One of the biggest reasons why epoxy flooring is becoming so popular in the residential and business sector is for one simple reason, the flooring system is very easy to clean and maintain! Whether you have a brand new epoxy flooring or if you are going on 20 years, we have some tips and tricks to make maintaining your epoxy flooring easier so you can maximize the potential of your flooring system! Here is what we recommend to all of our wonderful clients in Raleigh!
First of all for our new epoxy flooring owners, always make sure to wait at least 1 week before performing full maintenance on your epoxy as extensive maintenance can cause irreversible damage to new epoxy. But before the time comes for full and proper maintenance we recommend the following for new epoxy. After the first 24 hours of curing, never sweep or mop but you can pick up larger pieces of garbage off the flooring. After 72 hours it is okay to lightly sweep the epoxy of all foreign material or even use a blower to get all foreign material of the epoxies surface.
After you have waited the week, its time to get into the full and proper maintenance of your epoxy flooring system. The first step of maintaining your epoxy is sweeping the surface to rid the epoxy of all small dirt, specks of dust and other materials. Larger materials can be picked up by hand to avoid scratches. To sweep the flooring, do not use a regular stiff bristle broom, we recommend using a soft bristle broom or dust mop for this job. This is because a soft bristle broom is much more efficient at retrieving smaller pieces of garbage and stiff bristle brooms can scratch the epoxy.
After the flooring has been thoroughly swept, the next step of maintenance is to mop the flooring. No special tools necessary for this task, only a standard wet mop can get the job done! We urge you not to focus too hard on singular areas when mopping as this can cause the glossy top coat of epoxy to become dull. Our contractor should leave you with a list of recommended cleaners to use on the flooring but in the case you run out or lose the list, here’s what you can do to avoid any major problems. Always test unknown chemicals on the flooring before full usage! To test a chemical, simply mask off a small, hidden area and apply the cleaner for approx. five minutes. After the five minutes have passed, carefully remove the cleaner and assess the area. If any bubbling, peeling or the surface of the epoxy turns cloudy do not use the cleaner.
In areas that you can get wet like garage floor epoxy or in certain commercial or industrial facilities, there is a faster way you can clean your flooring. You can use a standard garden hose thanks to the epoxy floorings waterproof properties. Just to be safe, always keep the hose moving in circular motions when cleaning with this method, especially if the hose has higher water pressure. Another cautionary protocol is to make sure that the water is under 115 degrees Fahrenheit when hosing down your flooring. Do not confuse a standard garden hose with a pressure washer. Pressure washing and deep cleaning should only be done when absolutely necessary and by trained professionals.
Even though the surface of epoxy flooring is generally waterproof, sometimes stains can make their way onto its outermost layer and here’s how you can get rid of them. We recommend using a nylon brush with a mixture of CLR and warm water for this task. Apply a small amount of CLR cleaner to the stain and work the stain with the nylon brush until the stain has lifted. Rinse the area with water after this task has been completed. Always try mopping the epoxy flooring before trying this method as overexposing to the CLR can lead to the epoxy losing its glossy finish.
Now that you know all you need to know about maintaining your epoxy floor coating, you are well on your way to flooring that can last you decades!