Care for your VCT Flooring

Many institutional and commercial establishments besides homes now flaunt vinyl flooring. It is due to its increasing popularity that these tiles are commonly invested in. In hospitals the vinyl is generally used in the hallways. VCT is popularly recognized as tile flooring but it should not at all be confused with ceramic tiles or ceramic flooring as it is completely different.

Precautions to be taken while stripping:

Regular maintenance of the VCT flooring needs to be addressed in time, for which a few important steps need to be followed well. Some of the cleaning and maintenance procedures followed include:

 

(a) Buffing

(b) Stripping

(c) Polishing

(d) Waxing

(e) Scrubbing

Stripping the vinyl tiles and waxing is essential for removing the layer of finishing that already exists. This needs to be done so that a fresh new layer is provided to the vinyl flooring to make it appear new. Stripping is necessary but needs to be done with great care besides which, it is labor intensive and challenging too.

While addressing VCT stripping, a mop has to be used first. The material can then be allowed to ‘stand' for a few minutes and with a buffer that runs at low speed use the abrasive for wax removal. Dirt that remains can be removed by a vacuum cleaner so that the surface gets cleaned well. This cleaning process needs to be deployed a number of times till complete removal of the dirt is achieved. Vinyl flooring also has to dry up well once it is cleaned properly. Wax or the new finish has to be applied once the tiles dry up well.

Each layer must dry:

Just one application is not enough; you must ensure to apply additional layers for desired effect. However it is very important to check that each of the VCT flooring layers dries well before the next layer is applied. A new layer has to be applied only when the earlier one dries completely. Depending upon the level of layers needed, you can attempt the right finesse. At least six coatings are needed generally to provide the flooring with a lustrous shine. A couple of days will certainly be needed for the flooring to dry up after which the procedure for buffing can be addressed.

A buffer that runs at very high speeds is needed to buff the floor and for reinstating the VCT shine. Once the process of waxing and buffing takes place the next thing that is needed is good polishing followed by effective scrubbing, which is the last stage in the VCT stripping, cleaning and polishing process. Getting the vinyl flooring stripped and waxed once in twelve months is sufficient. Since each flooring option will be different, it is very necessary to first find out how many times the maintenance work has to be done.

About the Author

Vinyl composite tiles or VCT flooring is one of the most popular choices in floorings these days. More so because of the versatility and durability they lend flooring.