How to clean 30 years worth of dirt of a floor?

By

mrschambers12

We live in AL and moved into a OLD house that a little old lady used to live in and the floors were bad,years of smoking,grease and just dirt.What I did was used full strength ammonia on the floors after opening windows and went to scrubing the floors with a broom.I couldn't get over how good they looked after we were through.I mopped them after scrubing ,they didn't look new but real good.Now when the floors need that extra cleaning I still get out my broom and use "Simple Green" to scrub them.You can get that at Wal-mart.That gets all the boot scrub marks off sooo easy. Maybe that will help some.

By Dede Payne (Guest Post)

you might try using some of that goo gone stuff, try it in a spot that is hidden before you put it where it can be seen. Good luck

By Stephanie (Guest Post)

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions! I will start with the easiest and give it a shot.

Bubbles,

Like yourself, I've been meticulous about the upkeep of any property I've rented. Unfortunately, the former tenents of this home were not. The last tenent let her children write in permanent ink on every wall (inside and out), broke several windows, stained the formica countertops, burned the flooring with cigarretes and apparently never once cleaned in the 6 months she live here. In a perfect world everyone would be as considerate and clean as you seem to be, but alas, this isn't the case. Sorry if my post irked you.

By Lori (Guest Post)

I've had good luck with old grime using trisodium phosphate, using the "strong" dilution on the container. A tablespoon in a quart is majorly heavy duty.

By Tedebear (Guest Post)

Hi Stephanie,
The easiest thing to do is place water on the floor. Let it sit a couple of minutes and get down on your hands and knees with a scrubbie. I do it every time our rental is vacant. It is easy and the floor always looks great. Yes, we get compliments on how clean the floors look!

By

klr2080

Try using liquid dishwasher detergent. The cheaper walmart brand is best. Just squeeze out a line of it and smear it with a damp sponge mop until the entire floor is covered. Try to keep it thick. Let it sit for a couple of hours then mop it up and rinse the floor several times. This stuff is great for cleaning. I use it on my bath tub and my counter tops when they get stained.

By

cookwie

My previous renters left holes in the wall and a carpet reeking of animal waste when the air conditioning was turned off.
You have to admit that many renters have earned the reputation they so richly deserve.

By barb (Guest Post)

Whoa, Bubbles! Please don't be so sensitive - the writer DIDN'T say all renters are slobs. She just pointed out that the flooring is 30 years old and the house had been occupied by renters. The fact is that when a property has been occupied by various tenants who have not re-invest in the property, it can (and, in this case, obviously has) result in floors that are not in good condition.

By bubbles (Guest Post)

I resent the comment that insinuates that all renters must be slobs. I take better care of my rental house then some people I know take care of their own houses.

By siris. (Guest Post)

Pour on pure ammonia,be sure to have windows wide open, then turn a floor polisher loose and mop it up. My brother , a former sailor says that any polisher with a sealed bottom will swab the deck or clean the floor.

By Seagrape (Guest Post)

Maybe you should rent a floor scrubbing machine and scrub, scrub, scrub-a-dub with the strongest wax strippers you can find. Try a janitorial outlet for the best strippers.

By Myrtle (Guest Post)

I had a floor like that once and it had lots of wax on it too. I used almost full strength ammonia and a scrub brush. You may have to use several applications and rinses, but it stripped it clean. Be sure you use rubber gloves and a mask for the fumes.