Cleaning wooden floors and skirting boards is one of those cleaning jobs that you may forget about, but both face wear and tear and a significant buildup of dust. Allowing wood floors to get too dirty is not only unclean and unsanitary, but it can also damage the wood itself, which is expensive to repair and replace. Not cleaning your skirting boards can lead to more than just dust building up. Over time, they can accumulate dirt, pet hair, scuffs and even cobwebs.
Fed up with constantly having to clean her wooden flooring and skirting boards, Stella Hill took to the Mrs Hinch Cleaning Tips Facebook page to ask for advice. She wrote: “Has anyone got any ideas to stop dust collecting on my skirting boards/wooden floors in my home? I find dust on them every other day, and they’re a pain to clean.”
As a way to repel the dust, many group members in the cleaning group recommend adding the tiniest amount of fabric conditioner to water.
Julie Thomas said, “Use water with a drop of fabric conditioner to keep dust down.”
Claire Hayes commented: “A small amount of fabric softener, hot water, and a cloth. Wipe all around. It stopped the dust from settling for three weeks because of the texture. Works really well.”
Billie Murphy wrote: “Hoover them with the brush attachment, and water down fabric softener and spray, and wipe. The fabric softener stops the dust from settling as much.”
Louise Hall said: “Hi, spray of softener in a made-up bottle with a bit of water. It’s good for dust, especially for skirting Boards and wooden flooring.”
Not known to many, fabric softeners, also known as fabric conditioners, can be an unsung hero in your everyday cleaning routine. They can reinvent your cleaning routine with a surprising twist — making your floors and skirting boards visibly cleaner. You simply need to mix a cup of fabric softener with your mop water.
The result? A cleaner, shinier floor. Fabric softeners are typically used to soften clothes and infuse fabrics with a long-lasting pleasant fragrance. It works by coating the surface of textiles to make them feel smoother and prevent the buildup of static electricity.
Using a fabric softener to clean your floors can be cost-effective, and it’s a product that’s likely already on your laundry shelf. It requires no special equipment, just your usual mop, bucket, and a bit of warm water. An unexpected bonus is its suitability for various floor types, providing flexibility in application.
It is important to note that using too much fabric softener can leave behind visible residue and make floors slippery, which poses a safety risk.
To avoid this, take a half-cup of liquid fabric softener and combine it with a half-filled bucket of warm water. The warm water will help dissolve the fabric softener effectively, creating a uniform solution.