GF Engineered Wood care guide

GF Engineered Wood has a real oak top layer, so it is cared for like any quality wood floor. Check your spec sheet or invoice to see whether your design has a lacquered or an oiled finish. Most of the care is the same, but the cleaning products and the long-term upkeep differ.

1. Protecting your floor

• Felt pads on all furniture legs. Lift furniture, never drag it.
• Barrier mats inside and outside every outside door to trap grit and water.
• Rugs in busy areas and under office chairs, or a chair mat for castors.
• Keep pets’ claws trimmed, and avoid stiletto heels and studded shoes.
• Oak changes colour naturally in light. Move rugs and furniture now and then so the floor ages evenly, and use blinds to limit strong direct sunlight.

2. Everyday cleaning

• Sweep, dust-mop or vacuum regularly with a hard-floor head without a beater bar. Grit is the main cause of scratches.
• Clean with a well-wrung, barely damp mop and a cleaner made for wood floors that suits your finish: a lacquered-floor cleaner for lacquered designs, or a wood-floor soap for oiled designs.
• Wipe up spills and water straight away. Never leave water standing on a wood floor.
• Never use a steam cleaner, a soaking-wet mop, bleach, ammonia, abrasive cleaners, or silicone or wax polishes.

3. Long-term upkeep

Oiled designs	Refresh with a maintenance oil made for oiled wood floors whenever the surface starts to look dry or dull. In busy homes that is usually every one to two years, and more often in hallways and kitchens.
Lacquered designs	Use a lacquer refresher from time to time if you like. When the lacquer eventually wears in busy areas, a professional can lightly abrade and recoat the floor.
Unfinished designs	Must be oiled or lacquered after fitting. Once finished, look after them as for that finish.

Because GF Engineered Wood has a real oak top layer of 3mm to 6mm, the floor can be professionally sanded and refinished in future.

4. Room conditions

• Wood reacts to temperature and humidity. Keep the room at normal living conditions, between 18°C and 27°C and around 45–65% relative humidity. A humidifier can help in very dry winters. Small gaps between boards in a dry winter, which close again in summer, are normal wood movement.
• With underfloor heating, the floor surface must never go above 27°C. Change the temperature gradually.
• GF Engineered Wood is not suitable for bathrooms, wet rooms or other high-humidity areas.