One of the most time-consuming and labor-intensive tasks for maintaining a commercial building is floor care. In the home, that same project may not have the same proportion but it still requires considerable time and energy. Whether you are a cleaning professional responsible for hundreds of thousands of square feet of flooring or only concerned about the floors in your own home, a floor buffer is a tool that will make life far easier.
The modern buffer, also known as a floor polisher, hasn’t changed all that much from the original model that entered the market with the first of the electrical appliances. In shape, it resembles an upright vacuum cleaner, but anyone trying to use one for the first time quickly realizes that it is far more powerful. More than one novice has found themselves propelled rapidly and none too gently across the floor, no matter how hard they tried to dig in their heels and make the machine stop. Control and experience are what operate floor buffers; never brute strength.
A floor buffer machine can be used for several different purposes, including stripping, cleaning and polishing and can be used on practically every type of floor. Wood, marble, granite, ceramic tile, VCT (vinyl composition tile) and linoleum all benefit from the use of this versatile piece of equipment. Each requires different techniques, brushes or pads and chemicals.
There are a couple situations where it is better not to use a floor buffer. One is on unfinished, uneven or damaged hardwood flooring. Only a very experienced professional should attempt this type of project. The other is on carpeting. In the past, buffers were used in what is called bonnet cleaning. An absorbent cloth bonnet was attached to the buffer and supposedly pulled the dirty water out of the carpet during shampooing. The results were questionable but not the fact that the process was extremely hard on the carpet. Few reputable professionals will bonnet a carpet these days.
It is absolutely necessary to know which of the various accessories to use for each project. Stripping layers of built up polish from tile or removing the finish from beautiful old oak or walnut flooring will require the use of specific rotating brushes or abrasive strips, depending upon the model of machine and type of job. For cleaning and polishing there is an assortment of floor buffer pads, each one a different color indicating the function for which it is designed.
Floor buffers may look like oversized vacuum cleaners, but, unlike their tamer cousins, they can not be operated by simply turning on a switch. Taking the time to learn how to properly use them will not only improve your chance of a successfully completed project, but just might prevent the need to repair that hole you are bound to put in your wall or replace the glass in your patio door. Researching the correct chemicals and cleaning solutions to use and becoming familiar with when to use the white pads and when to never use the black pads can easily save you considerable time and expense.
Despite all the warnings, a floor buffer is an invaluable aid in floor care. For a commercial cleaning service, it is essential, and, for those home projects, it can make a world of difference. A little research, a little practice and next thing you know, your friends and neighbors will be amazed at how fantastic your floors look.
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