Would you like to know how to clean your bathroom floor? We have researched this topic and have the information you need to ensure your bathroom floor is cleaned properly. It’s vital to clean your bathroom floor correctly to avoid shortening the lifespan of your bathroom floor.
To clean your bathroom floor, identify your floor’s material. Next, clean your bathroom floor with cleaning chemicals that won’t damage your floor. Some floor materials can be damaged by harsh scrubbing, so a gentler cleaning method may be required.
In this article, we will learn the correct way to clean your bathroom floor and learn which floor materials require special care when cleaning. Keep reading to learn more.
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How To Clean Your Bathroom Floor
The first step to cleaning your bathroom floor is identifying what material it is. Different bathroom floorings will require different chemicals and methods to ensure you don’t damage them.
Once you have identified your bathroom floor’s material, you can select a cleaning chemical that won’t damage your floor. Some floor materials also require unique cleaning methods to avoid damage.
Let’s explore various bathroom floor materials and learn what chemicals work best for them and what cleaning methods won’t damage them.
Ceramic Tile
Ceramic tile flooring can be cleaned with any general purpose cleaner that isn’t too acidic or basic. Let’s look at some of the most popular bathroom floor cleaners and see which works best for ceramic tile.
Bleach
Bleach is very basic. It damages the grout between tiles and removes its coloring. Bleach also damages ceramic tiles over time, removing their shine and texture. It would be best to avoid bleach when cleaning ceramic tile.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen Peroxide is often used as a gentler alternative to bleach. To clean your ceramic tiles with hydrogen peroxide, dilute half a cup of hydrogen peroxide with a gallon of water.
Next, wet a washcloth with your hydrogen peroxide solution. Begin cleaning small sections of tiles, ensuring not to leave large amounts of the solution on the tiles before moving to the next area. It is best to clean ceramic tiles with a washcloth instead of a mop as it can be more delicate and reduce scratching.
Lysol
Lysol is a gentle cleaner that can be used on ceramic tiles without damaging them. First, mix 1/4 cup of Lysol with a gallon of warm water. Then clean the tiles using a washcloth to avoid scratches.
Lysol is an excellent disinfectant for ceramic tiles and is safe for pets and children.
Pine-Sol
Pinesol is too acid for ceramic tiles and can erode them. Pinesol will also damage the grout between tiles. It would be best to avoid using Pine-Sol to clean ceramic tiles.
Vinegar
Vinegar is naturally acidic and will eat away at ceramic tiles and grout. While a vinegar solution can be made diluted enough to leave your ceramic tiles undamaged, it will, over time, wear them down. To keep your ceramic tiles looking nice, avoid vinegar.
Laminate
Laminate flooring is made from a baseboard layered with a paper printed with a pattern. A plastic coating is used to keep the paper layer protected. Any cleaner that damages that plastic coating shouldn’t be used on laminate flooring.
Bleach
Bleach is strong enough to eat away at the plastic coating on laminate flooring and should be avoided.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen Peroxide can be used to clean your laminate flooring without damaging its plastic coating. Start by mixing half a cup of hydrogen peroxide into a gallon of water.
Next, mop your floor thoroughly using the hydrogen peroxide solution. While it is best not to leave pools of the solution on the laminate flooring, it won’t damage the plastic coating, so you don’t need to worry.
Lysol
Lysol is another cleaner that won’t damage the plastic coating on your laminate floors. Mix 1/4 cup of Lysol with a gallon of water and use the solution to mop your floor.
Lysol is gentle to laminate floors but can be a hazard to pets. Lysol contains phenol which is very hazardous to cats. Dogs are more tolerant to phenol but still shouldn’t be exposed.
If you do decide to use Lysol and have pets or small children, mop a second time with pure water to remove most of the chemicals from the floor.
Pine-Sol
Pinesol is safe to use on laminate floors because it isn’t acidic enough to damage the laminate’s plastic coating when diluted. Mix 1/4 cup of Pine-Sol into a gallon of water and mop with the solution.
You must adequately dilute Pine-Sol to avoid damaging your laminate flooring.
