MAINTENANCE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR COMMERCIAL LVT (DRY-BACK, RIGID CORE, LOOSE LAY) & VBT

FOR BEST RESULTS:

  • For glue down installations, do not allow any traffic on the floor for 24 hours after installation. Newly installed flooring should not be exposed to rolling load traffic for at least 72 hours after installation to allow setting and drying of the adhesive.
  • It is important to protect the floor during the installation and construction phase. If it becomes necessary to move any heavy fixtures or appliances over the flooring on casters or dollies, the flooring should be protected with 1/4” or thicker plywood, hardboard or other underlayment panels. If other on-site work is continuing, consider using a protective covering such as plain, undyed kraft paper to guard against damage to the new floor.
  • For glue down installations, do not wet wash, machine scrub, or strip the floor for at least five days after installation. This is to prevent excess moisture from interfering with the adhesive bond and/or seam treatments.
  • For glue down installations, the use of aggressive strippers such as mop-on/mop-off, no-scrub and no-rinse strippers is not recommended on tile floors less than 2 years old because they may affect the adhesive bond.
  • When performing wet maintenance, always use proper signage and prohibit traffic until the floor is completely dry.
  • The use of scrubbing brushes is recommended to reach into the textured surface to remove dirt, particles and residues.
  • Do not dry buff or burnish the unpolished surface. Floors which are to be dry buffed or high-speed burnished should have a sufficient base of polish (5 to 7 coats). Floors must also be clean and dry before burnishing. Any residual soil present while burnishing will be ground into the finish, resulting in discoloration.
  • Do not use excessive amounts of liquid during maintenance.
  • Do not use commercial buffing machines on loose lay or floating installations.

PREVENTIVE CARE AND MAINTENANCE

Controlling grit and soil is crucial to prolonging the attractive appearance of any
floor. Grit or soil is any material—including dirt, stones, sand and clay—that is
deposited onto the floor by normal commercial traffic. The best way to control grit
is by using appropriate walk-off mats.

Recommended walk-off mats should:

  • Have a high-friction, open surface design to knock grit particles from the bottoms of shoes and then trap the particles.
  • Be used at every entrance, inside and outside, should be at least as wide as the doorway and 8′ to 12´ long.
  • Have a backing that won’t stain the floor.
  • Be cleaned regularly, vacuumed, shaken and/or hosed off frequently.

While walk-off mats will retain a substantial amount of this grit and soil, some will still find its way into the building. Regular vacuuming, sweeping and dust mopping will help to further control this type of grit.

FURNITURE RESTS (FEET, GLIDES, CASTERS, ETC.)

Proper selection and care of furniture rests is important in the maintenance
and appearance retention of all types of floor coverings. Following are some
guidelines to consider:

The contact area should be large enough to distribute the load evenly without
damaging the floor.

  • The contact area should be smooth and flat to provide full contact and free of small protrusions, irregularities, roughness, depressions, mold lines, embedded dirt, and grit, etc.
  • All edges should be slightly rounded to prevent damage if briefly turned on edge.
  • Rests should be manufactured from non-staining materials.
  • Rests should be properly maintained. Worn, damaged and missing furniture rests should be replaced.

Furniture, appliances, equipment, etc., should be properly leveled so that all rests
are fully and firmly on the floor at all times.

Rigid Core Vinyl Flooring is manufactured with a high performance, UV cured urethane finish that provides improved maintenance characteristics and maintenance options for the end user. Where applicable, the finish will requires scrubbing with a stripping solution to promote adhesion of field applied acrylic floor polishes/finishes.

LOW MAINTENANCE OPTION: NO POLISH – NO BUFF

Initial Maintenance and Preparation for Commercial Traffic

  1. Sweep, dust mop or vacuum the floor thoroughly to remove all loose dust, dirt, grit and debris.
  2. Remove any dried adhesive residue with a clean, white cloth dampened with mineral spirits, carefully following warnings on the container.
  3. Scrub the floor using a rotary machine or auto scrubber with a properly diluted neutral detergent solution Of a Commercial Floor Cleaner and the appropriate scrubbing pad or brush (aggressiveness equivalent to 3M™ red pad for light scrub, 3M™ blue pad or equal for a deep scrub).
  4. Thoroughly rinse the entire floor with fresh, clean water. Remove rinse water and allow the floor to dry completely.

Daily / Regular Maintenance

  1. Sweep, dust mop or vacuum the floor daily to remove dust, dirt, grit and debris that can damage the floor and become ground into the surface.
  2. Spot mop as needed. Any spills should be cleaned up immediately.
  3. Damp mopping of the floor should be performed on a regular or daily basis, depending upon traffic and soil levels in the area. Use a properly diluted neutral detergent solution of a Commercial Floor Cleaner.

