GIVEAWAY CLOSED
Several years back Yankee Bill, Princess, Buddy & I moved from a squat uninteresting 1100 sq ft 1970’s raised ranch into a gorgeous old 3000 sq ft Victorian built somewhere around 1890. The place is in fabulous shape-well loved and well taken care of for all that time. . . which is why you don’t see tons of posts on how to renovate your home cheaply 🙂
This is our House. Nice eh?
One of the things I adore about the house is the woodwork. With the exception of a single room at the top of the back stairs (which we think originally were the maid’s quarters) every single window and door frame has gorgeously carved, original, unpainted chestnut woodwork. We are talking 86″ windows here. There are the original pocket doors, and all the original hardware & doorknobs. And of course, since there was no such thing as wall to wall carpeting in 1890, there are wooden floors throughout.
As in 85% of the house is hardwood floors. The kitchen has linoleum. The tiny downstairs bath has been redone with laminate (which does make me wonder what happened in there). Our third floor bedroom (which was recently created from the attic by the previous owners) has wall to wall carpeting in the bedroom & linoleum in the bathroom. The rest of the house, all 4 bedrooms, 2 livingrooms, entry, diningroom & study are all hardwood.
That’s a lot of wood to keep up with! Before we moved in we made the decision to have all the floors on the ground level refinished and left the ones on the second floor as they were-after all, the kiddos would just destroy them anyway-we can have those done once they hit teen years.
Those floors looked GORGEOUS when they were done. People would take off their shoes when they entered the house to preserve that deep gorgeous shine~without us even having to ask!
But that was over 2 years ago. Although we haven’t abused the floors (no rollerskates in the house or anything) we have lived here. The floors are still beautiful, but they aren’t so shiny-and with the fall, a new puppy, children who can’t seem to remember to take off their shoes and just life in general they seem to be dirty more often than they are not.
I’ve tried several methods of care. I’ve used a mop with a mild detergent and vinegar. That was ok. I tried a floor care product that was super shiny for a day and then looked worse than before I started. I bought a steam mop, which is my current preferred method.
So when the folks from Black Diamond Stoneworks contacted me and asked if I’d be willing to review their environmentally friendly WOW! Wood & Laminate Floor Cleaning System I figured what the heck!
As I’ve been doing lately, I created a Whrrl story with in depth pictures & commentary-you don’t need an account or anything to view the story (sort of like a slide show) but you do need a free account if you want to comment over there.
Here is the condensed, low picture version 🙂
This kit retails for $29.95, and the refill bottles of cleaner run about $7 .
According to Black Diamond Stoneworks:
Black Diamond Stoneworks Wood Floor Cleaning System is the complete wood floor cleaning set for all un-waxed natural wood and laminate floors. This kit comes ready to clean with the WOW! Wood Floor Cleaner, a heavy duty cleaning mop and a Microfiber Cleaning Pad.
The mop is quite sturdy for this sort of thing-it even has metal screws to hold the sections of the handle together which I liked. The microfiber cloth had a much deeper pile than any other I’ve seen and had a couple of stripes of “tougher” purple fibers in there to help scrub.
The process for using it is simple. You dry mop, sweep or vacuum the floor to remove large particles. Then you simply spray the floor lightly with cleaner and then mop. You do a section about 4’x6′ at a time. The spray bottle contains enough spray to do 10 to 12 standard sized rooms.
To ensure a streak free finish the directions state you must continue mopping until dry. I wasn’t sure if I was really supposed to keep mopping until there was no moisture at all left. The mop cloth gets damp right away, and then you are just swiping that same wetness around. I figured when it was MOSTLY dry I was good enough.
I found the spray and mop method to be much less messy and time consuming than a classic mop and bucket or even my steam mop. It was a bit more energetic to have to keep mopping the same sections over & over until dry-but hey, I could stand to burn a few extra calories each day.
I liked the construction of the mop. The head was much wider than other microfiber cloth mops I’ve tried and the quality of the actual cloth was superior.
I also liked the fact that the system is environmentally friendly. The ingredients are water based and non-toxic, so you don’t have to worry about having them around small children or pets. (You can check out the Material Saftey Data Sheet if you like)
The floor cleaner performed adequately. When I was done the floor was clean-but not particularly shiny. I’d say that it was probably a bit less streaky looking than when I use a mop and bucket-about on par with when I use my steam mop. It did not give me a hugely improved shine-but maybe my goals are unrealistic for this kind of product.
I do realize that this is a product formulated for regular use-so I will continue to use it. It is possible that as it continues to clean off the residue from other products I’ve used that there will be more shine.
So now on to the fun! The giveaway! I have two complete WOW! Wood & Laminate Floor Cleaner Kits to give away.
