My Beautiful Cherry Wood Floors Are Ruined! PLEASE HELP!!!

Vinegar and water would probably be your best bet - 1 quart water to 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar. I owned my own cleaning business for over five years - there are some really good commercial cleaning products out there, but vinegar and water is still my favorite. (If you really want a commercial product I would highly reccommend that you go to the Mop Bucket in North Kansas City. They are right across the street from the community center and their staff is very informative. They also have a really good organic cleaner if you are interested in that.)

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YES on the vinegar - 1 quart water, 1/4 cup vinegar. It can't hurt if the water's pretty hot either. We have all wood in our house and that's all I use (and our white socks stay white!) It's so good at getting rid of those spots that you only see if the light is shining on them! It cuts through any dirt and literally leaves the floors squeaky clean. I've become a big fan of vinegar since having my son. It's non-toxic, works all over the house and it's cheap! Here's a website for all things vinegar:

http://www.versatilevinegar.org/index.html

P.S. Please don't forget to rinse it, especially off the wood. I just use a microfiber mop and spray water on the floor. The mop head goes right in the washing machine.

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You can try using vinegar and water (the only thing I ever allow on my woods). You have to do a section at a time on your hands and knees and then buff dry so that nothing sits. If that doesn't do it, you may need to rent a buffer to get the waxy stuff off.

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I have "antique" oak hardwood floors throughout my home - almost 100 years old. They are still beautiful (although not perfect...) :-).

With the Orange Oil, I would first clean it off. I would personally use a bucket of hot water and some Dawn dish soap. Wash it until you get the oil off. It might take more than once over. Then, I would go back with a regular cleaner and chaulk that up for a learning experience for all of us.

I personally prefer Pledge Hardwood Floor cleaner. This comes in a bottle that you add to a bucket of water. It is not always easy to find. It smells fantastic and works excellently. I have some areas that are refinished, some that barely have finish and a couple of steps that are strip'd. This does a great job on all of it.

I once used Murphey's oil soap on cupboards. It did take off the oily hand marks, but it took off the finish as well. I have NEVER used it again. EVER.

Best of luck and I would still call on advice of a professional, perhaps whoever installed it or Lowes, Home Depot. It never hurts.

Let us know what you find out.

RJ,

We have all hardwood too, and I did the Orange Glo thing around Thanksgiving, and the haze is just now wearing off (I mop about every other week with the Pledge floor cleaner, I love the smell). So it doesn't do permanent damage. There are already a lot of great suggestions...since they are newer floors, I'd stay away from the rejuvinate, and stick to using something that is a cleaner. Your floors should have a pretty substantial finish to them, the Rejuvinate is more for older floors with little or no finish. If the vinegar and water doesn't work, try ammonia and water. The ammonia should cut the wax.

The Pledge idea brings back memories...I did that in college, made the floors look great, but my roomie fell on her behind when she got home because they were super-slick (she would always kick off her shoes the minute she stepped in the door). The kids enjoy it when they are in their sock feet though.

Good luck

I was going to say vinegar and water too...

K.

Does it by chance say on the bottle of Orange Glo what to do. It sounds like the citris in the orange glo may have done something to the wax coat. You may have to find some product to remove the wax coat and then reapply it. I know there are inexpensive products out there, but don't have wood floors so I don't know the names of them. we had a similar thing happen at one of my previous jobs and it had to do with the wax coat. Hope this helps.

T.

I did the same thing! Then I tried the murphy's oil and that didn't work either. I then used my swiffer wet jet with the wood cleaner solution. That got it back to shining. Hope all goes well. Orange glo is a rip!

This is a little late, but I know many people have recommended vinegar and water, but when I consulted a hard wood floor expert about my floors, he said lots of people use it, but he never recommends it - it will over time build up a film. I would go with the window cleaner - spraying a little ahead of your swiffer and wiping it like you would clean a window. Idon't know if this will get rid of the orange glow mess, but it's a great upkeep method I learned from my sister-in-law who works for a housecleaning service.

About me - grandmother of a wonderful and gifted almosts 3 year old boy who will soon have a baby brother he can read to.

I am so sorry about your floors. I know how you feel. My floors are wood laminate and I used Murphy's Oil on them, laminate floors were listed on the bottle as a surface to use it on, and it was awful. I was so mad, it took a long time and many moppings to get it off. I used a littl amonia when I mopped but don't know if you should use it on real wood.
Good luck. My daughter in law only uses vinegar and water on her floors and has good results. Vinegar might cut the haze too.

There is a product at Home Depot called Rejuvenate. It works miracles! I have used it several times on my wood floors and it makes them look like new again. Read the label to make sure it is safe for Cherry wood, but I'm sure that it is. Good luck and I hope you get that beautiful shine back!

Hi RJ,
Your cherry floors shouldn't be ruined (I have the same color in my kitchen) I think the haze is just a residue. You just need to use a wood floor cleaner, Pledge has one and so does mop'n'glo. They work really well. Also, after you mop you probably want to dry the floor, sometimes if your mop leaves the floor too wet they won't shine. I usually just walk around on an old towel and dry it all and the floor looks gorgeous again!

Actually I think all the suggestions are wonderful. However, I would call Orange Glo and tell them what happened and find out what the heck went wrong and how they suggest fixing it! Good Luck.

