One of the first things people notice when they enter a room is the condition of the floor or floor covering. Floors make a big impression on the professional image of your business. Gray Janitorial Service places great emphasis on the quality of our floor care, from carpet cleaning to providing a high gloss shine to hard floor surfaces. We can enhance your floors by providing the best cleaning equipment, techniques and products.
Vinyl Composite Tile (VCT) -
This is one of the most commonly used floor tile. It is durable, easy to install, easy to clean, comes in an infinite variety of styles and colors, and will accept a high shine with the right finishes/waxes. It is moderately porous and should be sealed to provide better protection and to help the finish provide a better gloss. It is a composite of materials and may contain asbestos fibers, wood flour, color pigments and vinyl resins.
Solid Vinyl -
Solid vinyl is hard to distinguish from VCT and has many of the same characteristics. It is less porous and does not require a sealer. It is considered a quiet floor because it absorbs sound waves. Because it is basically a plastic material, it will burn easily and can be marred by sharp objects or abrasives. It should not be placed over uneven floors as it will show irregularities.
Rubber Tile -
Rubber tile is a dense, long-wearing material made from natural, reclaimed, or synthetic rubber. It has a high resistance to spots and stains and generally does not require sealing. It is also considered a quiet floor. This is a soft floor covering so care needs to be taken on moving and replacing furniture. It will show the irregularities of an uneven floor.
Linoleum -
While once widely used, linoleum flooring is fast being replaced by sturdier, longer wearing and easier to maintain floor coverings. Linoleum is a compressed and heat-treated combination of linseed oil, wood flour, and color pigments attached to a backing. It is porous and requires a sealer to resist stains. It is generally quite thin which means it does not react well to heat, excessive traffic, or sharp objects. It also will not stand up long to prolonged abrasion. On the plus side, it is inexpensive and comes in an infinate variety of styles, colors and patterns. It is easy to install because it comes in sheets rather than tiles. It will show the irregularities of an uneven floor.
Clay Tile -
Clay tile for floors are made from clay that has been kiln-baked to the hardness of stone. Clay tile flooring is used in areas that are subjected to excessive moisture or areas that demand ease of maintenance. Some common examples are:
1. Ceramic Tile; These are either glazed or unglazed tile. They are generally small and often arranged in mosaic patterns. These tiles are used for floors and walls.
2. Paver Tile; These are unglazed tile similar to ceramic tile but larger in size. Paver tile is especially suited for heavy-duty floors.
3. Quarry Tile; These are unglazed tile with a vitreous (glassy) or semi-vitreous surface. This tile can absorb three percent or less of its weight in moisture. It is often used for heavy-duty floors.
4. Faience Tile; These are specially crafted tile that is irregular in surface, color and texture. They are often used on walls and other vertical surfaces as well as floors.
5. Conductive Tile; These contain ingredients conductive to electricity. Conductive tile is used to drain static charges from the surface and dissipate the electricity to the subfloor. It is used in operating rooms and other areas where an accidental spark could cause an explosion.
To be cleaned properly clay tile needs to be machine scrubbed with a nuetral base cleaning solution and soft cleaning pads to prevent scratching of the tile surfaces or compromising the sealer in grout and seams. Damage to tile flooring is usually caused by deterioration of grout or cracks allowing water to soak through to the mortar and subfloor. A penetrating sealer will block water and other liguids and keep them above the surface for easy removal. Even so, water and other liquids should be quickly removed from the tile floor to prevent discoloration of the tile and reduce the likelihood of slippage.
Terrazzo -
Terrazzo is a mixture of approximately 30 percent matrix and 70 percent marble chips. The matrix must be allowed to cure to adequately hold the marble chips in place. It is troweled and smoothed over a prepared underbed. The most common matrix is a fine grade of portland cement, although epoxy and plastic based materials are sometimes used in conductive and special-use floors. The matrix is usually extremely porous and terrazzo needs a penetrating sealer to protect the integrity of the matrix. Improper or infrequent sealing and finishing can result in stains that are not easily removed. Proper care for a terrazzo floor is based on the flooring's age, use and condition. In any instance, spills of liquids need immediate removal. Old or abused terrazzo will normally require specialized maintenance and specialized equipment.
Stone -
Many types of stone are used for floors because they can be fashioned into hard, durable and long-lasting floors. Marble is by far the most popular stone floor while also being the most expensive. Marble comes in a wide variety of styles, colors and patterns. Other stone floor materials are slate, flag stone, granite and brick. Stone floors usually need little more than regular maintenance to stay looking good. However, each has special characteristics peculiar to the type of stone and have special needs for deep or thorough cleaning.
Wood -
Wood has always been popular for flooring. The cost of installing and maintaining them is high but with proper care and maintenance these floors are attractive and very durable. Wood floors are categorized as either open grained (soft wood) or close grained (hard wood). The most popular soft woods are oak (which far exceeds the others because of the many varieties and colors), pine, fir, hemlock and cedar. The most popular hard woods are maple, birch, beech, mahogany, cherry, ash and hickory. Many other types of wood are also used.
Caring for wood floors requires knowledge and patience. Wood is porous so it has to be sealed. Water and heat are a wood floor's worst enemies. Wood floors need to be swept or vacuumed every day and spills need to be picked up immediately.
