How to clean rough outdoor floors?

From biological encrustations to grease and oil. What products to use for rough and porous outdoor floors and how to keep them clean.

If it is true that summer is almost upon us, it is not too late for spring cleaning and to give your rough outdoor floors a nice polish!

This is why we take this opportunity to give you useful tips for cleaning your outdoor floors from biological and limestone deposits but also from grease and oil, and then conclude with our instructions for perfect maintenance of your rough outdoor floors.

First, however, let’s see together what incrustations are and how they are formed.

What are incrustations and how are they formed?

Fouling is a deposit of particulate matter (a set of solid and liquid substances suspended in the air) that forms on surfaces and its triggers are the hardness and alkalinity of the water, the increase in its temperature, its low flow velocity, in addition to the presence of suspended material.

Once the encrustations have formed, it is possible to intervene with acid washes with quality products and their presence can be prevented through regular maintenance. In the case of rough outdoor floors, the procedure depends on the type of encrustation, be it biological or calcareous.

How to clean outdoor floors from biological encrustations

If we are dealing with biological incrustations for our floor, ALGANET is the whitening stain remover to be used on this occasion. In the case of strong encrustation, the first advice is to do a preliminary washing with a pressure washer or using a BROWN BUFFER to rub the surface with water. At this point, in a clean plastic bucket, dissolve 800 grams of ALGANET in ten liters of hot water and mix for a few minutes. Immediately after this, this solution is applied to the surface, using a soft cloth, a brush, a broom or a sponge and gets wet abundantly, leaving it to act for a variable time between 12 and 24 hours. When the surface is dry, rinse with plenty of water, rubbing with discs, a pressure washer, brushes or brown plastic fiber pads. In the case of rough surfaces, the advice is also to add ECOMARBEC, to degrease and remove dirt or ALGANET residues.

And in the case of limestone deposits?

Eliminate limestone deposits from outdoor floors

The calcareous encrustation is a hard, whitish patina, which is deposited in particular on the surfaces of kettles, boilers and heating systems, which are not subjected to adequate maintenance. The main component of the deposit is calcium carbonate. Water softening is used for prevention, while descaling formulations are used to remove encrustations. To clean rough outdoor floors from limestone deposits, the indication is to use the DELICACID and the BROWN BUFFER.

The first is a detergent with descaling power, suitable for a wide variety of stone materials resistant to acid substances, ranging from stone to concrete, passing through clinker, ceramic materials, grit, terrazzo and Palladian. As mentioned, DELICACID is ideal in cases where you are faced with particularly stubborn encrustations and limestone deposits and can be used pure or diluted in water, spreading and letting the product act on the surface for a few minutes. In the case of descaling of rough outdoor floors, the combined action with the BROWN BUFFER is used, a sponge with strong abrasives that is perfect for the occasion; the high density of resin and mineral present in its structure and the high resistance to acid or alkaline substances guarantee an ideal result. In addition to encrustations, however, it may be necessary to eliminate other unwanted guests, such as grease and oil from floors. Let’s see how to do it.

Remove grease and oil from rough outdoor floors

If, on the other hand, we are dealing with grease and oil, the advice is to start with SGRISER, which is nothing more than a strong wax remover, particularly suitable for stone materials. Among its characteristics there are those of not leaving harmful residues or unpleasant odors, and this product can also be used pure or diluted in water. If a strong degreasing action is required, dilute one part of SGRISER in an equal part of water, spread it on the surface, let it act for at least 10-20 minutes and rub with a BROWN BUFFER. This action, as for the elimination of calcareous encrustations, is followed by that with DELICACID and BROWN BUFFER, following the aforementioned indications for the elimination of calcareous encrustations.

The maintenance of rough outdoor floors

Once the encrustations have been eliminated, wouldn’t we want to see our work wasted? Maintenance is therefore very important and to do it just follow a simple procedure with the right products. For this important operation ECOMARBEC and PAV05 take the field. The first is a detergent for ordinary (but also extraordinary) cleaning of any type of hard surface in stone material and is spread on the floor with a rag, then leaving it to act for a few minutes. In the case of large quantities of greasy dirt, one part of it is diluted in two equal parts with water, while for periodic cleaning the indication is to dilute between 180 and 250 cc of ECOMARBEC in five liters of water.

PAV05 is instead a protective finisher that does not allow dirt to penetrate and just apply it to the floor once a year. In the case of very rough surfaces, pass two hands with the use of a soft cloth, a sponge or a fleece wax spreader, wetting the surface evenly. Once dry (after 2-3 hours) you can then apply the second coat.

The application of PAV05 is always recommended over TIM or IDROWIP, respectively hydro-oil-repellent protective and water-repellent protective, must not be done on hot surfaces (or on windy days or with temperatures below 5 ° C) and the treated surface must be protected from rain in the 6-8 hours after using the product. A treatment to be repeated, as mentioned, once a year, to keep the rough outdoor floor in excellent shape!