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An Ounce of Prevention
- Never clean or wet mop your Bruce hardwood floor with water. Do not use any wax or cleaner that must be mixed with water such as oil soap, as this may ruin your floor and result in a loss of warranty. Water can dull the finish and permanently damage the floor.
- If your floor abuts exterior doors, put outside door mats at the entrances to keep dirt and moisture from being tracked in. Inside, you may want to add an area rug to further prevent dirt and moisture from being tracked onto your hardwood floor. Don't use rubber, foam back, or plastic mats as they may discolor the floor. To prevent slippage of area rugs, use an approved vinyl rug underlay from a reputable manufacturer.
- Area rugs should be moved occasionally as they block sunlight which may give the appearance of discoloring under the rug.
- Use Bruce floor protectors on the feet of furniture to avoid scratches. Bruce has several sizes of floor protector pads available. When moving heavy furniture or appliances, use extra caution to help avoid scratching, indentations, and gouging. Some objects may be too heavy to be moved across a hardwood floor under any circumstances.
- Certain types of casters on furniture may damage hardwood flooring. Barrel-type caster wheels or wide, flat glides are best for protecting your hardwood floor. If your furniture does not have the right type of caster, we recommend that you change them.
- A humidifier is recommended to prevent excessive shrinkage of wood floors due to low humidity levels. Wood stoves and electric heat tend to cause very dry conditions. A humidity level of 35-55% is recommended.
- In damp conditions, proper humidity levels can be maintained with an air conditioner or dehumidifier, or by periodically turning on your heating system during the summer months.
- Spike or stiletto high-heel shoes, especially those in poor repair, may cause denting and related damage to hardwood floors due to the extremely high compressive force they generate. Such footwear can produce dynamic loads in excess of 1000 pounds per square inch, even when worn by someone of slight or average build. Bruce will not accept claims from damages which arise from such exposure.
Tips on Repairing Blemishes
Most problems can be prevented or minimized by wiping up any spills immediately. We have provided some common first aid procedures for spot cleaning and touch-up/repair of your Bruce Dura-Luster/Dura-Luster plus finish floor. When removing a spot, always begin at the outer edge and work towards the center to prevent the spot from spreading. Keep a Bruce Touch-Up Kit which blends with your factory-stained floors available. This kit contains all the materials you will need to handle most of the accidents listed here.
Repair Tips for Dura-Luster & Dura-Luster Plus Urethane Finish Floors
Spots caused by food, water or animals
Place Bruce No-Wax Cleaner on a clean cloth to remove the stain or spot. More stubborn spots may require additional scrubbing with Bruce No-Wax Cleaner and a Bruce Scrub Pad.
Greasy spots or ink spots
Rub grease, tar, lipstick, crayon, rubber scuffs, or oil spots with a cloth or Bruce Scrub Pad dampened with Bruce No-Wax Cleaner. If stain remains, rub with a cloth or Bruce Scrub Pad dampened with Clean 'n' Strip and follow up by cleaning area with Bruce No-Wax Cleaner.
Cigarette Burns
Most common burns can be repaired with the Bruce Touch-Up Kit. Rub area with fine sandpaper, restain with Bruce Touch-Up Marker and refinish with Bruce Dura-Luster urethane. For cigarette burns that extend deep into the surface of the wood, individual plank, strip, or parquet boards may need to be replaced.
Chewing gum, candle wax
Apply a plastic bag filled with ice on top of the deposit until it becomes brittle enough to crumble off. Clean 'n' Strip can be helpful in removing stubborn areas. After deposit has been removed from the surface of the floor, clean entire area with Bruce No-Wax Floor Cleaner.
Expansion cracks and squeaks
Hardwood floors are affected by two distinct humidity seasons - heating and non-heating. Recognizing that wood floor dimensions will be slightly affected by varying levels of humidity, care should be taken to control humidity levels within the 35-55% range. If humid or damp weather causes a slight expansion in your hardwood floor, the edges of boards may rub together, producing a squeak. For solid oak floors, a liberal amount of talcum powder between the squeaking boards will usually quiet things down. For engineered, glued-down floors with squeaking boards or loose popping sounds, inquire about the Bruce Adhesive Repair Kit at your local retailer. Avoid excessive exposure to water from tracking during periods of inclement weather, Do not obstruct the expansion joints around the perimeter of your floors.
Refurbishing scratched areas
Most scratches can be repaired with the Bruce Touch-Up Kit. Since Bruce floors are factory finished, individual planks, strips or parquets that are heavily gouged or damaged can be replaced. If needed, the entire floor can be refurbished by lightly sanding and recoating with Bruce Dura-Luster Urethane. For repairing areas where scratches extend over several boards, tape off repair area at the end of joints and along the outer edge of each plank/strip/parquet surrounding the scratched or worn area with 3M 2090 Blue Mask tape before applying stain/urethane to prevent the stain/urethane from splattering or being transferred to the surrounding undamaged boards.
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