It is best to deal with spilled lubricants and auto fluids while they’re still in a liquid state. They’re a lot easier to get up in that form than after they’ve soaked into a concrete floor.

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Do you want to quickly and simply improve the look of your cracked or stained garage floor without the preparation and hassle of messy liquid coatings?

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Most scuff marks are fairly easy to remove from vinyl floors. 1st, sweep or dry mop the floor to remove dust. Then wipe off the scuffed area with a damp rag. Use a pencil eraser to remove stubborn scuff marks with a light scrubbing action.

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A good ceramic tile floor can be one of the most durable floor surfaces you can buy. Stains and spills are usually very easy to remove from the ceramic portion of the floor. The grout portion can be very different though.

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Carpet burns can give your floor the appearance of being dirty and uncared for no matter how often you vacuum. Spend just a few minutes and get your carpet back in shape.

If your carpet burn is superficial, you should be able to trim off the burnt fiber tips with scissors and use liquid detergent to clean the area. Follow up later by cleaning the area again with a solution of 2 parts white vinegar and 1 part water.

If you have a badly burned small area, use a knife to cut away the tuft of burnt fibers by carefully slicing it off flush with the backing. Get a replacement tuft from a hidden section of the same carpet or scrap piece. Use hot-melt or all-purpose glue to glue it in place. Then to match the height of the surrounding fibers carefully trim the top of the new tuft of carpet.

Larger burns should be replaced with a patch.

First scrape up any hardened wax. Use a hard edge like a dull knife or a credit card but nothing too sharp or you will damage your carpet. This may take a good bit of time and you will only get up about three-fourths of the wax.

Next try placing a folded stack of paper towels or a cardboard blotter over the wax, then use a hair dryer or an iron to heat the wax so it will melt into the blotter. Be careful to watch the temperature to avoid burning or even overheating the carpet fibers. You may have to let it cool then reheat the was several times to get all of the wax out.

Squeaks can be annoying but rarely do they indicate major problems. They usually occur when a board rubs against a nail or another board.

You can permanently fix your squeaky floor a few different ways. If you have hardwood floors you should first try to fix the problem from the bottom. Get a helper to stay in the house to step on the squeaky spots to help you locate them from under. When you find the exact spot of the squeak use a wood screw with a washer that will only reach half way into your surface floor to tighten it down in loose spots. You can also use small annular-ring finishing nails from the top after you have predrilled a hole.

If the squeak is between the joist and the floorboard you can lightly tap shims into the gaps to stop the noise. If there are big gaps  the joist and the sub-floor you can use a cleat to pull the flooring down tight. This will usually prevent noises at that contact point and on down the joist. It will also prevent bowing in the future.