How to disinfect hard surface flooring during Coronavirus

How to disinfect hard surface flooring during Coronavirus

Times have changed during the COVID-19 pandemic -- we are social distancing, we are staying indoors and away from public places as much as possible and we are much more aware of touching our face and being sure to wash our hands often.

But how does the coronavirus impact the inside of our home that hasn't been touched directly by the outside world? Very simple -- because the virus lives on so many surfaces, every time you go outside, you are chancing bringing the virus back into your home. 

Many people have been using disinfecting wipes to clean surfaces and even grocery bags and food that they bring into the home, but did you know those wipes have to leave a wet residue for 3-4 minutes in order to be effective? Most of the time, the wetness left by disinfecting wipes dries quicker than that. Not to mention, finding disinfecting wipes right now is like finding a needle in a haystack.

Guess what is a perfect disinfectant for your home -- even your hard surface floors like hardwood, engineered hardwood, luxury vinyl, vinyl, laminate and tile? A combination of distilled white vinegar and water! Something most of us already have in our home! 

First, you want to pick up any debris on your floors to be sure you won't scratch your floors when you run a mop on them (and inadvertently drag the debris across your floors). Using a vacuum cleaning WITHOUT the beater bar is a great option for picking up debris. 

Second, mix 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar with one gallon of warm water in a bucket. 

Next, get the mop wet but be sure to wring it out so it doesn't leave any puddles of water on your floors. If you get your floors too wet, you can damage them. Run the damp mop throughout your entire floor, continually putting it back in the vinegar/water solution to be sure to kill any germs and bacteria it might be picking up. 

Lastly, you might want to take a dry mop or rag to dry the floor if they got too wet. 

Your floors are disinfected! Congratulations! You can also use a similar solution to clean areas of your carpets and rugs -- we'll get to that in a later post!