A stubborn wood floor - wood floor cleaning in Cambridge

At Art of Clean our professional wood flooring technicians have to work on many different types of flooring from pine to hard woods, but when we completed work recently on this exotic wooden floor we didn’t realise the potential complications.


Exotic wood contains natural oils and they stay present within the wood. A water based lacquer such as the Pallmann Finish Care STOP is not good for this type of floor as it will give it a dull finish, but we didn’t realise this until we had completed the floor.

After a bit of research our team realised that they had to use a different approach with this hard wood floor, as the wood is so dense and oily that we had to use a special oil such as the Pallmann magic oil  We then applied a commercial grade lacquer over the top, which enhanced the colour and gave the finish a really deep richness.


The customer was really happy with the finished result. The brass strip in the photos was installed to separate the floors, if you would like to buy your own, then please follow the link above.

Art of Clean is a specialist cleaning firm in: 

Wood Floor Sanding,

Stone floor Cleaning,

Carpet Cleaning,

Rug Cleaning,

Upholstery Cleaning 

Leather Furniture Cleaning, 

Working for domestic or commercial clients throughout Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Hertfordshire.

For more information on our services contact our friendly team on 01223 863632 or email us at info@artofclean.co.uk

We have just repaired a parquet floor in Cambridge.

The floor was really worn and stained. We had to find blocks and refit new blocks where the fire place was. Paul, our carpenter technician has done an excellent job as usual.

This is really a skill to know how to remove, install new blocks and replaced the damage blocks with new one with the right size at the right place.

If you need help with your wooden floor, just give us a call on 01223 863632.

Art of Clean is a specialist cleaning firm in: 

Wood Floor Sanding,

Stone floor Cleaning,

Carpet Cleaning,

Rug Cleaning,

Upholstery Cleaning 

Leather Furniture Cleaning, 

Working for domestic or commercial clients throughout Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Hertfordshire.

For more information on our services contact our friendly team on 01223 863632 or email us at info@artofclean.co.uk

What is the best finish on my wooden floor: oil or lacquer?

This is quite a common question our customers ask us at Art of Clean, professional floor cleaners in Cambridge. This really depends on the type of finish you would like to achieve. At Art of Clean we would normally discuss these options with you on our initial inspection of your wooden floor.

1- Hard wax oils contain a mixture of oil and wax, which completely saturates into your timber flooring. Which means that no other liquid can be absorbed into your wooden floors, so if you were to spill any drinks, occidentally tip up your bucket of cleaning water onto the surface then none of this would go into your lovely wooden floor.

The wax element of the hard wax oil, protects the surface from small scratches to the wood. Hard wax oil finishes are generally popular with our customer’s wooden floor cleaning requirements in and around Cambridge, as they are the easiest to maintain. The hard wax oil also comes in various shades and colours, and offers three different types of sheen finishes.

2- Lacquers on the other hand act in a slightly different way, rather than absorbing into the wooden surface of your floor, it will sit on the surface.
The type of lacquers we use at Art of Clean in Cambridge, have flexible qualities, so rather than drying into a solid rigid surface, the lacquer will flex with the timber when it is scratched or dented. This type of finish is harder to maintain, as although it is durable, if you need to touch up and scratches, it’s much harder. There are also only a two different types of finishes available too.

We realise at Art of Clean that it all comes down to a question of taste, and as hard wood flooring cleaning experts we will be happy to help you choose the most suitable finish for your hardwood floor, so why not give us a call on 01223 863632.

Art of Clean is a specialist cleaning firm in: 

Wood Floor Sanding,

Stone floor Cleaning,

Carpet Cleaning,

Rug Cleaning,

Upholstery Cleaning 

Leather Furniture Cleaning, 

Working for domestic or commercial clients throughout Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Hertfordshire.

For more information on our services contact our friendly team on 01223 863632 or email us at info@artofclean.co.uk

What is the black paint around the edges of my wood floor? Can it be removed?

Before the days of fitted carpets, it was very common to lay a rug in the niddle of the room and to paint an insulated bitumen product around the edges of the room. This was usually a black or brown paint.

Can we remove the black areas by sanding the floor?

When sanded, the bitumen immediately turns into a liquid tar-like product and, in doing this, quickly clogs the sanding discs/belts. But good news, the bitumen can be removed! It will cost a little bit more to have your floor sanded to cover the additional cost of materials.

Please note that, in some cases, you might see a slight difference in tone after the sanding. The wood underneath the bitumen will have not been exposed to the same levels of moisture/air comparing to the remaining floor.

After the sanding and oiling! Beautiful pine floor!!

Art of Clean is a specialist cleaning firm in: 

Wood Floor Sanding,
Stone floor Cleaning,
Carpet Cleaning,
Rug Cleaning,
Upholstery Cleaning 
Leather Furniture Cleaning, 



Working for domestic or commercial clients throughout Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Hertfordshire.

For more information on our services contact our friendly team on 01223 863632 or email us at info@artofclean.co.uk

Renovation of the wooden floor at Cambridge International School in Abington, Cambridge

We have recently renovated the wood floor at Cambridge International School in Abington. The floor was very dry and needed sanding and oiling. This is really a transformation!!

We used Pallmann Magic Oil to finish the floor. The floor had to be used the next day so this was the only option. Another happy client :)

Before Sanding

After the Sanding

Applying oil on a wooden floor

The floor is now ready to be used!

Art of Clean is a specialist cleaning firm in: 

Wood Floor Sanding,
Stone floor Cleaning,
Carpet Cleaning,
Rug Cleaning,
Upholstery Cleaning 
Leather Furniture Cleaning, 



Working for domestic or commercial clients throughout Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Hertfordshire.

For more information on our services contact our friendly team on 01223 863632 or email us at info@artofclean.co.uk

Restoring wood floors without sanding

Aunties Tea shop is situated in Cambridge next to the Market Square.

Their lovely oak floor gets very greasy and dirty from the heavy foot traffic that passes through daily.  Art of Clean maintains the floor every six months to ensure it is always looking at its best. 

How do we “clean” and oil their oak floor?

We will deep clean the floor with a rotary scrub machine and Pallmann Neutral Cleaner. We will repeat the clean until we are completely happy with the floor. Once dry, a coat of Pallmann Magic Oil is bladed on and buffed in.

Maintaining the floor with a deep clean and oil benefit the client. The floor does not need a full sanding so the whole process can be completed much quicker and they can use the floor the next day

So next time you are in Aunties Tea Shop don’t forget to take a look at the lovely floor!

Art of Clean is a specialist cleaning firm in: 

Wood Floor Sanding,
Stone floor Cleaning,
Carpet Cleaning,
Rug Cleaning,
Upholstery Cleaning 
Leather Furniture Cleaning, 



Working for domestic or commercial clients throughout Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Hertfordshire.

For more information on our services contact our friendly team on 01223 863632 or email us at info@artofclean.co.uk