Using your Scrubber to Strip your Floors

A question I get asked regularly is "Can I use my Floor Scrubber to strip my floors?" The short answer is Yes. That follows with a BUT. So let's discuss the but and how to use a floor scrubber to strip floors.

1) When stripping floors with your scrubber, remember that stripper is corrosive and designed to remove floor finish. That being said NEVER put your stripper in the clean water tank this is for 3 reasons. 1) You may forget it's there or someone will not know it's there and use the scrubber on new floors and ruin your wax job. 2) As some strippers are corrosive this can be hard on your water pump/actuator and can be a costly repair. 3) Stripper needs dwell time and the best way to accomplish this is via a manual floor flood.

2) Swing buffer may still be needed. Yes as much as you can use the pads on your scrubber to strip the floor, there are times that the build up may be too much for the scrubber to handle. I usually recommend that you swing strip the floor first and then use your floor scrubber to rinse the floor.

3) Clean up is Key. Yes this is the most important part. And since stripped wax can dry up fast clean up needs to be done immediately. If stripping a small area you could clean up between the dry time of the first and second coat of wax but the sooner the better.
   What needs to be cleaned:
         Pad holders
         Squeegee should be removed and rinsed
         Vac Tanks
         Any splash around and under the scrubber
         Don't forget to clean up buckets and wringers while at it.

Yes when applied properly and cleaned up a floor scrubber can save you lots of time and labour on your next strip and wax project.

Phil-T
"Nothings too filthy for Phil-T"

Floor Stripping

As winter is about to whined down time is coming to strip and wax our floors. So here are a few tips for floor refinishing.

First determine weather the floor requires a strip. You can tell by looking at the following things.
 -Yellowing of finish or tile
 -Build up in edges
 -Browning in wax
 -Patchy areas
These are signs that your floor may require a strip as opposed to a scrub.

If you are stripping your floors consider a ECP or Green seal certified stripper. I have found that Time Out Plus from Dustbane is extremely effective in most situations. We had a floor 2 weeks ago with over 12 coats of wax and we brought it down to the tile with 1 strip. The key thing like any stripper is dwell time. We diluted product 1:4 and gave 10 minutes dwell. Time Plus also has no odor so it's great for any health and safety concerns.

When waxing I would apply 2 coats of sealer and 3 coats of finish to give your floor the perfect shine.

If you would like to try this product feel free to contact me and I can set you up with a free trial.

Phil-T
"Nothings too filthy for Phil-T"

A different kind of Matting Solution

I've discussed several times the advantages of matting to keep sand and salt out and how matting should be kept down all year round to protect your floors. But there is also another advantage to certain types of matting that we often over look.

Anti-Fatigue Matting - If you work on your feet all day or have employees who are on the feet all day have you seen or heard the advantages of anti-fatigue matting. Consider the following:
     Lengthy working hours in a standing, stationary position, slows the circulation of blood through the veins,      making the heart work harder, which equates to a prolonged physical effort. This is the main cause of fatigue.

What does this mean for you and your employees? Diminished Productivity, Increase risk of accident, and reduced motivation.

How can Anti Fatigue Matting work? Anti-Fatigue Matting creates micro movement under your feet which activates blood flow and keeps you activated. It is also designed to reduce slip and fall issues. When used workers feel 50% less tired and productivity is increased.

For more info or to see samples and how Anti-Fatigue matting can work in your facility feel free to contact me and I would be happy to show you. Also check out our March and April promotion on Anti-Fatigue matting.

Phil-T
"Nothings too filthy for Phil-T"