Also, while Pine-Sol is safer for pets and children than Lysol, exposure should still be limited. It would be best if you have children or pets to mop a second time with water to remove some of the chemicals.
Vinegar
Vinegar is a safe cleaner for laminate flooring as long as it’s diluted. Mix no more than one cup of water per gallon to make a safe vinegar solution for laminate.
Next, mop your bathroom floor, ensuring not to leave pools of solution on the floor. Pools of vinegar solution will start to eat through the laminate’s plastic coating so mop up most of the solution.
Linoleum
Linoleum flooring can be cleaned with most cleaners that aren’t too harsh. Ensure you follow proper diluting instructions to avoid damaging linoleum flooring.
Bleach
Bleach can be used to clean linoleum as long as it’s diluted. To make a safe bleach solution, mix 1/2 a cup of bleach with water.
Now, mop your linoleum floor thoroughly but ensure you don’t leave puddles of solution. Pools of bleach solution can start eroding the linoleum’s top layer, leading to color and texture changes.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide can be used to clean your linoleum without damage. To make the cleaning solution dilute half a cup of hydrogen peroxide with a gallon of water.
Next, thoroughly mop your floor with the cleaning solution. Hydrogen peroxide is gentler than some of the other chemicals on this list and can be used without much worry of damaging the linoleum.
Lysol
Lysol is safe for use on linoleum. Mix 1/4 cup of Lysol with a gallon of water and use the solution to mop your floor.
Remember that Lysol is hazardous to pets and children and requires a second mopping with water if pets or children are in your home.
Pine-Sol
Pine-Sol won’t damage linoleum. Dilute 1/4 cup of Pine-Sol in water and mop the linoleum thoroughly.
Also, be sure to mop a second time with water if you have pets or small children.
Vinegar
Vinegar is a safe cleaner for both linoleum and pets. Dilute a cup of vinegar in a gallon of water and mop your linoleum.
While the diluted solution is safe for linoleum, it would be best to avoid leaving large pools on your flooring as it can still damage the linoleum if given enough time.
Wood
While wood flooring isn’t as standard in bathrooms due to its sensitivity to water, some bathrooms have wood flooring. Cleaning wood flooring properly is essential to maintaining the integrity of your bathroom floor.
Bleach
It would be best if you never used bleach on wood floors. Bleach can eat away at the finish on a wooden floor and eventually begin seeping into the wood.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen Peroxide is too harsh to use on wood floors. It also destroys the wood’s staining, which causes unsightly discolorations.
Hydrogen Peroxide also dries out wood flooring shortening its lifespan.
Lysol
Lysol can be used to clean wood floors only if the wood floors are polished and not porous. Even if your wood floors are polished, even a tiny scratch will allow Lysol in and begin damaging your flooring.
It would be best to avoid Lysol when cleaning wood flooring.
Pine-Sol
Pinesol can be used to clean wood floors that are sealed. Pine-Sol isn’t strong enough to eat through wood floors that have been sealed if you follow diluting instructions.
Mix 1/4 cup of Pine-Sol with a gallon of water and mop the floor with the solution. Be sure not to leave pools of the solution when you are finished.
Vinegar
Vinegar can be safe for hardwood flooring if it’s thoroughly diluted. Dilute 1/2 cup of vinegar in a gallon of water to make a cleaning solution safe for hardwood floors.
Mop the floor with the vinegar cleaning solution and avoid pools of cleaner sitting as they damage the flooring over time.
Final Thoughts
This article taught us that many different cleaning methods and materials are required for different floorings. We also learned that while some cleaners are harsh on certain flooring materials, the proper technique can help you to avoid damaging the floor.
Bleach, in particular, has so many unique cleaning uses we couldn’t fit them all here. To learn more about cleaning your bathroom with bleach, check out our other post, “7 Steps To Clean A Bathroom Floor With Bleach.”
We hope you enjoyed this article. If you want to learn more, check out these other posts.
Can You Use Bleach To Clean Bathroom Tile Grout?
How Often Should You Mop The Bathroom Floor?
