Blog for Dover Floor Covering
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- Written by: Jeff Dean
Dover Flooring Blog
May 31st, 2015
Vinyl Flooring Care......
Disclaimer: we sell Concoleum brand vinyl flooring products so this care blog is meant for Congoleum products but in general will apply to most vinyl sheet goods.
Sweep or vacuum regularly to remove dirt and grit that can abrade, dull or scratch your new floor. Do not use a vacuum with a beater brush, because it may damage the floor's surface.
Wipe up spills promptly with a damp cloth or mop.
For a more thorough cleaning, wash your floor with Congoleum Bright 'N Easy No-Rinse Cleaner or other suitable, non-detergent based resilient floor cleaner.
Remove excess water after washing the floor.
Caution: Avoid one-step "mop and polish" products, dishwashing liquids and oil-based cleaners. These may leave a residue which can attract dirt and dull your floor's finish. Avoid cleaners that contain abrasives or solvents which may permanently damage your floor.
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- Written by: Jeff Dean
Dover Flooring Blog
May 15th, 2015
Hardwood Flooring Care and Maintenance
Basic Hardwood Flooring Care.
Vacuum or sweep your floor regularly with a soft-bristled attachment or broom, especially in high-traffic areas. This prevents gritty dirt and particle buildup that can scratch the wood’s surface. Don’t use vacuums with a beater bar or power rotary brush head.
Use protective window coverings to block fade-causing UV rays and excessive heat from direct sunlight. Most wood types will gradually age when not covered, so it’s a good idea to rearrange rugs and furniture periodically to help it age evenly.
Damage prevention for your hardwood floor.
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Keep pets’ nails trimmed and their paws clean. Pets can track in substances that cause scratching and stains.
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Use a humidifier during heating seasons to help reduce wood shrinkage and keep humidity between 35% and 55%.
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Wipe up spills and spots immediately with Mohawk FloorCare Essentials Hardwood & Laminate Flooring Cleaner applied directly to a clean white cloth.
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Use ice to harden tough substances like wax or chewing gum, and then gently scrape with a plastic scraper or a credit card. Be careful not to scratch the surface and wipe the area clean with a soft, slightly damp cloth.
Some Do's for hardwood flooring.
Invest in high quality floor mats and protective pads on heavy furniture for an extra layer of protection on your hardwood floors. Place floor mats at entrances and exits—they collect and trap corrosive substances that can be tracked in, like dirt, sand, oil, grit, asphalt, or even driveway sealer. Placing mats in high-traffic areas—in front of vanities, kitchen sinks, and stoves—is an effective way to reduce wear.
Things to avoid with hardwood floors.
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Avoid walking on your hardwood floors with spiked or damage-heeled shoes.
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Resist wet-mop, damp-mop, or cleaning your hardwood with water or other liquids.
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Don’t use oil soaps, liquid or paste wax, or other household products containing lemon, citrus, or tung oil, or silicon to clean floors.
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Stay away from harsh cleaning aids like steel wool pads, any scouring pads containing metal, or scouring powders.
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Don’t use 2-in-1 cleaners that contain acrylics or urethane polish to restore gloss.
Keep your hardwood flooring looking great for years to come. Your hardwood floors will love you for it.
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- Written by: Jeff Dean
Dover Flooring Blog
April 7th, 2015
Why Shop at Home is Better
The shop at home flooring model as opposed to storefronts. Which is better?
Well, when I first started selling flooring back in 1977, there really wasn't any shop at home style of flooring store. We all worked retail hours (long hours, yikes) in a retail store format. Customers came in, picked out the flooring they liked and usually bought it. Sometimes customers would like to see the flooring in their homes (which was a really good idea) so we would take out some of their choices and see how they looked in the home. While we were there, we would measure the areas they wanted covered and inspect the job site.
When I went out on my own in 1997, I asked myself "what would be the best way to serve customers and keep my prices down?" I knew that seeing the flooring samples in the house was absolutely the best way to make the right flooring choice. Especially for colors. Colors can change shade for so many reasons. So, seeing the flooring samples in the home had to be the cornerstone of the service I would provide. Another benefit to a "Shop at Home" style of store would be low overhead. Low overhead allowed me to keep my prices down. This would save my customers money (another good thing, eh?).
