For flooring, you may choose a wood floor as it gives a classic vibe to your whole house, but the classiness becomes awful when you feel your wood floor is sticky. The stickiness of the wood floor is not only awful but also creates an unhealthy environment.
Find the reasons and follow the troubleshooting steps to avoid unnecessary damage to your wood floor.
Why Does My Wood Floor Feel Sticky?
You can’t take the pleasure of walking when you feel a sticky floor. At that point, your mind will think, ” why does my wood floor feel sticky?” The most common reason is spilling liquids on the wood floor or imbalanced humidity, which will make your wood floor more sticky.
To avoid a sticky wood floor, you must know all the possible reasons for it so that unconsciously you don’t spoil your floor. Below I have gathered all the possible reasons for a sticky wood floor.
1. Oil Dropped on the floor
The wood floor will be sticky if it somehow gets Oil. Oils make the wood floor more slippery and sticky.
You might have dropped Oil on your wood floor and didn’t clean it properly; for that reason, you feel a sticky floor. If you drop Oil on your floor, it needs more cleaning than the basic cleaning process because It leaves more residue than other liquids.
That’s why you must clean your floor at least twice if you drop Oil on your wood floor.
2. Humidity
Another reason for sticky wood floors is humidity. The imbalanced humidity level can make your wood floor sticky because the wood has cellulose sensitive to humidity.
When the cellulose gets more moisture, it absorbs them, and because of that, the wood fiber becomes sweaty, which makes your floor sticky.
That is why you need to balance the humidity level of your house so that your floors will not get sticky.
3. Liquid Spilling
When your wood floor gets excessive moisture, it becomes sticky because moisture damages the quality of the wood.
So how does your floor get excessive moisture? When you spill any liquids like water, juice, milk, or other liquids on your wood floor, you need to dry the floor out quickly. If the liquids stay longer on the floor, your floor will get moisture and make your floor sticky.
4. Irregular Cleaning
Wood floors need regular cleaning because, without regular cleaning, dust and debris will be more permanent, making the floor sticky.
If you leave your floor uncleaned for a long, then the dust or dirt will become more permanent on the floor, and basic cleaning will not be enough to remove them; also, your wood floor will turn black. That’s why you feel sticky whenever you walk barefoot on your floor.
Why Does My Wood Floor Feel Sticky After Mopping?
In the first section of the article, I have included the common reasons for sticky wood floors. But what if you cleaned your floor and still it is sticky?
The wood floor may remain sticky after mopping because you may have missed properly cleaning your floor, or the cleaning products may be the culprit.
I have enlisted all the possible reasons why your wood floor is sticky after mopping. Check out all of them and find out which one causes your wood floor to become sicky.
1. Use of Excessive Cleaning Solution
A common misconception is that more cleaning solutions will clean the floor more. That’s a Myth!
You shouldn’t use excessive cleaning products while cleaning the floor because that will leave residue after drying, making your floor sticky.
Mixing up the cleaning solution more than required will not remove the stickiness; instead, it will make your floor more sticky. Before using any cleaning products, you should read the instructions properly.
2. Applying Wrong Cleaning Agents
Not all cleaning products work on every floor because there are a variety of floors and their cleaning agents are also different from each other.
For wood floors, you should never use any products which are Oil or wax based. If you use oil-based cleaning agents to clean up your floor then your floor obviously will be sticky because Oil left residue on your wood floor.
When you use wax cleaning agents, the wax builds up on your floor and will make it sticky. For that reason, if you find your floor sticky, then check the cleaning agents first and ensure whether it’s appropriate for your wood floor or not!
3. Dirty Water
The purpose of mopping is to clean up your wood floor, and this purpose is ruined if you don’t change your dirty water.
In order to keep the floor clean, you need to replace the water at the end of each room that you clean. Because as you rinse your mop into the water, your water gets dirty, and if you don’t change your water and continue your cleaning process, your floor becomes more dirty and sticky.
Make sure to use clean water instead of dirty water while cleaning your wood floor.
4. Forget to Spot Clean
Most wood cleaners are gentle and give soft cleaning, and it doesn’t remove hard spills of grease or any other sticky objects.
If you forget to give spot cleaning to remove sticky spills or grease, then even after mopping, your floor will remain sticky because your cleaner is unable to remove hard spills.
For spot cleaning, you have to remove that hard spills by rubbing them with your hands, or you can vacuum the floor and then start your regular cleaning procedure.
5. Spreading Residues
Another minor reason for the stickiness of the wood floor after mopping is spreading residues.
You may unconsciously spread dirt residues on your floors by walking over the wet floor with shoes that keep your floor sticky even after cleaning.
Make sure not to spread residues while cleaning the floor. Please give some time to dry the floor and not walk over it.
How to FIX Sticky Wood Floor: Troubleshooting Steps
To remove the sticky residue from your wood floor, you need to clean your floor correctly. I have come up with some super effective troubleshooting tips to get rid of sticky wood floors.
Step 1: Vacuum the Floor
Before applying any cleaning agents, remove all the dirt or loose debris from the floor. You sweep the floor or remove all that dust with the vacuum cleaner.
You can use an extension cord with a vacuum cleaner to help you effectively vacuum.
Step 2: Prepare the Cleaning Solution
After vacuuming the floor, it’s time to prepare the cleaning solution. To make the proper cleaning solution, you must choose the product first.
