SOMETIMES WE MIGHT take the floor for granted, seeing as how it’s underneath our feet and everything, but keeping a clean floor is utterly essential to feeling comfortable in your home.

Whether it’s making sure the kitchen floor isn’t littered with crumbs and debris from cooking dinner, or making sure your hallway floor is spotless enough to make a good impression on any visitors you may have, taking care of your floors is one of the most important things you can do to make your house feel well looked-after. 

Today, we’re looking at some tips and hacks that you can use to keep your floors clean, without having to spend too much time on it.

Don’t let it pile up

Some jobs can be done once a week, others can be done once a month. Some jobs you have to do often. If you’ve got wooden floors, do your best to hoover, sweep or dust them on a daily basis. 

While this may sound a little time-consuming, doing a little bit each day is a way to save time in the long run — rather than letting your floors become overrun with dust, which will then affect the atmosphere of your home. 

When it comes to mopping your wooden floors, one hack you can try is to add some black tea bags to the hot water you’re going to use for mopping. Tea contains mild acids that are good for cleaning away grease and grime, but the tannins in the tea will also give a subtle shine that brings out any warm tones in your hardwood floors. It’s also eco-friendly!

Magic carpets

Anyone who has carpeting in their home will know that it can be deceptive. Sometimes carpets look clean when they’re in desperate need of a hoovering. Something you can do to make your vacuuming more effective is to sprinkle baking soda across your carpet 30 minutes before you start hoovering.

The properties of baking soda are perfect for neutralising odours as well as absorbing oil and moisture that becomes attached to the fibres in your carpet. By loosening up the dirt in your carpet, your hoovering will have a much greater effect and leave you with a carpet that feels much fresher than when you began. 

Tile guide

Many of us have tiled floors in our bathrooms and kitchens, and something to remember when cleaning your tiled floors is to avoid ruining their finish. When addressing the most obvious dirt and debris, use either a soft broom or a hoover with plenty of soft bristles to avoid scratching.

One household item that can make your tiled floor sparkle is plain old vinegar. If you mix a half cup of white vinegar with a gallon of warm water and give your tiled floor a once-over with the mop, you’ll notice a whole new shine to your floor. It’s essential that you don’t try this trick on natural stone such as limestone or marble, as the vinegar may damage that kind of stone. Rubbing alcohol can also produce a similar effect. 

Vinegar is also useful when it comes to loosening and removing grout from between your tiles. Mix baking soda and water until you have a paste, and then apply it to your grout lines. Leave for a few minutes, then spray with vinegar. It will fizz for five or so minutes, and then you can go at it with the grout brush — leaving your floor spotless.