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The Ultimate Guide to Floor Burnishing

The Benefits of Floor Burnishing

Who doesn’t like a nicely burnished floor? For those who are wondering what floor burnishing is, it is a high-speed method of floor cleaning that smooths out hard surface imperfections while achieving a glossy look. Burnishing is a great way to polish away grime, dirt, and scratches, making your floors look brand new in the process.

Burnishing works on concrete, marble, terrazzo, tile, vinyl, and wood flooring.

With less imperfections, your floor will be easier to maintain. Floor burnishing is a great solution that ensures prolonged quality and a shiny, resilient finish on surfaces. And thanks to the smoothing effects burnishing provides, your floors will be more resistant to dust and debris.

How Often to Burnish Your Floors

When it comes to frequency, it typically depends on the amount of foot traffic that area sees. Some facilities require daily burnishing while others are less frequent. 

Types of Floor Burnishers

Even if you haven’t heard of a floor burnisher before, you’ve certainly come across one. Floor burnishers come in three types.

A corded burnisher plugs into an outlet for consistent power during use. While efficient, corded burnishers are limited by the length of their cord, meaning you will need to always remain close to a power outlet. However, corded burnishers are a great option for maintaining floors within small to medium areas.

For larger areas where there may not be an outlet nearby, it is ideal to go with a battery powered burnisher. While not limited by the length of a cord in terms of distance, battery powered burnishers may require frequent recharging depending on the duration of use. Even so, battery power is the way to go if you’re looking to cover a large distance.

If you’re in the market for something more portable, a propane burnisher might be the right option. Rather than rely on electricity, propane burnishers run off fuel, offering added high-speed capability and flexibility. This option is suitable for larger facilities but please be advised: propane burnishes produce emissions and require ventilation for health and safety reasons.

Additionally, all three floor burnishers come in either the walk-behind or ride-on variety. Selecting which type is entirely based on your preference.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Burnishing Your Floor

Unfortunately, floor burnishing is not as simple as pressing the start button. To ensure an uninterrupted process, clear the floor of any obstacles such as furniture.

Next, you’ll want to remove any dirt or debris from your surface by dust mopping or vacuuming the area. This helps to remove dirty blemishes from being left behind after the burnishing process.

From there, use a wet mop or scrubber to remove residue and make sure your surface is as clean as possible before you begin burnishing. It is important that your floor is completely dry before burnishing.  

Successfully burnishing your floor involves making several passes over the area to achieve the desired result. It is important to know your floor finish so that you know which pad to use while burnishing. It should be noted that using the incorrect pad can result in damage to your floors.

Once you’re finished, there may be leftover dust. Simply use a dust mop or vacuum to remove and your floors should shine like they’re brand new.

The Difference between Floor
Buffering and Floor Burnishing

Floor burnishing can easily be confused with floor buffering, when in fact they are very different. For one, the purpose of a burnisher is to polish floors and enhance their shine while buffering is used to strip, clean, or scrub a floor.

The choice whether to buff or burnish boils down to the type of floor and what it needs to look its best. Buffers are also slower machines compared to burnishers, which are known to move at higher speeds.

Keep in mind that buffering is a different service and process from burnishing in regards to outsourcing to a professional company.

Interested in Having Your Floors Burnished?

Total Maintenance Services offers burnishing as one of its commercial floor cleaning services.

If you have any additional questions or would like to learn more about deep cleaning services, don’t hesitate to

contact Total Maintenance Services today

 

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