You can use various cleaning agents like Bona floor cleaner or dish soap to mop the floor. Make sure to dilute the one-fourth cup of cleaner with a bucket of water.
Note: If you use a specific wood floor cleaner, check out the user instructions to make proper concentration.
Step 3: Start Mopping the Floor
Take the cleaning solution to mop the wood floor. You have to dip your mop into the cleaning solution, rinse the excess water out of it and then clean the floor in a forward and backward position.
Step 4: Change the Water
Don’t use the same water or cleaning solution to clean up the house. Because the water becomes dirty, change the water when it gets dirty.
If you mop your floor with dirty water, then the stickiness of the floor will not be removed, and your entire effort will be wasted.
Step 5: Dry Out the Floor
When you mop the whole house, it’s time to dry out the floor quickly. Because if your wood floor gets excess moisture, it remains sticky and can damage the wood.
To dry the wood floor, use a clean, soft cloth or an extra table fan to dry out your floor quickly.
Alternative Ways to Clean or Fix Sticky Wood Floor
Sometimes the stickiness of the wood floor becomes so hard that you can’t remove them with your basic cleaning. But to clean the stick wood floor, you follow other ways!
Yes, you are reading right. Some alternative ways to clean your sticky wood floor if your normal cleaning process doesn’t work out. Check out the alternative ways below:
1. Solution of Vinegar
You may have heard vinegar is inappropriate for wood floors, but if you use it properly, it will be the most effective cleaner for your wood floor.
To make a solution of vinegar, mix one cup of vinegar with one gallon of water to make a diluted solution. Don’t add much vinegar to the water; it will damage your floor.
2. Ammonia
If the stickiness of your floor is strong enough, you need something which gives you strong cleaning. To strongly clean up your floor, you can use Ammonia with the water.
- Mix a half cup of ammonia into one gallon of water thoroughly.
- Mopping your floor completely requires dipping the mop into the solution first.
- After mopping, throw away the Ammonia solution and fill it with vinegar.
- Then give another mop to clean your floor with the vinegar solution.
- Dry out the floor after completing the vinegar mop.
I have suggested you give double cleaning because Ammonia is a strong chemical, and if you leave it without giving another cleaning, it could damage your floor.
3. Steam Mop
A steam mop is best among all the basic ways to clean the stickiness of the wood floor. It is the most effective one; you can get it from the store that’s closest to you.
Steam mop helps to remove all the debris, bacteria, and stickiness from your floor. It has different settings, and you can use them according to your needs.
You may watch the video here if you are wondering how to use a steam mop.
Considerable Facts to Avoid Stickiness of the Wood Floor
If your wood floor gets sticky, it makes you uncomfortable walking. Besides the cleaning, you need to consider some facts so that you have never faced the sticky wood floor.
- To maintain the humidity level of your house, you can use a humidifier. Make sure to find the best place to put the humidifier, as the humidity can cause sticky floors.
- Make sure to use warm water while cleaning the floor because warm water helps to remove the stickiness easily.
- Use the proper amount of cleaning agents.
- Never directly apply floor cleaners or chemicals on the floor. Make sure to dilute the cleaner with the water.
- Choose the cleaning products according to your floor types. Never use tile floor cleaner on your wood floor.
Wrap Up
If your wood floor gets sticky, you wonder, ” Why does my wood floor feel sticky?” Then read out the reasons below:
- Spilling liquids on the wood floor.
- The humidity level of the house.
- Inappropriate cleaning way.
- Excess use of cleaning solution.
- Use of dirty water.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Does vinegar make floors sticky?
Vinegar can be used on hardwood floors, but before it can be used effectively, it must first be diluted. When used undiluted, vinegar leaves a strong smell and a sticky floor behind.
2. How do you remove moisture from wood?
Remove moisture from the wood, remove excess water, and position a dehumidifier in the middle of the room. Adjust it to its maximum level of extraction.
To remove excess moisture from the wood, turn it on and leave it on for at least 24 hours. To speed the drying process, set up fans so that the air blows across the surface of the wood.
3. Does humidity make your floors sticky?
Yes, it can. Because wood floors are composed of plant fiber known as cellulose, which rapidly binds moisture from the air to generate new hydrogen bonds, humidity can cause your flooring to have a sticky sensation.
The floor will “sweat” due to the continuous absorption of moisture, which can cause the quality of the wood to degrade over time.
4. Does Pine Sol leave a sticky residue?
The Pine-Sol All-Purpose Cleaner is non-sticky, so it may be used on any hard, non-porous surface, including hardwood floors that have been finished, ceramic tile, linoleum, and plastic, and it does not leave behind any residue.
When Pine-Sol works for you, cleaning only needs to be done once to achieve the desired level of cleanliness.
5. Is it OK to use vinegar on wood floors?
Vinegar is an acid, and the best cleaner for wood floors is one that has a pH near neutral or is pH neutral.
The solution’s acidity is significantly reduced when combined with water, and it becomes an efficient way to wash wood floors.
The combination of vinegar and water helps cut through filth and grime, resulting in a naturally clean floor free of streaks.
Rahik has experience writing professional blogs, particularly about home appliances. As an undergraduate tutor, Rahik taught undergraduate students academic writing before becoming a professional writer.
