How to Remove Mold and Mildew Stains from Laminate Flooring

Laminate flooring may occasionally look like stone or wood, but it is much more sensitive to mold and mildew than other materials. In fact, most manufacturer's warn against excessive moisture that could damage your floor.

However, once the damage is done, you may notice mold or mildew spots on your laminate floor. In order to prevent the mildew from spreading, act quickly to clean the floor and remove any stains. Although these steps will not remove stains that have truly set into the laminate, you can still remove any surface mold or mildew.

Keep in mind when cleaning laminate wood flooring that many manufacturer's require that you use their cleaning products or it voids your warranty. If you still have a warranty on your laminate flooring, you may want to talk to the manufacturer to find out if any of their products are made to remove mildew and stains.

Step 1: Sweep the flooring thoroughly to remove any surface debris before beginning. If desired, you can also use a vacuum cleaner for this step.

Step 2: Mop the floor with your usual laminate floor cleaner to remove an superficial, surface stains. This step will allow you to concentrate on the more difficult to remove areas.

Step 3: Spot treat any stained areas with a rag saturated with white vinegar. Focus on scrubbing the area with white vinegar until the stain is removed.

Step 4: Mop the entire floor with a combination of 1 cup white vinegar, 1 gallon of warm water, and a teaspoon of dish washing liquid soap. This mixture should kill any remaining mildew and leave your laminate floor shining.

Of course, stains that have been allowed to penetrate the surface of the laminate will not be removed by this process. Unfortunately, in order to remove these types of stains you must either replace the damaged laminate or paint the laminate to conceal any damage. Check with your manufacturer for other cleaning methods to try before attempting these extreme fixes.