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Tina: We installed Wilsonart flooring in our kitchen, laundry room and hallway a couple of years ago. It is loud, and watching our dog try to get her footing is a real hoot! But water is it’s enemy. In fact, we found a slow leak in the laundry this year and had to have the whole laundry room floor replaced.
But cleaning. My wife uses an old credit card to scrape off anything that sticks. She uses ammonia and water. What really seems to have made a difference is the type of mop. A sponge mop will leave streaks everytime. She uses one of those synthetic chamois twist mops. And drys the floor with an old towel. Yeah, it is a lot of work, but she really hates the streaks.
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Jerry is so right!
Living in a 1929 fixer-upper Cape with 8 dogs and constant fixing-up projects going on I know from doghair, dust, and things you don't want to examine too closely! I belong to the Joan Rivers School of Housekeeping (You make the bed, you do the dishes, and six months later you have to start all over again.), and keeping the floors halfway respectable has always been a struggle. One of the saving graces to this house was it was built pre-cheap wall to wall carpet and has strip red oak flooring (albeit 1/2" - have you ever even seen 1/2" solid oak? I had to have some specially milled to do some replacement work...) Whoa! Catch your breath, Annie! Anyway, sweeping, vaccuming, damp mopping never quite gave me the results all that @#$#% work involved ought to produce. The local supermarket had a big intro sale on the Swiffer, and I figured if it did half the job the box said it would it was worth it. Well, my floors have NEVER looked so good! I do still have to sweep first to get rid of the Dust Tigers otherwise it uses too many of those little sheets, but they REALLY do pick up all the dust!
*Tina G.Rip it up and put down a real floor - well, someone had to say it!Bill
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Bill....believe me, I've thought about it. But we'll live with it. Because it's a floating floor, it won't be all THAT difficult to replace someday. Actually, it's not all that bad, and we don't have to worry about beating it up. Now, if I can just find a housekeeper willing to brave 20 miles of dirt road each way to come chase the dust bunnies every week....
*...not that you didn't hear enough negative comments about the stuff the first time around!Geez, Tina, can we hear about what you -like- about your new place?
*Ok Ok Ok! We actually love the new place now that most of the old screwups are covered over or fixed (we left the original basement stairs exposed in the basement, over which we had to build a second set of stairs to provide a safe landing on top and bottom. We left the old stairs exposed so we could show people an example of the heartburn we've been through). The kitchen came out wonderfully, with exposed timbers and juniper countertops, glass block instead of backsplash behind the counters (under wall cabinets), great dog kennels, master bedroom with a huge east-facing picture window that catches big sky sunrise over distant mountains, fabulous arbor over south facing deck, russian fireplace with huge juniper log as mantel, tile floors where there isn't laminate, timbertech deck that looks good, high ceilings, lovely finish carpentry......is that better? I'll post pictures once I get them all taken, because, as I've said before, much of the beauty of this house is thanks to help from all of you!
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Damm! (am I allowed to say that?)
sounds nice, Tina,
I'll bet the rest of the house components are also "wundern' how that floor got in here"
Bill
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OMG, Tina, I just read how your house looks and am considering not helping you due to extreme jelousy. No, I shouldn't say that. My DH just got done remodeling my kitchen from a 3' across, 5' length floor space to the kitchen it is today. 4 people can move around fairly easily in it now whereas before 2 people really was too much - no exaggeration. There weren't even any upper cupboards, only 2 lower (including a lazy susan corner cupboard). But, I digress. I have Pergo travertine and all the crap on my floors just blend in beautifully. I clean it with a rag (but will get the swiffe or whatever it is someone recommended) and use that. I love my floor. (Thanks for the cleaning recommendations!) Your house sounds remarkable - I'm happy for you. I also have a real nice house. It's nothing like what yours sounds like but it's "perfect." It's the first house I've ever had, and it's real pretty. And we live in the woods, and the river's behind the house. There's peace here and love, and we've done beautifully with what we have. Every single day, bar none, when we pull in the driveway, or when we wake up in the morning (or both times), we comment about how much we love our home, how blessed we are. I kid you not.
*Tina, sounds grand, but just one question. Where did you put the airstrip?
*Rich -- that reminds me of one other thing we actually like about the place...but maybe someone else wouldn't -- because we're so remote, the area is used for occasional Airforce low-level training flights...I have a picture of a B1-B screaming over a contented herd of antelope mingled with our cattle...they (animals) could care less. We also get B1s, F16s, C-130s, and Warthogs flying so close we can almost see the whites of the pilots' eyes. One actually waved as he went by at my eye level as I stood on the porch! So, no airstrip, but maybe a parachute zone?
