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PREFACE
To achieve optimum appearance and proper film protection
for your floor coverings, it is extremely important
to use the right equipment for each task. The best
floor finishes in the world will look bad and be less
likely to hold up if laid with a dirty mop or applied
from a bucket that has other chemical residue in it.
There are many different kinds of equipment to maintain
floors and it is critical that your equipment match
the maintenance program you have established.
Floor finishes are applied to floor coverings for
three reasons:
1) To protect the floor coverings from wear, stains,
and daily abuse.
2) For case of maintenance allows spills and normal
soil to be easily removed.
3) Appearance, well-maintained floors provide an image-enhancing
aspect.
INITIAL TREATMENT
Procedure #1 Stripping the floor of any old finishes.
1. Plan the job and check the area to be stripped
outlining what will be needed to totally clean and
remove old finish from all areas. Note edges and comers
where build up may have occurred and require extra
attention. There are no short cuts in the stripping
procedure, when you are finished stripping the floor
must be clean and spotless before applying new coats
of seal and /or finish.
2. Gather all the necessary equipment for the stripping
job and check to insure that all tools are in proper
working order.
3 . Remove all furniture, equipment, or free standing
items that exist on the area to be stripped. Draw
a diagram prior to removal to aid in putting everything
back in its proper position when the floor is finished.
4. Sweep the area if large debris is evident, otherwise
a thorough pass with a dust mop treated with a water-based
dust mop treatment is recommended to remove soil and
dirt.
5. Remove stubborn stains and chewing gum, as noted
in your pre-inspection, prior to stripping the floor.
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6. Pre-spray baseboards and corners
where buildup is visible with a heavy duty mixture
of stripping compound or a product designed specifically
for this job. These are powerful stripping compounds-be
careful to control their application.
7. Have the appropriate “Wet Floor” signs placed strategically
throughout the area to be stripped.
8. Mix your stripping solution according to the manufacturer’s
directions and apply liberally to the area. Caution:
If you are using hot water, it will evaporate at a
faster rate than lukewarm water and you will not be
able to strip as large an area. Work according to
your plan for stripping, depending on the number of
people in your crew.
9. The steps for stripping include: (a) Mixing the
stripper; (b) Applying the stripper; (c) Letting the
stripper sit for 5 to 10 minutes; (d) Physically agitating
the floor with a floor machine; (e) Removal of the
stripping slurry; (f) Rinsing the floor at least twice
if using an alkaline stripper.
Procedure #2 Rinse the floor of any alkaline residue.
1. Pick up all stripping solution with a wet vacuum
before laying the rinsing solution down.
2. Using a rinse mop, dip mop into clean, warm rinse
water. Do not ring out the mop. Lay the rinse water
over the entire area that was stripped. A neutralizer
may be added to the first rinse.
3. Pick up with wet vacuum or mop.
4. Apply second rinse using clean water, pick up with
wet vacuum or mop. Be sure to go over the entire area
that was rinsed with a well rung out rinse mop to
pick up any streaks or footprints.
5. After the floor has dried from rinsing, check the
floor for any residue or white film. This can be done
by wiping your hand over the floor. If a film is still
evident then additional rinsing is required-even the
world’s greatest floor finish will not adhere to a
floor covered with an alkaline film.
6. Allow the floor to dry fully before applying seal
or your first coat of finish.
Procedure #3 Applying floor finish or seal with a
mop.
1. Always use a clean mop head designed for applying
floor finishes and mark the mop handle appropriately
so that this mop is not used for any other purpose! |
2. Soak mop head in warm water and
wring out thoroughly. Water will fill the mop fibers,
thus saving finish.
3. Put a plastic garbage can liner in your mop bucket
to assure that your finish will not become contaminated
from previous chemical that may have been used in
the mop bucket. This will also assist you in faster
cleanup later.
4. Dip mop in the bucket of finish and damp the mop
head lightly in the wringer. You want the mop to be
full of finish but never dripping. A gentle twisting
of the mop handle will also cause excess finish to
be removed.
5. Start applying the finish in a comer of the area
furthest from your exit point and begin by outlining
along baseboards. When doing larger areas where the
finish may have an opportunity to dry before you can
return for a parallel run-seek to establish an outline
that will be consistent with the floor tiles.
6. Fill in the area between the outlined edges, applying
finish with a smooth overlapping stroke. We recommend
that all finishes be applied in medium to thin coatings.
Wet the mop with finish as necessary and make sure
that the finish is being applied evenly.
7. Continue applying finish, covering each area before
the adjoining area is dry. A smooth and even application
will assure that all the pores in the floor are properly
filled for lasting protection.
8. After the first coat has dried (normally 15 to
25 minutes, but this will depend heavily on the humidity
and air flow) apply a second coat in the opposite
direction, following the procedure outlined above.
9. Subsequent coatings should be applied as above.
Be sure to allow proper drying time between coats.
If multiple coats are to be applied at one time, the
first two coats should be applied 6 to 8 inches away
from walls, partitions display cases, etc. Successive
coats are then applied to the entire floor.
PERIODIC MAINTENANCE
During all daily maintenance procedures it will be
important to watch the floor for developing traffic
pattern and respond to these situations accordingly.
Procedure #1 Cleaning the floor (with a wet mop).
1. Sweep the area if large debris is evident, otherwise
a thorough pass with a dust mop treated with a water-based
dust mop treatment is recommended to remove dry soil
and dirt.
2. Always use a neutral detergent mixed according
to the manufacturer’s directions when cleaning highly
finished floors. Alkaline cleaners can soften, damage
and create an unsightly film causing additional maintenance. |
3. When wet mopping a floor it is important
to change the mopping solution when visible contamination
occurs. There is nothing worse than mopping a floor
with dirty water or using a soiled mop head! Start
with clean equipment and be sure to clean it when
you are done.
