Vinyl and laminate look waterproof on top, but not at the seams.

Water Finds the Seams

How to clean a vinyl or laminate floor without swelling the edges.

Clean wood-look plank floor with a mop leaning against the wall. — A clean, flat floor with tight seams.

Vinyl and laminate look tough, and the top of them is. The trouble is at the seams, where water can slip in and make the edges swell.

So the whole job comes down to keeping the water where it belongs: barely any on the mop, and none left standing.

Sweep first

Broom and dustpan beside crumbs on a wood-look plank floor. — Sweeping first keeps grit from dulling the surface.

Sweep, or vacuum with the hard-floor setting, along the edges as well as the middle.

Grit dulls the surface when a mop drags it around. Pick it up first, and the mop has less to do.

Wring the mop until it is barely damp

Mop head in the wringer above a bucket. — Wrung out until it barely drips.

Mop with a mop wrung out until it is barely damp, working away from the door, then let the floor dry before walking on it.

A barely damp mop leaves a thin film that dries quickly, and the seams stay dry.

Skip the steam mop and the rough pad

Steam mop and rough scrubbing pad resting on a shelf. — Both stay on the shelf.

Don't use a steam mop, and don't scrub with a rough pad.

Steam forces water into the seams, and a rough pad dulls the surface.

Don't let water pool

Close view of dry seams between wood-look floor planks. — Tight seams, and no water in them.

If water spills, wipe it up right away, and let the floor dry before you walk on it.

Get underneath, then finish at the baseboards

Cream armchair beside a clean plank floor and white baseboard. — A clean patch under the chair, and clean baseboards.

Move the lighter furniture and clean underneath. Then wipe along the baseboards.

Dust and crumbs collect under furniture and along the edges, where the broom skips.

Short on energy?

Just sweep the floor. That's enough for today.

The larger lesson

Vinyl and laminate don't fail from dirt. They fail at the seams, from water that never dried. Less water and a quick dry keep the edges flat for years.

Clean wood-look plank floor with a mop against the wall. — Flat, dry and clean.

A little water, wiped away, is all it takes.

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