One drawback to "shop at home" was the perceived idea that stores could carry a larger selection of flooring. So a "shop at home" store wouldn't be able to offer the selections that a store front could. There is a very well known company that has only 15 styles of carpet that they bring out (I won't mention any names but you know who you are......). Their selection is very limited. We here at Dover Floor Covering carry over 75 different styles of carpet, the whole Mohawk hardwood flooring line, the whole Mohawk laminate flooring line, Congoleum's vinyl and just a few (15 maybe) styles of ceramic tile (the main reason for this is that ceramic weighs so much that it weighs my van down....lol).
Another way to combat the perception that a "Shop at Home" floor covering store doesn't have the selection is to have a couple of flooring distributors on hand. There are very rare times (and it really is very rare) that we don't have a flooring selection that the customer really likes. When this happens we will visit our flooring distributors. They have every flooring selection available under the sun. They will have up to 4 times the selection of a retail flooring store! After ascertaining exactly what style, color and type of flooring our potential customer wants, we will visit our distributor and find a couple of choices that will match their preferences exactly. We will then go back out to our customers house with the new selections. This will invariably do the trick 99.5% of the time. So now we have low overhead, unlimited selections and fantastic customer service. After all, who makes house calls these days?
So if the "Shop at Home" flooring store model has the lowest overhead equating to the lowest prices (95% of the time anyways.....), unlimited selection and unparalleled service (being in your own home where you will see the flooring in it's natural lighting and not under fluorescent lights) then we think it is the absolute best method of shopping for flooring.
Full disclosure: I worked in retail flooring for the first 20 years of my adult life in a storefront. Now I work in a "Shop at Home" retail style of flooring store. I've been in both so I feel qualified to compare the two. I chose the "Shop at Home" style of flooring store for the above reasons. I feel this type of flooring store has the most benefits to the consumer. Now that I've made that choice I guess I'm probably biased.......lol. But my reasoning is sound non the less.......
- Details
- Written by: Jeff Dean
Dover Flooring Blog
March 21st, 2015
Formaldahyde in Laminate Flooring?
With the recent hub bub surrounding Lumber Liquidators and some of the laminate flooring they sell containing toxic amounts of formaldehyde, we are pleased to announce that the Mohawk laminate flooring that we sell at Dover Floor Covering is Carb 2 compliant.
The recent 60 Minutes expose on Lumber Liquidators exposing the toxic amounts of formaldehyde found in most of their laminate floors has caused concern in the industry regarding the safety of laminate floors. Only the floors made in China failed the Carb 2 tests. The US constructed floors passed the Carb 2 tests. As you can see by the image to the right, some of the laminate flooring has almost 7 times the legal limit of formaldehyde in their flooring.
Not all laminate floors are created equal. The old saying of "You get what you pay for" is appropriate in this situation. Some of the really low low end priced floors have always been of dubious construction. Some of these floors were sold at below our cost and you had to ask yourself "How was this possible?" Now, there are always economies of scale. The larger amounts of flooring you buy on the wholesale level will always produce a slightly lower cost structure. But this never completely explained why Lumber Liquidators prices were always "so low"!
We knew there had to be another reason explaining how they could sell laminate flooring below cost. If the expose by 60 Minutes is accurate (and we have no reason to dispute their findings) then our concerns have been justified.
Not all laminates are created equal but all of the laminate flooring that we sell here at Dover Floor Covering manufactured by Mohawk Flooring is Carb 2 compliant. No toxic amounts of formaldehyde are present in their laminate products and no laminate flooring we sell fails any Carb 2 Compliance test.
It would be safe to ask for a Carb 2 compliant fact sheet from the retail flooring company that you plan to buy your laminate flooring from. This is just smart. Be smart, be safe.
Safe laminate flooring should be a no brainer but some unscrupulous flooring companies obviously don't share this concern. We do! Purchase only Carb 2 compliant laminate flooring and only buy from flooring companies that adhere to this principle. Companies that actually care about the safety of their customers.
No more needs to be said really....