microfiber cloth and scrub the floor in a circular motion.
• Step 5: Continue with the above process until the entire room is complete.

Method 5: Remove Residue With Baking Soda

Baking soda is a fantastic floor cleaning option that you should consider. It exists as a powder and is alkaline with components such as sodium cation and a bicarbonate anion ⁽²⁾. It will discard dirt and grime from laminate floors and restore shine to them.

Preparation

• 1 ⅔ cups baking soda
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup dishwashing detergent
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 2 sponges
• A bucket

Directions

• Step 1: Mix white vinegar, baking soda, water, and dishwashing detergent in a bucket.
• Step 2: Use a sponge to apply a cleaning solution on laminate flooring. You should begin from the back of the room to the front of it.
• Step 3: Wipe gently to remove dirt and residue from the floor in a circular motion.
• Step 4: Dip another sponge with clean water.
• Step 5: Wring all the water out of the sponge.
• Step 6: Wipe the area just cleaned with a cleaning solution to remove excess residue.
• Step 7: Continue cleaning the floor until you have finished the entire floor.
• Step 8: Wait for the floor to dry.

Method 6: Apply Bona Cleaner Now!

If you do not want to use the above options, you can consider Bona Cleaner. It will help your laminate floors become shiny and smooth. This is pH neutral and works better than vinegar, and it is also safe for polyurethane. Using Bona Cleaner is better than polish and refresher.

Method 7: Use Laminate Floor Cleaners

You can opt for commercial laminate floor cleaning products to give the floor a glossy finish. I recommend using ZEP Hardwood and Laminate floor cleaner. The option is pretty safe for the floor and brings sound effects.

When choosing commercial cleaning products, you should not use products that contain wax or oil because they make floors slippery and leave residue on the surface after cleaning.

You just need to read and follow the directions for using the packaging for proper cleaning and high efficiency when using these products.

Method 8: Remove Marks And Make Floors Shine With Acetone

When you want to make the laminate floor shine and bright, you should not leave the acetone. This option is most suitable when your floor encounters marks caused by a pen or sharp objects.

It will help remove oily films from laminate flooring easily. You should be careful when using acetone because it is pretty flammable. You should protect your eyes before using it and open the whole door while using it.

Preparation

• Acetone
• Paper towel

Directions

• Step 1: Apply an appropriate amount of acetone onto a paper towel.
• Step 2: Rub on laminate floors, especially areas with marks.
• Step 3: Continue the process until all the marks have been removed and your floor is glossy.

Note: You can use a mixture of water and alcohol instead of acetone. You should remember not to leave too much liquid on the surface of the floor when using acetone, such as nail polish remover.

Method 9: Simple Way With Window Cleaner

Window cleaner is an option you can count on to get rid of dirt and residue from your laminate floors. This is a gentle and non-damaging cleaning option for laminate floors.

Preparation

• Window cleaner
• Damp cloth

Directions

• Step 1: Spray window cleaner on laminate floor.
• Step 2: Use a damp cloth to wipe the floor to remove dirt and residue.
• Step 3: Use a clean and dry cloth to wipe the entire floor.

Tips To Clean And Keep Laminate Floors Shining

To keep the floor shining, you need to have special tips as well as notes when cleaning the floor to avoid harming and reducing the gloss of the laminate floors. You need to keep the following tips in mind.

Do’s

• When detecting water or food spilled on the floor, you should use a cloth to wipe and clean them immediately so that they do not penetrate the floor, causing damage to the floor as well as clinging to the floor to form stubborn stains.
• To help the floor get less dirty and not lose its shine, you should use carpet to cover the floor. This will keep food, spills, and dirt from coming into contact with the laminate floors.
• You should remove damaged floorboards so as not to detract from the aesthetic of the floor.
• It is recommended that you use a broom and vacuum cleaner to clean the laminate floors once a week to remove dust and dirt from the floor. You should regularly clean the kitchen, living room, and other areas used and step on a lot.
• To avoid damaging and reducing the shine of laminate flooring, you should leave your shoes outside before entering the house because dirt from shoes will dirty the floor and make it scratched. Put a mat in the door if you want to enter with shoes.
• You should put protective pads under the furniture legs to reduce the possibility of scratches and better protect the floor.
• To maintain the shine of laminate floors, you should buff the floor regularly.
• Floor cleaning should be done every 2 months. Remember to wring any excess water out of the mop before mopping the floor. It is a bad idea to use a steam mop on laminate floors because it will buckle floors.
• You should carefully read the cleaning instructions for laminate floors from the manufacturer to properly clean and maintain the shine of the floor for a long time.
• Pet’s nails can cause scratches and damage to laminate floors, so it is best to trim all of your pet’s nails.
• After making your laminate flooring shine, you should leave the floor 1 day to dry completely before removing furniture and heavy items back.

Don’ts

• You should not use abrasive cleaning tools such as scrubbing sponges or steel wool when cleaning floors because they will scratch the floor. Therefore, you just need to use a microfiber mop or soft cloth to clean the floor.
• Do not use too much water when cleaning the floor. This will reduce the shine of your laminate. Avoid using cleaners that contain oils, soaps, and harsh chemicals.
• You should not clean the floor with cleaners that are not explicitly designed for laminate flooring.

Remember some fantastic tips to care for and keep your laminate floors shining.

FAQs

Besides the actual contents to make laminate floors shine that I have provided. There is much other helpful related information that you need to find out. They will appear in this section right away.

Welcome Shiny Laminate Floors Back

Owning a shiny laminate floor will bring comfort and cleanliness to your floor. Now, you can ultimately bring back the shine to your laminate floor simply and effectively with the techniques I have instructed you.

I believe you will feel satisfied with the above options. It is time to say goodbye to the dull laminate floor and welcome the return of the shiny floor. If you have any problems with making laminate floors shine, please share them via comments.

References

1. En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Vinegar – Wikipedia
2. En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Sodium bicarbonate – Wikipedia.