Burnishing is a great technique to increase the shininess of a floor to achieve a ‘wet’ look and is more commonly used in commercial areas, but how often should you burnish a floor exactly?
In areas with large footfall, it is recommended to burnish the floor at least once per week alongside mopping every day. In residential settings you can burnish a floor once per month or less, depending on your preferences.
To understand how often burnishing is done it is important to know exactly what burnishing is, what it actually does to a floor and if it can be used on all types of flooring or only a select few.
What Is Burnishing?
Burnishing is a process where two surfaces rub together to smooth one of the surfaces and make it shinier.
In terms of flooring a burnisher – the machine used to burnish the floor – is used that operates using a pad that rubs against the floor. The burnisher uses a high RPM (revolutions per minute) to create more friction which results in a greater shine.
If you want to learn more about the process of burnishing you can check out this great resource.
What Does Burnishing Do To A Floor?
Burnishing smooths and polishes a floor in a quick manner, that much is obvious, but burnishing will also help to protect the floor against dirt.
By smoothing out the surface there are fewer cracks or areas where dirt can build up. The less dirt on the floor, the less likely it is for somebody to kick the dirt up while they walk over the floor which can result in scratches and marks.
So, whilst focusing mainly on aesthetics, burnishing can also help to protect a floor as well.
How To Burnish A Floor
Let’s jump into a quick and easy guide to learn how to burnish a floor.
Prepare The Area
The first stage of burnishing a floor is to prepare the area.
First and foremost you need to secure the area to prevent anyone from walking over the floor as you burnish. If this is a commercial setting you can use tape or signs to seal the area, or at home, you can simply inform your family to stay clear.
After you have secured the area use dry and wet mopping to remove all dirt and debris from the area you want to burnish.
It is crucial at this stage that you are confident that all of the dirt and debris is removed. If there are any large objects like stones or pebbles these can cause scratches during the burnishing process.
Choose the Correct Burnish Pad Color
Burnishers can use certain types of pads depending on what the goal is. The pads used for burnishing, or making the floor appear shiner and ‘wet’, are usually light blue, beige, white and natural.
Below we have listed all of the colors including those that are used for more intense processes than burnishing such as stripping and scrubbing.
- Black/Brown Pads -Black and brown pads are used specifically to strip surfaces of their finish. This is an intense process and should only be used in the right circumstances.
- Green Pads – Green pads give the floor a deep scrub to prepare the floor to be coated with another layer of finish. This is a step down from the black and brown pads that completely strip the surface. Green pads can also be used to clean heavy soil loads as well.
- Blue Pads – Blue pads are used for cleaning medium soil loads, which can form part of a weekly cleaning schedule.
- Red Pads – Red pads can be used for light cleaning purposes each week.
- Light Blue, Beige and Natural – These are the pads that are specifically created for burnishing a floor. The burnished is usually set on to a faster setting when used with these pads to create the ‘burnished look’.
Choosing the right pad can make the difference between successfully burnishing your floor or stripping the top completely.
Apply Solution And Burnish
Once the right pad has been chosen the floor, now clean from mopping, needs to have a solution applied to it to allow the burnisher to run smoothly. This is usually applied either via a liquid with a mop or spray bottle or via a cream but the choice is up to you.
You can also apply the solution as you burnish, but that depends on how experienced you are.
Once the solution is ready switch on the machine and get to work. Work in a pattern that allows for overlapping and take your time to achieve the best result. The pad can be changed when you notice the burnisher not having the same effect on the floor over time.
Clean Up The Area
Finish by dry or wet mopping again to remove any dust the burnisher has created. Once you have cleaned the floor the only thing left to do is clean the pads by rinsing them with a cleaning solution, or bathing them, whichever is more practical.
And that’s it! Burnishing is really a simple process as long as you know what you are doing and have access to the right machine.
FAQS
We’ve listed some of the most commonly asked questions regarding burnishing and flooring below to cover in detail as much information regarding burnishing and flooring as possible.
What Is The Difference Between Buffing And Burnishing?
Buffing is essentially a toned-down version of burnishing that used a buffer machine rather than a burnishing machine.
Buffers operate at lower RPMs and can make floors appear shinier, but they will not be able to achieve the ‘wet’ aesthetic that a burnisher can achieve.
Can Hardwood Floors Be Burnished?
A lot of people question whether hardwood floors can be burnished or not due to the nature of the burnishing process and how it uses friction to create a shiny look.
Hardwood floors can be burnished, but the correct type of pad must be fitted to the burnisher for this to happen. The reason for this is that wood is much softer than other types of flooring, and therefore a more ‘gentle’ type of pad must be used so that it doesn’t damage the wood.
Does Burnishing Make Floors Slippery?
Burnishing can sometimes make a floor more slippery, but this is usually not noticeable.
This also happens more so because of the dirt being removed than the actual burnishing process itself, as dirt provides friction between your feet and the floor.
Final Thoughts
We hope you have learnt a lot about burnishing in this article, if you have any other questions then please let us know.
Fust remember that burnishing is something that should only be done regularly in commercial areas where there is a lot of footfall. In other areas like around the home, burnishing should only be done once per month or less.