*Tina, I'd like to hear more about your "Not from Ikea" countertops. We've got some junipers, not sure about the alligator part though. Any chance of pictures of counters too? And a brief description of what/how you did? Joe H
*Joe -- pictures are in the works. The juniper are called alligator because their bark looks like alligator hide. These particular ones grow primarily in parts of New Mexico and Arizona...don't know where you are. These junipers also have fabulous grain because they grow twisted. The ones we used were about 2 ft to larger in diameter. We used very old, dead, fallen junipers so that the wood was already totally dried before we milled it. Then our carpenter, who has a mill at home, milled them into boards about an inch thick. Our kitchen island is huge...about 6 ft by 10 ft, on two levels, the upper level 2 ft. deep at bar height, the rest at 3 ft. counter height. We broke up the long 10ft expanse with cross planks so we could make the best use of the wood... which can have big knots in it. Since we did not put any "barstop" or other plastic surface over the wood, only Velvit Oil which is a food grade, beautiful hardening and sealing oil/stain, we could only use wood that had minimal knots or holes. Once all laid out, carpenter did the finish trimming, lots and lots o' sanding, then glued planks to chipboard underlayment and bicuited planks to each other, with wood glue, too. We filled cracks with a mix of sawdust, velvit oil and (hmmm, I'll get back to you on what the final recipe was). Then more sanding until glass smooth. Then I stained with velvit oil, wet sanding the oil into the wood after 1/2 hour, wiping it all down in an hour. Second coat, no sanding, the next day. and voila! I've attached the only picture I have for now (doesn't show island) but will be posting more and better in the Woodshed when I get it all together.... Tina
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how do I clean it? Instructions say damp mop....all that seems to do is smear the dirt around and leave streaks, even if swept/vacuumed first.
Not thrilled with this floor in general. Has a plastic feel to it....virtually impossible footing for dogs, especially old ones. Even the young ones lose their grip when trying to jump onto bed (I know, I know...but we're weak...)and end up vaulting face first into the side rails. It was a compromise floor for back half of house (other floor is fabulous Endicott tile). But I thought it would be easy to keep clean!
Anyway, wondered if any of you out there (Andrew?) have figured out the secret to the "all you need to do is damp mop" sales pitch?
Tina
*Hi Tina,You might try TSP and dilute it until you find a good mix.You will have to use an area rug under your bed large enough to extend out for the dogs traction.Most of these laminates are murder on dogs.Gabe
*I don't know about that but when the muddy boy and his dog run through the house I pick 'Boarding School' every time.
*Have you ever thought about end-grain wood block flooring?(running for cover...)
*Oh Mongo, Mongo, Mongo....no end block floor this time, but that whole discussion did get me to thinking, and our kitchen countertops are all out of alligator juniper milled right here on the ranch...old, fallen trees, probably older than all of us added together, hard as nails and incredible grain...so all was not for naught.Jeff...am I being obtuse..or what is "Boarding School?"Tina
*Not that Mongo is a sore loser or anything... Now consider: dirt on floor must go somewhere. Open-grain floor lets dirt get into floor and stay there, forgotten, while plastic floor just lets dirt be pushed from place to place. Is it more important to appear clean or be clean? Mind you, I'm not the Plastic Floor King, we have about 100 sf of it and I hope to get responsibly sourced hardwood (solid or engineered) in the new areas.Not to get personal, but what kind of dirt do you have? I just sweep, but our house is still in the "throes" of remodeling (or should I just be honest and call it demolition?) so we're not shooting for super-clean. We're also not dealing with oily or muddy dirt, just dry plaster dust and dust bunnies which sweep easily, and damp mop takes up water-based stains like coffee drips, etc.....If you have dirt that smears, it's not water-soluble, which means you need either (1) a non-water solvent cleaner or (2) more appropriate for households (!) a detergent which by definition makes nonsoluble materials dissolve or suspend in water. I don't know what the mfr wants but I'd try dilute ammonia, it's cheap and has some disinfectant properties.Get area rugs with rubber traction pads under them. Get the pads for carpet-on-hardwood, not carpet-on-carpet. Maybe a ramp or stairs to the bed would be nice too for the aging inhabitants. Tina, I'm starting to think you might not be happy with anything short of embossed steel plate. :) Tile is too cold and hard for me bare feet. The one kind of floor I just can't warm up to, however, is wall-to-wall carpeting, although it is nice as a practical matter in bedrooms.
