How Much Floor Stripper Do You Need?
Stripping and finishing your floor is a crucial project in many home and commercial property renovation projects. But before you begin, you’ll need to make sure you have all the chemicals you need to get the job done properly.
The usual rule is to use about one gallon of diluted stripper for every 100 square feet of flooring. This can be trickier than it seems at first glance, though. Remember, it’s diluted stripper we’re talking about here. You will need to do some simple math to determine the total amount you need. Check out this example below.
Let’s say that you purchase a floor stripper that has a recommended dilution ratio of 1:3. This indicates that you should add one gallon of the stripper to three gallons of water, resulting in four gallons of diluted floor stripper. It’s this total of four gallons that applies to the general rule, so it should cover about 400 square feet of flooring.
Why Diluting Your Floor Stripper Is Necessary
If you aren’t a cleaning professional, you might think that lowering your stripper’s dilution ratio makes it “stronger.” In a sense, that is correct, but it doesn’t make it better at accomplishing its task. Cleaning chemicals are produced with specific dilution ratios for a reason, and they are designed to offer peak performance at those ratios. Adding less water to the concentrate doesn’t make it better. It actually makes it worse and can even spell disaster for your floor, bleaching it or causing permanent damage.
On the other hand, adding more water to “weaken” the stripper is also not ideal. You might think you’re protecting your floor by diluting the stripper more than recommended, but the truth is that you’re making the solution significantly less effective. In the end, you won’t have stripped your floor properly.
Finally, the dilution ratio is important because it’s determined with safety in mind. If you don’t use the proper amount of water to dilute the concentrate, you might end up with a chemical solution that can harm the environment or your personal well-being.
Consult With Sani-Chem for Best Results
The pros at Sani-Chem are in the business of cleaning supplies. In fact, we have a whole section of our online store dedicated to floor strippers, and all our products are available to both commercial clients and regular homeowners. Contact our office for a consultation on how much floor stripper your project needs. We’ll go over key details like the square footage of your floor plan and the results you’re looking for, and we’ll steer you in the right direction so that you get the perfect product for your floor.