This giveaway will run from Tuesday December 1st until Monday December 7th.
To enter:
#1-Go to the Black Diamond Stoneworks site, come back and comment answering the question “What Black Diamond Product would you most like to try” or “What new cleaning tip did you learn on the Black Diamond website?”
Want extra entries? Each one requires a separate comment.
#2-Subscribe to Frugal Upstate (or let me know you already are)
#3-Follow Black Diamond Stoneworks on Twitter (http://twitter.com/BDcleaners)
#4-Become a fan of Black Diamond Stoneworks on Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/yjamqex)
#5-Tweet/post to Facebook about the giveaway with a link back to this post. This may be done daily but you MUST come back and comment each time.
Good luck everyone!
Don’t miss out on the $2 off printable coupon for the WOW system
***This is a sponsored post***
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So I guess I’m not supposed to be using PineSol on my wood floors, eh? I think the product I most need to try is the one you’re offering!
Followed Black Diamond on Twitter.
And became a fan on Facebook.
Subscribed. 🙂
I would like to try the Wow Wood Floor Restorer as some of the wood floors in my house are in dire need of help!
Two products caught my eye – the first being the one you are giving away. I’d love to give it a try. The second is the Ur-In-Control to remove urine and other stains and smells. I have a dog, cat, and two children – need I say more?
There is a WOW floor restorer spray that may make your floor shinier.
I already subscribe to frugal upstate
I became a fan on facebook
I commented about the link on FB
Would love to try this on my wood floors. I had mine done years ago too and now have 3 boys (who quite frankly HAVE roller skated in the house ;-)!!)
I would buy the wood and laminate system. That is 95% of my home.
I would like to try the wood and laminate cleaner. I have laminate floors and need something.
email subscriber
I’d like to try the wood restorer — some of our oak floors have waterstains, and could use the help.
I would try the Ultimate Shower, Tub & Tile Cleaner. Every time I clean the bathrooms, the fumes overpower me even with the windows open.
l would love this, l have all hardwood floors (they are chestnut!)
l am subscribed, and l follow you on twitter!
Thanks!
I’d like to try Ultimate Shower, Tub & Tile Cleaner because I find cleaning my shower stalls to be the most difficult job. The cleaning tip I learned is that I should have sealed my grout when it was new.
I’m happy to be an e-mail subscriber of Frugal Upstate!
My loft is all engineered hardwood so I would love to try the WOW! Wood & Laminate Floor Cleaning System. I normally use Bona to clean the hardwood floors.
I like that “WOW! Wood & Laminate Floor Cleaning System” is sold at Walmart (love the coupon BTW).
I have also notice we have some build up in the bathrooms and are tile doesn’t look that great any more so I am going to look into Ultimate Shower, Tub & Tile Cleaner and Ultimate Tile & Floor Cleaner.
I LOVE that these products don’t contain harsh chemicals or solvents, and they are all environmentally friendly. It is not easy to find products that clean the tough stuff and are good for the planet.
This review is very detailed – thanks for introducing me to these products.
I became a fan on facebook.
I follow black diamond on twitter.
I am an email subscriber.
l would love the Black Diamond WOW! Wood Floor Cleaning System…all hardwood floors here and 5 rescued pooches! Lots of info on their website, l like the stone cleaning products too.
l am following Black Diamond on twitter.
l am subscribed to Frugal Upstate via email 😉
Actually l am goign to check out the Ur-In-Control to remove urine and other stains and smells. 5 big dogs and 2 big cats…well, they are good except the rare occation when l could really use this product! 😉
I, too, have hardwood floors, so this looks great! I’d love to try The Granite Cleaner & Sealer, too, thanks!
I am an email subscriber, thanks!
tweet, thanks! http://twitter.com/idahojill/status/6352753699
Omg I have been looking for a new hardwood floor cleaner. I have tried evething and nothing seems to work. From Orange Glo to Pine sol to regular floor clean. I need something new.
Besides the Wood & Laminate Floor Cleaning System, i would love to try the Top SPot cleaner. I need this for my carpets.
subsciber
follow BD on twitter: carogonza
facebook fan: carolyn gonzalez
tweeted http://twitter.com/carogonza/status/6389354806
I would definitely like to try
Top Spot
I have two boys and 2 dogs and there are ALWAYS spots on my carpet! 😮 (
I would love to try the Ur-In control with 4 cats this is a necessity!
following Black Diamond Stoneworks on Twitter @micaela6955
Black Diamond facebook fan M Pineda
micaela6955 at msn dot com
tweeted http://twitter.com/micaela6955/status/6452688074 @micaela6955