Periodic Maintenance

  1. When needed, after sweeping, dust mopping or vacuuming, machine scrub the floor with a properly diluted neutral detergent solution of a Commercial Floor Cleaner and the appropriate scrubbing pad (3M™ red or equal for light scrub, 3M™ blue or equal for a deep scrub) or equivalent brush.
  2. Thoroughly rinse the entire floor with fresh, clean water. Remove rinse water and allow the floor to dry completely.

Restorative Maintenance – Stripping of Existing Floor Finish/Polish

  1. Mix stripping solution to the appropriate dilution, depending on floor finish build-up.
    • Cordon off areas to be stripped.
    • Use proper signage and prohibit traffic until restorative maintenance procedures are completed.
    • Apply liberal amounts of solution uniformly on floor with mop.
    • Let stripping solution soak for the appropriate amount of time recommended by the stripper manufacturer.
    • Keep areas to be stripped wet. Rewet if necessary.
  2. Machine scrub the floor (300 rpm or less) with a scrubbing pad (3M™ blue or equal) or equivalent scrub brush to break up the polish film. Do not allow stripping solution to dry on the floor.
  3. Remove dirty stripping solution with a wet vacuum or mop. TIP: Drizzling fresh, clean rinse water onto the dirty stripping solution will assist with more thorough removal.
  4. Thoroughly rinse the entire floor with fresh, clean water. Remove rinse water and allow the floor to dry completely.
  5. Spray buff using a rotary machine (175 to 1000 rpm) with the appropriate pad and spray buff solution.

Rigid Core Vinyl flooring is manufactured with a high-performance, UV cured urethane finish that provides improved maintenance characteristics and maintenance options for the end-user. Where applicable, the finish will require scrubbing with a stripping solution to promote adequate adhesion of field-applied acrylic floor polish/finishes.

POLISH OPTION

Initial Maintenance and Preparation for Commercial Traffic

  1. Sweep, dust mop or vacuum the floor thoroughly to remove all loose dust, dirt, grit and debris.
  2. Remove any dried adhesive residue with a clean, white cloth dampened with mineral spirits, carefully following warnings on the container.
  3. To promote polish wet out and adhesion, the floor must be thoroughly scrubbed with a properly diluted neutral detergent solution of a Commercial Floor Cleaner, using a single disk swing machine (300 rpm or less) equipped with a 3M™ blue pad scrubbing pad or equivalent brush.
  4. Remove scrubbing solution using a wet vacuum or mop.
  5. Thoroughly rinse the entire floor with fresh, clean water. Remove rinse water and allow the floor to dry completely.
  6. Apply 3 to 5 coats of high-quality commercial floor polish, of commercial Floor Polish. In areas where the flooring will be exposed to heavy traffic and/or staining agents, the application of 1 or 2 coats of a stain-resistant sealer prior to the application of polish, is recommended.

Daily / Regular Maintenance

  1. Sweep, dust mop or vacuum the floor daily to remove dust, dirt, grit and debris that can damage the floor and become ground into the surface. Spot mop as needed. Any spills should be cleaned up immediately.
  2. Damp mopping of the floor should be performed on a regular or daily basis, depending upon traffic and soil levels in the space. Use a properly diluted neutral detergent solution of a Commercial Floor Cleaner

Periodic Maintenance

When needed, scrub the floor using a single disk swing machine or auto scrubber (300 rpm or less) with a properly diluted neutral detergent solution of a Commercial Floor Cleaner and the appropriate scrubbing brush (aggressiveness equivalent to 3M™ red pad for light scrub, 3M™ blue pad or equal for a deep scrub).

  1. Thoroughly rinse the entire floor with fresh, clean water. Remove rinse water and allow the floor to dry completely.
  2. If needed, additional coats of floor polish may be applied at this time. If there is sufficient base of polish remaining (3 to 5 coats), buff, spray buff or burnish to restore gloss.

Restorative Maintenance – Stripping of Existing Floor Finish/Polish

  1. Mix stripping solution to the appropriate dilution, depending on floor finish build-up.
    • A. Cordon off areas to be stripped.
    • B. Use proper signage and prohibit traffic until restorative maintenance procedures are completed.
    • C. Apply liberal amounts of solution uniformly on floor with mop.
    • D. Let stripping solution soak for the appropriate amount of time recommended by the stripper manufacturer.
    • E. Keep areas to be stripped wet. Rewet if necessary.
    • Machine scrub the floor (300 rpm or less) with a scrubbing pad
    • (3M™ blue or equal) or equivalent scrub brush to break up the polish film. Do not allow stripping solution to dry on the floor.
    • Remove dirty stripping solution with a wet vacuum or mop. TIP: Drizzling fresh, clean rinse water onto the dirty stripping solution will assist with more thorough removal.
    • Thoroughly rinse the entire floor with fresh, clean water. Remove rinse water and allow the floor to dry completely.
    • Apply 3 to 5 coats of high-quality commercial floor polish. In areas where the flooring will be exposed to heavy traffic and/or staining agents, the application of 1 or 2 coats of a stain resistant commercial sealer prior to the application of polish, is recommended.
Updated on October 26, 2022

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