How to Protect Your Floors During the Holiday Season

How to Protect Your Floors During the Holiday Season

Holidays create amazing memories, but can cause irreversible damage to your floors. With extra furniture, high foot traffic, pine needles from the Christmas tree, damp boots, and spills, your floor could suffer significant wear.

That's why proper holiday floor protection is critical. Without it, the season can compromise the value and durability of your floors.

Simple measures, such as investing in mats, repairing damages before holidays, and adding felt furniture padding to chairs and tables, could go a long way.

Here's how to protect your floors during the holidays and enjoy the season worry-free!

Protect the Floor Against Furniture and Décor Hazards

Due to heavy décor, extra furniture weight, and furniture shifting, it's crucial to protect your floors from scratches by adding felt furniture pads to the legs of tables and chairs.

Also, avoid dragging chairs and tables; instead, lift them when moving.

Place a tray or a waterproof mat beneath potted plants or real Christmas trees to prevent leaks. Additionally, place a tree skirt under the Christmas tree to catch stray needles, which could scratch the floor.

Guard the Entrance and High Traffic Areas

Trap grit, salt, and dirt at the entrance to prevent them from entering the house. Additionally, consider having a study mat outside to remove dirt and debris from your shoes.

Place a softer absorbent mat near the door (inside) to trap moisture or dust from boots and shoes.

Schedule Maintenance Services Before and After Holidays

Schedule floor maintenance services before and after the holidays commence. Maintenance services help determine whether the floor or carpets are in good condition before guests arrive, or whether you need professional cleaning to fix stains or damage.

Consequently, you start the new year in a cozy, clean space, which boosts your mood.

Fix Damages

Fix any damages, such as torn carpet, loose tiles, or scratches on the wood, before the holidays begin. Fixing these issues prevents further damage, saving you extra expenses.

Create Soft Pathways in High Traffic Areas

Place rugs and runners in high-traffic areas, such as hallways, kitchens, and doorways, to absorb impact and prevent scratches from shoes, thereby protecting the flooring.

Use non-slip, breathable backing in rugs for safety purposes and to prevent moisture build-up underneath. The best backing is made of natural, felt fibers.

Be Prepared to Fix Messes and Spills Immediately or Spill-Proof

During holidays, there's a surplus of drinks and food. Keep towels or microfiber cloths and floor-safe cleaning detergents handy to clean up spills and messes immediately before they become absorbed.

Such quick actions prevent holiday stains on carpets and hardwood from dulling or swelling.

You can also place washable mats under drink or food stations.

Balance Indoor Conditions

Excessive heating during winter causes hardwood floors to crack or expand. A humidifier balances indoor conditions, keeping the floors stable and minimizing gaps between the boards, which in turn helps them last longer.

Control Footwear Indoors

Please encourage everyone (guests and family members) to remove their shoes upon entering. If any guests or family members seem uncomfortable, provide slippers or socks at the entrance to keep their feet warm while in the house.

Alternatively, place a boot tray at the entrance to contain mud and water. Your house will be free of grit scratches, salt stains, and heel dents.

Clean More Often

Vacuum or sweep daily during the holiday season to reduce the chances of grit scratching the floor finishes and stop dirt from embedding in surfaces.

Use a damp mop to clean laminate or wood floors. Avoid using a wet mop; it can cause water damage to these floors.

Check out this article to learn how to clean hardwood floors safely.

Deep Clean After Holidays

After the guests leave, inspect the floors or carpets for watermarks, scratches, or stains and take appropriate action to prevent further damage.

Additionally, thoroughly clean the carpets and hard surfaces. For optimal results and extended freshness, consider our professional floor cleaning services.

Why Protect Floors During the Holiday Season

• The number of people entering and leaving the house is higher during the holidays, resulting in increased foot traffic, particularly in the living room, entryways, and halls. Consequently, your floor may have more debris, dirt, grit, and scratches due to high foot traffic.

• Children and pets are more active during holidays. They will run in and out, even with dirty or wet feet or paws, causing grit scratches, wear and tear, and making floors more susceptible to damage.

• Drinks and food spills occur more often during holiday gatherings. Sticky sweets, red wine, and gravy quickly penetrate the carpet fibers or finishes if no action is taken immediately.

• Snow, rain, and slush often accompany holiday travel, bringing salt, sand, and moisture into homes, which can warp, stain, or permanently damage laminate or wood flooring.

• Visitors wear a variety of shoes, including high heels, boots, and outdoor footwear. These often concentrate pressure or carry abrasive grit, resulting in marking, denting, or scratching of the floors.

• Tree stands, seasonal furniture rearrangements, and other decorations can increase floor stress due to extra weight, which in turn increases the risk of surface dents, gouges from moving objects, or scratches.

• Repeated or constant exposure to moisture, such as snow or spilled drinks, can lift planks, degrade floor finishes, warp boards, or cause mold and mildew in seams or under rugs/carpets.

• Rearranging couches, pulling chairs, and adding more tables can sometimes scrape or damage the floor surfaces.

• People often get carried away by holiday events such as entertainment and cooking, but forget that routine maintenance is also critical. Blotting up spills, frequent mopping, or sweeping are forgotten, making it difficult to deal with stains that would have been easy to fix if immediate action had been taken.

• Decorative plants or real Christmas trees drop leaves or needles, which act as natural abrasives. The trees also leak water, causing swelling, staining, or mold growth on porous or wooden flooring.

Holiday memories with family and friends shouldn't come at the expense of stained carpets, worn finishes, or scratched hardwood. That's where we come in.

Whether you want your floors clean and inviting before the holidays start or want to restore them to their original beauty after the season is over, Zerorez offers professional cleaning services for all types of floors.

With expert care, you can welcome your guests into your home without worry and relax after the holidays knowing your floors are clean, safe, and ready for the new year.

Call us today!