Though newer hardwood floors are often coated with polyurethane, those of us living in older homes are sometimes puzzled by how to care for floors with more traditional coating. I grew up in a pre-war apartment in DC with beautiful waxed wood floors, and didn't realize until I was in college that not everyone waxes their wood floors 2 to 3 times per year! For those of you with waxed wood floors, here is my mom's guide to caring for them.
What You Need
Materials
Restor-a-Finish in appropriate shade
Johnson (or other) paste wax
Rubber gloves
Old cotton towel
Old pair of cotton socks
Equipment
Floor buffer (or a lot of elbow grease!)
Instructions
1. Your first step is to find out if you in fact have waxed wood floors. Put down a drop of water about the size of a dime and let it sit on the floor for 15 to 20 minutes. If it soaks right in or even if it sits on top but then creates a white spot on the floor, then you have a wax finish. (I don't have a picture of this step because I know the floor is waxed.)
2. Wipe down the floor with Restor-a-Finish, especially if your floor hasn't been treated in a while. It will help pull up the color of your floor and restore some of the original beauty. Once you have wiped on the Restor-a-Finish with an old sock or t-shirt, leave it for an hour to sink in and dry.
3. Wipe on a layer of paste wax with a different sock or t-shirt. The wax should be applied in a light layer- you want to see a dull sheen not the wax itself on the wood. Rub the wax into the floor following the grain of the wood, then let it sit and dry for 30-45 minutes.
4. Buff, buff, buff. Though my mom now has an electric buffer, for many years she buffed by hand; make sure you use a thick towel if you are hand buffing.
5. Admire your lovely new floor! Though you can't see much of a difference in the before and after pictures above, that is because my mom waxes her floors three times a year; if your floor hasn't been done recently, you will definitely see a difference!
As we look at another round of snow in DC, this might be an excellent project to keep you from going stir crazy in the storm. Thanks Mom for agreeing to wax your hall floor so I could get some action shots!
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(Images: Colleen Quinn)
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Yes! Yes! this is the way to do it and I remember it well. My German mom made me help her with this process and we had to use Kotex Maxi Pads!!!! for the waxing & polishing. I was the most mortified teen ever, but it worked so beautifully! This is how our moms stayed thin, work like this on your hands and knees works up a sweat! I still love giving my floors a good cleaning the old fashion way and remember the corners must be the cleanest because that's where people look. So said mom.
I don't do the buffing of floors myself but I will definitely tell our helpers (at home) and workers (for the houses we sell) about it, including our tenants. This is definitely a good way of preserving those wooden floors. Thanks for the post!
I'm positive the floors in my apt could use some of this, but I'm afraid some sections are too far gone as they're started to splinter. Would waxing help buff these areas out or does the floor in my apt just need to be refinished?
brdnkchr- depends on how splintery the wood is unfortunately. You might try a light sanding to smooth the area then waxing to see how it works. You can also replace individual boards if the problem isn't widespread. Mom says that if the floors have been neglected, you might want to work in a heavier coat of wax and possibly wax more often until the finish meets your needs. You could also try Howard Feed-n-Wax to rehydrate your wood (see it in action here).
thanks for the great memory...my mom waxed our hardwood floors several times a year for my entire childhood. I loved the smell of the wax, and sliding around the newly waxed floors in my socks! Now mom has wall to wall carpeting, who can blame her?
brdnkchr :
If the boards are splintering at the edges then you're most likely through to the tongue layer of the tongue and groove and refinishing would just make it worse. You could call a hardwood refinishing company and ask them if your floors could handle another sanding. Estimates are free (Should be.) so it won't cost you anything to get a bit of advice.
If they can't be sanded again and you can't afford to repair or replace, you can mix 1 part carpenter's glue with 1 part wood filler and a bit of water and apply it to the splintering areas. Once it dries you can carefully hand sand and rewax or seal. Not perfect but I've seen it hold up for quite some time.
There was a great episode of This Old House where Kevin O'Connor went back a year later to one of the houses and interviewed the owners about what worked and what didn't.
One of the things the wife listed as something she had really wanted but now hated were the waxed hardwoods. She couldn't keep up with the maintenance (the house was huge and she had 3-4 kids I think so everywhere was high traffic) the floors were dull and starting to damage. She said they were going to have them all refinished with the normal poly.
according to mom, that lady's mistake was probably letting her kids wear rubber soled shoes in the house because they dull the shine. Like msmezzo, I spent my childhood sliding on the floor in socks- it was like buffing the floor everyday!
@colleen, yep I have waxed wood original floors from the 40s and no person, not even my mother, is allowed to wear shoes in my house.
I've had great results with Johnson's Paste Wax.
My questions is what speed floor buffer do i purchase?
Jim
I just purchased an 80 year old DC row house and pulled the carpet to find beautiful original hardwood floors! They have some spots where the finish has dulled. I have my Johnson's wax and Restore-a-Finish. I even have that same buffer from my mom. Which attachments do you use to buff the floor? I have the bristles like the one in your picture and a couple of soft pads. Do you know which works best?
Thanks!