Hi,
I too have beutiful wood floors, and all I use to clean them is vinegar water. About 1 cup of white vinegar to 1 gal. of very hot water. This might cut through the haze you have now.

Good luck!

This same thing happened to me with Orange Glow. Call Classic Hard Wood Floors on Plainview Road in Springfield, MO. They have a product that when used consistantly for about 6 weeks will take care of the issue. Good Luck!!!

I think it depends on the finish of your floors, but they will not be harmed if you try vinegar and water--I'm pretty sure that's safe for all finishes. All the other products like Orange Glo is dependent upon what your finish is like. Whatever store-bought solution you try next, try it on a small area first and see if you are happy with the results before doing the entire surface.

I was told by a floor layer that you should never use Murphy's oil soap on hardwood floors
I was told to use 1 part vinegar to 3 parts water and make sure the rag is wrung out very tight. I would test a very small out of the way area first. If they doesn't work you might need to call a flooring company and see what they say. Flooring companies also sell special cleaners that you can use.
I hope this works for you
VB

A friend told me that aerosol glass cleaner will bring a wonderful shine to wood floors. I haven't tried it yet on my floors, but she cleaned houses for many years, and said it worked every time.

Try vinegar & water. Do not let the floors stay wet. Clean an area, then dry (I use old towels) prior to moving to the next area. Good luck.

We have an entire house full of real wood floors and we use Holloway House Quick Shine Floor Finish. We had the same problems with Murphys and another product. My floors have an amazing mirror like finish. We usually use the wet Swiffer and then the Holloway House stuff. I buy it at Wal-Mart.

Ok, that same thing happened to us in Virginia--new home, new maple wood floors with a high gloss shine to them. I also used Orange Glo and messed them up, so I thought. My mother-in-law suggested Glass Plus and it worked. We just got down on our hands and knees and used paper towels and rubbed Glass Plus in circles. I hope it works for you.

My daughter said her Boss used a cleaner from Bed Bath & Beyond that worked great on his floors. It costs about 7.00 but they can't remember the name. ):

Geeeeeeeeeeee RJ your hubby is so very helpful......lol Tree now floors :)) I am giggling cause my hubby does the same.
I use swift it on my wood floors, there is one made just for hard wood floors. I would try the vinegar and water first though to remove the film on it.

My hubby finally figured out he is not "Tim the Tool Man" fix it guy. He did try though for many many years. Usually had to call my dad to come fix it or the regular fix it type person. Our Plumber in TX used to ask if Keith got new tools for Christmas lmbo

Now If I can't do it or our two grown son's can't, we call a real repair person. One son an electrician one is a carpenter. They can do about anything. You know the saying Real men don't need directions? Well it took hubby and a neighbor two hours to replace a drier belt before they finally read the directions, took them 10 minutes!!!

Im not sure RJ I would let hubby help anymore.....*laughing*

Have a Awesome day
K.

I have old fashoined hard wood flooring in my home when I first moved in this home with my boyfriend at the time I used the oil based cleaning Murphys oil he had a fit never use anything like that on wax sealed floors it does damage them didn't know,it made them sticky and footprints all over for the longest time had to just let it wear off.My suggestion is not to use anything else before consulting with a professional where you bought the floors from or go seek assistance from Home Depot or Lowes or if you have another hardware store in your area.You never know what the chemicals can do to wood.SAHM of 2 and 1 more on the way

as i have cleaning homes for 20 years, the orange glow is horrible. It has a wax base in it, therefore, you either need to get on your hands and knees with a magic eraser by Mr. Clean to remove the wax, or go to a hardwood specialty store and buy some wax remover and then rent a buffer to restore the shine.

I would try using Murphy's wood floor soap first, then go with a buffer if it doesn't work.....

Rejuvenate...sold at Home Depot. Works AWESOME. I had the same problem. My cleaning lady used Rejuvenate and they look as good as the day we moved in!

We recently had the oak hardwood floors of our older house refinished. The company that did them recommended a cleaning solution that is a combination of Windex and water in a spray bottle diluted just to a blue tint. Instructions stated to mist the solution over the floor and go over with a terry cloth mop or other soft cloth. Haven't tried it yet, but it might help. Good luck.

You might try this, it may not work, but it shouldn't hurt anything either. You could try a little Pledge on a swiffer dry sweeper. We did this when our housekeeper used something on our floors that made them look dull. They were a little slippery to walk on with socks for a day or two, but they really did look better afterward.

I am looking for advice on wood floors. Anxious to read the responses. G.

if they are real hardwood floors then not sure what to tell you but maybe vinegar would help. Try in a small area not noticeable to see. Supposed to use a damp cloth to mop hardwood floors and hardwood floor cleaners.

IF they are laminate floors you can use non-acetone fingernail polish remover on them to remove stains. I have laminate floors and love them. They clean easily with water on a damp cloth or towel mop and use a laminate floor cleaner to spray on stuff that is stuck on.

I hope you find something that works. Hardwood floors are beautiful when taken care of properly and less allergies than all that dust that gets into carpets causes.

Try Hillyard's (hillyard.com)- I used to clean houses and they had a great floor wax that was extremely easy to apply and fast drying...we would use it on wood floors after we stripped them. Good luck.