Concrete -
Concrete is a mixture of cement and small stones. It is often strengthened with embedded steel reinforcing rods. It is used as a subfloor for many of the above materials but it is also a floor in its own right. There have been many technological advances in how concrete is made that have expanded its properties. Concrete can be formed and fashioned into almost any shape and thickness. Because of its sheer versatility, it is a mainstay as a building and flooring material, just as it was in olden times. It is especially suited for facilities with heavy traffic and machinery. It is used extensively in manufacturing plants, warehouses, maintenance bays, and the like. Although it is very strong, concrete is porous and will accept stains easily. It should be thoroughly sealed to protect it from oil, water and chemical damage. Concrete hardens with age and will crack if the problem of expansion and contraction is not properly planned for during construction.
Once the floor is sealed, concrete is easily maintained by sweeping and mopping. Pressure washing and/or machine scrubbing, with or without chemicals, will be needed for more thorough cleaning.
There are also many types of topical coatings that can be applied to concrete surfaces that can increase resistance to stains, provide a shine, provide better traction to reduce slipping, change the color, and a variety of other characteristics.
Special-Purpose Floors and Floor Coverings -
Special-purpose floors and floor coverings are developed to help many companies and organizations deal with particular aspects of their industry. A conductive floor to help dissipate electricity or prevent static electricity is a good example of a special floor. Some of the materials used are epoxy, plastic, metal and resin aggregate mixtures.
Caring for special-purpose floors and floor coverings require carefully following the instructions recommended by the manufacturer. Any other processes could damage or eliminate the functionality it was created for.
Floor Care and Maintenance:
Below are the basic steps to proper floor care. The procedures will vary according to the type of floor, facility and need.
Dust Mopping or Sweeping:
Dust mopping or sweeping will remove approximately 90 percent of soil and dirt found on most hard and resilient floors and should be the first step to all other floor care operations. Dust mopping and sweeping will remove most particles from the floor, but many smaller particles are just moved around and left behind.
Dust mopping or sweeping should be performed daily to prevent damage and maintain a smooth floor surface.
Vacuuming:
Vacuuming is a better method of removing dirt and particles from the floor in preparation for the other steps in floor care. Unlike dust mopping and sweeping, it picks up the particles without spreading them around. Most vacuums have good filters that trap mold spores and other potentially harmful contaminants that are released from dirt and dust as it is aggitated.
Damp Mopping:
Damp mopping removes lightly embedded soil and dirt, spills and a small amount of floor finish, depending on the chemical you are using and water temperature. The water should be cold to warm but not hot. A small white scrub pad will remove most black marks from a wet floor without harming the finish. Damp mopping is the second step to proper floor care. Frequency depends upon amount of traffic, desired levels of cleanliness and as a prelude to other floor maintenance.
Spray Buffing:
This process uses a 175 to 300 RPM floor machine with a soft pad or brush. The operator will spray a combination of cleaning solution and a finish restorer in front of the machine as he moves it across the floor. The process will remove lightly embedded dirt, black marks, scuffs and light scratches from the floor surface and restore a shine. Vacuuming/dust mopping should be performed after to remove loosened dirt and/or dust.
Polishing:
This process uses a 175 to 1500 RPM floor machine with a soft pad or brush. No cleaning solution or finish restorer is used. It will remove lightly embedded dirt, black marks, scuffs and light scratches from the floor surface. Polishing should only be done on floors that are already clean or you run the risk of grinding dirt more firmly into the floor finish. Vaccuming/dust mopping should be performed after to remove loosened dirt and/or dust.
Burnishing:
For this process, the floor also needs to be already clean. It is exactly like polishing except a more powerful high-speed floor machine is used. Burnishing will give a deep gloss to the floor because the finish is heated and tempered by the friction caused by the high-speed revolving action of the burnishing pad across the floor. It will make the finish stronger and longer-lasting which helps prolong the need for deeper cleaning. Vacuuming/dust mopping should be performed after to remove loosened dirt and/or dust.
Machine Cleaning/Scrubbing:
Machine cleaning or machine scrubbing removes embedded dirt, deeper scuff marks and scratches along will some or all layers of the floor finish. This process can be considered light or heavy depending on the size, weight and speed of the floor machine used, the aggressiveness of the pad, the cleaning solution used, the water temperature and how much finish has to be removed to properly clean the floor.
Light cleaning/scrubbing only removes the top two or three layers of the floor finish. Heavy cleaning/scrubbing removes most if not all of the floor finish down to the protective seal coat.
Once the process is completed, the floor should be damp mopped to remove any leftover residue followed by recoating or restoring layers of the finish removed.
Stripping:
Stripping is a labor intensive, time consuming, sometimes hazardous, and costly procedure to remove all traces of floor finish and sealer in preparation for refinishing. It is an aggressive process that requires a heavy high-speed floor machine, a strong stripping chemical, a course pad or brush, hot water and an experienced floor technician. All leftover finish and sealer needs to be removed before a sealer and finish can be reapplied to the floor.
Following a regular schedule of proper floor maintenance will delay the need for entirely stripping a floor. However, eventually a floor finish will deteriorate to the point where regular maintenance will not suffice and refinishing is necessary.
Sealing/Finishing:
Sealing a floor fills in the pores of the floor surface to prevent water damage, reduce staining and raises slip resistance.
Finishing a floor surface with wax or another protective coating will enhance the looks of the floor and help protect the sealer. The determining factors on the number of layers needed are the thickness of the applications, the porousness of the floor material, and the levels of appearance and protection desired. The finish applications must be applied evenly for proper adhesion to the floor surface and for the floor to have a uniform appearance.
Some floor surfaces require special procedures and/or maintenance requirements along with floors that have deteriorated through lack of care. These could include such tasks as sanding, grinding, scarifying, wire brushing or partial restorations. These tasks require specialized equipment and/or attachments and advanced training to be done properly and safely.
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