4. Apply mopping solution liberally (do not flood)
allowing the solution to contact the floor for approximately
2-3 minutes and pick up excess with mop. Physical
agitation with the mop may be necessary in badly soiled
areas.
5. If using an alkaline cleaner, “Rinsing” is required.
Procedure #2 Cleaning the floor (with an automatic
scrubber).
1. Sweep the area if large debris is evident, otherwise
a thorough pass with a dust mop treated with a water-based
dust mop treatment is recommended to remove dry soil
and dirt.
2. Perform pre-operation checks on the scrubber as
described by the manufacturer or recommended by the
distributor ( batteries, brushes/ pads, squeegee blade,
etc.).
3. Always use a neutral detergent mixed according
to the manufacturer’s directions when cleaning highly
finished floors. Alkaline cleaners can soften, damage
and create an unsightly film, which is even more apparent
when using an automatic scrubber. By causing more
agitation than a mop, an automatic scrubber can leave
side trails of solution.
4. Fill the scrubber solution tank with water first,
then add the proper amount of chemical.
5. Choose an appropriate pattern that will assure
full coverage and lay down, scrub and pick up the
mopping solution using the automatic scrubber. Be
sure to use a damp mop to pick up any trails that
may be left.
Procedure #3 Dry Burnishing, High speed and ultra
high speed maintenance.
1. Accomplish only after sweeping, dust mopping, damp
mopping and/ or automatic scrubbing the floor. All
buffing programs are actually “controlled abrasion
processes,” therefore it is necessary to remove all
soil prior to burnishing or you will run the risk
of embedding soil into the finish film causing unsightly
yellowing.
2. Follow distributor recommendations as to the proper
pad for your machine and floor finish you have selected.
3. After dry burnishing, run a clean dust mop over
the floor.
Procedure #4 Top Scrub and Recoat (with a single disc
machine).
1. Sweep the area if large debris is evident, otherwise
a thorough pass with a dust mop treated with a water-based
dust mop treatment is recommended to remove dry soil
and dirt. |
2. Depending upon the
depth you wish to penetrate into the finish film during
the top scrub procedure- use either an all purpose
cleaner (for deeper penetration) or a neutral detergent
(for light penetration) and a green pad for light
scrubbing or a blue pad for deep scrubbing. Always
mix chemicals according to the manufacturer’s directions.
3. Apply solution liberally (do not flood) allowing
the solution to contact the floor for approximately
2-3 minutes and thoroughly scrub using the single
disc machine.
4. Pick up solution with mop or wet vacuum. Use a
detail mop with clean water to remove any trails or
footprints.
5. (Optional) Dry buff the clean floor to knock off
any edges and smooth the surface prior to applying
a new coat of finish. This step will enhance the appearance
level of the floor noticeably.
6. Apply one coat of floor finish in the traffic areas
as described in the “Applying Floor Finish” procedure.
For appearance sake this coat must be applied evenly
and if necessary feathered at the edges. If lines
are apparent where new finish has been applied, wait
at least one hour and dry buff edges.
Procedure #5 Top Scrub and Recoat (with an automatic
scrubber).
1. Follow the same procedure for “Cleaning” with the
automatic scrubber using the double scrub method.
Double scrubbing provides two passes with the automatic
before the solution is picked up and normally utilizes
a more aggressive pad or brush.
2. Lay solution down on the first pass with squeegee
in the up position. Make return pass along the same
path with solution turned off and squeegee down.
3. Be sure to have a clean detail mop available to
pick up any trails which may be left from the automatic.
4. Using a neutral detergent in this process will
alleviate the need to rinse, however if you are performing
a more aggressive top scrub with an all purpose cleaner,
then rinsing is necessary prior to recoating.
5. (Optional ) Dry buff the clean floor to knock off
any edges and smooth the surface prior to applying
a new coat of finish. This step will enhance the appearance
level of the floor noticeably.
6. Apply one coat of floor finish in the traffic areas
as described in the “Applying Floor Finish” procedure.
For appearance sake this coat must be applied evenly
and if necessary feathered at the edges. If lines
are apparent where new finish has been applied, wait
at least one hour and dry buff edges. |
Procedure #6 Spray buffing, conventional
& high speed maintenance.
1. Follow steps outlined for “Cleaning”.
2. Using a spray buff compound, lightly mist the product
through a trigger sprayer directly onto the floor
ahead of the buffer. Spray buff compounds may vary,
however, their purpose is all the same - to provide
lubricity to the pad surface, assist in working out
heavy marks from the floor surface, and to facilitate
better blending in scratched areas. 3. Buff the area
where the spray buff has been applied until dry (this
will vary with the speed of your equipment and type
of pad being used). Be careful to notice areas of
wear and pay particular attention to the depth of
gloss (this will indicate when recoating is necessary,
especially in traffic patterns.)
4. Dustmop the entire floor after spray buffing.
Procedure #7, Restoring, high speed and ultra high
speed maintenance.
1. Follow steps outlined for “Cleaning”.
2. Follow the dilution recommendations of the manufacturer
for the restoring compound and always use a clean
mop and bucket to apply.
3. Put a plastic garbage can liner in your mop bucket
to assure that your restorer will not become contaminated
from previous chemicals which may have been used in
the mop bucket. This will also assist you in faster
cleanup later.
4. Dip mop in the bucket of restorer and tamp the
mop head lightly in the wringer. You want the mop
to be full of product but never dripping. Apply evenly
to all areas and allow to air dry.
5. Once dry follow the steps as outlined in the procedure
for “Dry Burnishing”. |
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