*... i think there was a warning about limited traction and careening doggies posted a while ago ... The sound of nails clicking alone would probably drive me nuts! Do they make dog track shoes, minus the spikes?Just so people won't assume I'm making up the durability of the floor, here is a snapshot of the pantry floor I installed when i converted the space into an extension of the kitchen in one of my first home improvement projects -- ever. Now, my plans were not so ambitious in those days, specifically i didn't intend to rip off the roof as part of a second floor addition I'm now doing, nor to haul over this floor the tons of brick debris from the interior chimney i demo'd -- simply, this floor has seen a LOT of abuse. Visitors really like the floor, partly I think because they're familiar only with vinyl in kitchens. (Note the nearby mop and damp appearance of the floor, just for the picture... Now you know that a guy CAN pick up a mop.)I did find the first significant damage just now, an impact crack probably from when I dropped a joist from the floor above ... at least the joist missed my wife ... heh-heh, it was an accident, really ... I'll patch or replace the crack when it finally does look like I'm putting in the finishes once and for all. At least a floating floor is VERY fast to remove! It's plastic but I'm pleasedTina, could you post of picture of your "Endicott tile"?
*Thanks, Andrew. I just happened to have put a fresh coat of seal on the Endicott tile (our first houseguests arrive in an hour) so it's looking particularly spiffy. Will get the camera out... be patient...it's a long way to the local drug store to get the film developed....Our laminate, too, took a beating during construction. The dirt is mostly dust, dog hair (vaccuum cleaner takes care of that), mud when it rains (we could use more). We also have laminate (tile form) in bathrooms, but they're incredibly forgiving (have a textured surface that hides everything) to the opposite extreme -- I can never tell if they're dirty or not! I s'pose I should fess up that housecleaning is not my favorite activity. My grandmother used to say there are two types of people in the world -- those who like to cook, those who like to clean...and never both in the same person. I'm happier in the kitchen...so I really fell for the laminate pitches about damp mopping. I guess I shouldn't complain about a few streaks...Will post endicott pictures as soon as I can... Tina
*Pergo's ad has a mud-covered boy and dog running through the house and offers three choices:Pick one:(a) Boarding School(b) Sanding and varnishing(c) A damp mopIt has to be (a) since sanding and varnishing the kid would be considered child abuse, right? O.K. you don't watch TV ...
*I just wondered, with the PL floor providing so much entertainment, do you still hanker for that pirouetting TV cabinet? Sliante.
*Why sure...picture it...dogs vaulting, pirouetting, slipping, sliding, while TV echoes their antics. A house alive....and if we then turn on the ceiling fan directly above...pure poetry in motion!
*Tina: We installed Wilsonart flooring in our kitchen, laundry room and hallway a couple of years ago. It is loud, and watching our dog try to get her footing is a real hoot! But water is it's enemy. In fact, we found a slow leak in the laundry this year and had to have the whole laundry room floor replaced. But cleaning. My wife uses an old credit card to scrape off anything that sticks. She uses ammonia and water. What really seems to have made a difference is the type of mop. A sponge mop will leave streaks everytime. She uses one of those synthetic chamois twist mops. And drys the floor with an old towel. Yeah, it is a lot of work, but she really hates the streaks.
*I can't believe you guys! And of all people, ya'll here at Breaktime should know exactly what would take care of Tina's problem. Tina made her selection--some tried to dissuade her--and now she has to develop some new coping skills.Tina, kindly disregard anything anyone has said in this thread. I have the answer for you. The perfect solution is not great amounts of area rugs (flooring over flooring) nor is the answer found in using a different cleanser formula. Oh!, I get giddy when I think how overccome with joy you will be when informed of the way to a clean floor. And it is easy.Tina, have you considered your sweeping technique? There exist many methods of sweeping, but there are five basic methods--American Classic; English Manor; Hungarian Brusque; Appy Quarter Sweep; French Maid Broom Twist--to complete your mastery of sweeping any floor. Once having mastered these techniques, you'll be able to keep any floor clean. Be warned though, mixing sweeping styles can actually increase the dirty conditions of your floors.I suggest you start with the American Classic style and work up to the French Maid Broom Twist. The American Classic easily demonstrates how to finish the stroke with a wrist flick to give the dirt and dustballs the necessary topspin to keep it low to the floor where it belongs. There are other tricks to be learned, but first you must master the varying hand grips. Truly, you will find it difficult at first to use the correct grip, but with practice you will wonder how you ever were satisfied with what you now know to be incorrect.Since you don't have a nearby college offering adult evening classes, I suggest you conduct a 'net search using distance learning as your key word. I hope it goes well for you and be sure to let us know how it goes. Glad to be of help. Chow.
*Tina....life is too complicated as it is.Go to your nearest Wmart or other such shopping outlet and purchase one of those new 'static' type dust mops....'Swiffer' for one.They do a fantastic job on hardwood,tile and linoleum,and the best thing is once they get dirty just pull off the sheet and put on a new one! Regards...Jerry