Laminate is a popular floor covering that does not need additional painting or polishing. It has good wear resistance and soundproofing. The material is easy to install and easy to care for. But in the process of operation, some damage may appear on it. Let's find out how to remove scratches from the laminate.
How to restore the laminate from scratches?
Damage to the laminate can occur in several cases:
- cleaning with abrasive means, small scratches appear from the sand;
- claws of domestic animals or a fallen sharp object, such as a knife, can leave medium-sized scratches, often such damages arise from women's shoe studs or metal sashes on their heels;
- Moving heavy furniture can cause large scratches.
As a rule, it is more difficult to eliminate scratches on a laminate than to prevent their appearance, therefore, it is necessary to carefully take care of such a floor. In the hallway on the laminate floor, you can put a rug that will protect it from the heels and from the impact of dust and sand. Under the computer chair you can put a small carpet. And on the legs of furniture it is better to paste special vinyl substrates, which will protect the laminate from dents and scratches.
Laminate grout from scratches
If damage has occurred to the floor covering, do not immediately change the entire floor. It is better to ask than to cover the scratches on the laminate. For this purpose, you can use special pastes, which have a different consistency. The color of the putty should be selected as close as possible to the shade of your laminate. Before starting work on the sealing of scratches, dust and debris should be carefully removed from the floor. As practice shows, you can remove scratches from the laminate using grouting in two ways.
- Viscous putty, which is sold as a small briquette, is applied in small portions using a narrow metal or plastic stack. In this case, the direction of the pattern on the laminate must be taken into account. In order to get the right shade, you can mix several pieces from different in color pastes. After the putty is applied, the surplus material should be removed from the repair site by wiping it with a soft and then a hard sponge.
- More liquid in consistence putty is packaged in plastic tubes. It is applied with a wooden or plastic spatula. On the cleaned repaired cloth and on spatula it is necessary to put some mastic. After that, the viscous mass is carefully leveled, pressing it into a scratch. Then the repair site should be wiped with a damp cloth or sponge, and then with a dry cloth. Walk on this floor will be in a couple of hours.
Pencil for laminate from scratches
Removal of scratches on the laminate can be done with a special wax pencil. This inexpensive and easy-to-use tool allows you to remove minor damage on the floor. After repair on this place there will be a thin film which will protect this part of a laminate from a moisture. Due to the variety of color shades, you can easily select the pencil needed for your floor. Before applying wax, the place on the laminate should be cleaned by wiping with a damp cloth. After scratching, polish it with a dry soft cloth.
Polishing for laminate from scratches
Another effective means of scratching on the laminate is polishing in the form of an emulsion or silicone paste. Its composition can include resins, wax and various pigments that enhance the initial shade of the floor covering. The main purpose of polishing is to fill cracks and scratches on the floor, as well as leveling the surface. Polishing laminate from scratches is only used in case of minor damage. Depending on the consistency of the selected product, it can be applied in several ways.
Since removing the scratches from the laminate with a liquid or spray is unlikely to work, it is better to use a polish in the form of a mastic, which is applied to a fine fabric and distributed in a circular motion on the floor. In this case, small fissures and scratches are filled. After treatment, the laminate should dry well. However, it should be polished not only in the place where there are damages, but on the whole surface. So you will not only remove minor flaws, but also improve the look of your floor.
Marker for laminate from scratching
Sometimes on the surface of the coating there are very minor damages, and the owners are concerned with the question: how to remove small scratches from the laminate. To eliminate such drawbacks, there is a special retouching marker. With its help you can paint over small cracks on the floor. This simple and cheap method is used to visually fix a defect. Since the marker does not affect the structure of the laminated surface in any way, scratches on closer inspection will still be noticeable.