Do a search on this forum for "cleaning hardwood floors." You will find lots of information and suggestions from flooring professionals and others. I've tried various methods to clean our wood floors and actually use two different ways, depending on how dirty the floor is. We have over 2,500 sq.ft. of hardwood so I needed a method that kept the job down timewise.

When the floors aren't too dirty I use my hardwood floor brush of the central vac (no vacuums on wood floors) and sweep up dog hair, dust, etc. Then I use a microfiber mop and a bottle of Bona Hardwood Floor Clean and go around and spot spray dirty areas like where the dog has dripped water from her bowl or we've spilled something small in the kitchen. Once every couple of months I use another mop in a bucket of warm water with a drop or two of dish soap and mop the entire floor. I immediately dry completely with a large beach towel.

One thing I use when I don't want to drag out the central vac is a wide dust mop like janitors use to breeze around the house to pick up dog hair, etc. Never use Murphy's or anything else not designed for wood floors. They will usually leave streaks.

I haven't used my central vac yet, but if you have sensitive wood floors, as I do, you'll probably want to get a sock for your hose. That way you won't scratch your floors or your trim and molding.

I also just bought the Electrolux Pronto 2-in-1 cordless sweeper and it looks like it's going to do a great job on all my floors (hardwood, tile, stone). This is the new model, the EL1000B, not the A. The previous model had a straight gray piece of rubber on the vacuum head that was leaving a line of rubber on my floors. This one is better and doesn't mark my floors.

For spots or spills, I've been using a microfibre cloth that is very very lightly damp. Is plain water a problem for hardwood? (We have a Swedish finish on the floors.)

Kat

DO NOT mop your floor with water (soap or no soap). No matter how fast you plan to dry it. I make my living repairing/replacing wood floors with water damage and have seen what even a relatively small amount water can do to wood floors.

Cubmaster, I have a question. My cleaning girl uses bona and the mop that comes with it but she rings out the mop in H2O and then sprays the Bona on it. Its not much water, just a damp mop head. Is that too much water? If you do not use any water at all, the mop is pretty tough to get across the whole floor. I would appreciate your opinion.

Here is an excerpt from the Hardwood Flooring Manufacturers regarding cleaning. You will see that they recommend damp mopping to clean spills. I cannot imagine that a lightly damp mop dried immediately with a towel is going to cause any damage. With the large area that I have to clean weekly, I would have to buy stock in Bona Kemi floor cleaner and it would take me all day to spritz that stuff over my entire floor.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hardwood Floor Care

Wiping a spill with a damp sponge or even giving it the once-over with an "almost dry" schmop is one thing, but that is significantly different than what was mentioned above ... "Once every couple of months I use another mop in a bucket of warm water with a drop or two of dish soap and mop the entire floor."

Water, most likely will not penetrate the urethane coated flats of the wood (Note: it will turn a wax finished floor white). The biggest concerns are the areas between the planks. Mopping with water will soak into the joints between the wood (and I can assure you that the edges and ends of the planks are not covered with poly, whether it is prefinished or site finished). These edges will absorb the water quickly (and you can't dry them with a towel).

As the wood becomes saturated it expands. This can cause movement in the planks, swelling of the wood, and will crack the urethane finish on top, allowing more area for penetration the next time. Repeatedly doing this is asking for trouble.

The real issue becomes your interpretation of "damp". Because "damp" can mean so many things to different people (from "lightly wrung out" to "just misted with water") the safe recommendation is not to recommend water.

Just my $.02.