How To Remove 3 Tough Stains From Vinyl Floors

In many ways, vinyl is one of the best flooring choices around. It's affordable, durable, and it comes in a great variety of colors and patterns, which should ensure that you have no trouble finding a style and color that works for any room in your house. If vinyl has a drawback, it's that it's a porous material, which means that it's easy for vinyl to absorb materials that leave tough stains, especially if a spill or scuff isn't noticed or dealt with quickly. However, you can remove tough stains from vinyl floors. Here are a few different types of stains, and the remedies that work.

Food Stains

In a dining room or kitchen floor, you can probably expect the occasional missed bite or dropped cup. But if the food or beverage in question happens to be tomato sauce or red wine, it could leave a nasty stain.

To deal with food stains on a vinyl floor, soak a clean rag in a bucket of diluted bleach. You should use four parts water to one part bleach. Once the rag is soaked, place it on top of the stain and leave it there, allowing the diluted bleach to soak into the stained area for about an hour. That should lighten remove or lighten the stain. Clean the area with clean water to remove any excess bleach.

Rust

Vinyl is susceptible to oxidization, which can cause rust, because of the material that it's made from and the oxygen flow in your house. However, you can remove any rust stains by spreading baking soda over the rust stain, and then scrubbing the layer of baking soda with a rag that's been soaked in vinegar. This home remedy can get the rust out without damaging your floor or introducing toxic chemicals to your home.

However, if you would rather use chemical cleaners, for ease of stain removal or for very tough rust stains, you should combine your preferred household rust remover or floor cleaner with a small amount of oxalic acid solution. You can find oxalic acid in wood bleach. Choose a cleaner that's not chlorinated and is designed for cleaning vinyl or removing rust. Sprinkle the oxalic acid on the rust stain first, and then spray it with the cleaner that you chose.

Once you have the oxalic acid and the cleaner in place, cover the area with a large bowl, and let it sit and set in for an hour. Once the hour is up, you can remove the bowl. Make sure to open a window first, though. The fumes from the cleanser and the acid can be strong, and for your safety, the room should be well ventilated. Clean the mixture off of the floor with clean water.

Yellowing

Vinyl turns yellow as the result of a chemical reaction that occurs when the material comes in contact with rubber. While yellowing is often described as a permanent change when it happens to vinyl, there is one solution that can work.

Begin by sweeping the yellowed area, and then wetting it with a mop or a damp cloth. While the floor is damp, sprinkle baking soda on the affected area of the floor, and allow the moisture and baking soda to set in for up to 15 minutes. When it's had a chance to soak in, wipe the baking soda away with a soft, damp cloth. You may need to repeat a few times for best results. You can look at this website for more ideas.

Waxing your vinyl floor regularly can help prevent stains from taking hold in the first place. With regular cleaning and maintenance and special attention to any tough stains that do arise, your vinyl floor can last for years and look great the whole time. 


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