White construction dust in your wood flooring?
As more brushed and textured pre-finished engineered wood flooring products are used, there is a common complaint that comes up post install – “There is a white construction dust on the floor, how do I remove it?” This dust is mostly from GIB Board/drywall and other airborne construction dust. On darker coloured planks this issue can be a lot more obvious. The most important question is, how can this be prevented in the first place?
Suggestions to prevent white construction dust:
- Work with the project manager and stake holders to have the wood flooring installed as one of the last trades on the project – this helps minimise the potential of damage to the floor due to care of it on-site during the project.
- Any cutting machines used when installing the floors must have dust collection bags on them.
- Shortly after the engineered wood flooring has been installed, use a brush head on a vacuum cleaner and thoroughly vacuum the floors, to remove any loose dust, dirt, and debris that has ended up on the floor’s surface.
- Ensure the vacuum used contains the dust and doesn’t release it through its filters again.
- Cover the floor as soon as it is able to be walked on, according to the VidaSpace installation guidelines. Do not cover with plastic or polyethylene sheeting.
- Do not tape protective covering to the floor, but do secure the edges of the covering where pieces come together so dust cannot migrate under the covering. A common issue is when installers lay protection over a floor but a stone or piece of construction debris gets between the protective covering and the face of the flooring. This can cause extensive damage during the rest of the construction project and doesn’t show up until the protective covering is removed at the end of the project.
If this issue has arisen on site, here are some suggestions on how to rectify it:
- Remove as much of the dust and debris with a brush foot on a vacuum.
- The white construction dust is normally calcium-based so a slightly acidic cleaner is best. Use two buckets – one with the detergent and another with clean water to remove the contamination.
- Scrub with a red pad on a buffing machine.
If the issue has still not been resolved, please get in touch with one of our team.