When you install engineered hardwood flooring, you fill your home with elegant, gleaming flooring that makes every room shine a little more. However, like many beautiful things, your floors take a little work and maintenance to stay in good shape. Scratches and other minor damage are a normal part of life, but that doesn’t mean you want to see them in your floors. Fortunately, there are a few solutions to repair or conceal the damage your wood floors take over time. Here are our top tips for dealing with scratches on your engineered hardwood flooring.
Using a Wax Repair Kit
A wax repair kit is one of the best ways to fill a scratch and eliminate any glaring white marks or other signs of damage. While these kits are easy to find in most hardware stores, you want to make sure you choose a wax color that will match your floors. To repair the scratch, clean the area with rubbing alcohol. Make sure you clean within the scratch as well to remove any dirt and debris in the area. Next, use the repair kit instructions to prep your wax. Remember that you may need to blend multiple colors to get an exact match for your floors. When the wax is ready, you can use a plastic putty knife to push it into the scratch. After filling the scratch, carefully remove any excess wax from the area
Alternative Scratch Repair Methods
While using a wax repair kit is one of the best tips for dealing with scratches on your engineered hardwood, it’s not the only way. For shallow scratches, you can gently buff out the damage with fine-grit sandpaper or steel wool. Remember that the veneer on engineered hardwood flooring is much thinner than solid hardwood. You should only try to buff out scratches if they are only in the wood veneer and don’t penetrate the wood beneath. Alternatively, you can use hardwood scratch concealer to fill a scratch and eliminate the obvious white line that comes with it.
From the Forest has the products you need to make and maintain a gorgeous home. Shop our beautiful and durable selections, including warm red oak and natural walnut engineered hardwood flooring, to find the best option for your next project.