Buffing is done using a low speed machine such as a 175 to 350 rpm or a high speed machine 1500 to 2500. A solution is misted on the floor and then buffed with the appropriate pad until dry. Is performed on small areas of floor. Burnishing is done with a high speed machine 1500 to 2500 rpms, the conditioner or restorer is mopped on, let dry and burnish with the proper floor pad. Is performed on any size floor, daily, weekly or monthly.
How often will the floor be swept, mopped and buffed? Will the floor receive heavy traffic and soil? This will help you determine if you should burnish weekly/bi-weekly or spray buff monthly. Spray buffing will provide a deeper cleaning. When buffing or burnishing you should use a 1500 to 2500 rpm floor machine. You can do it with a 175-350 rpm machine but it will take much longer to complete the job.
High speeds can be used for spray buffing and burnishing, slow speed are used for buffing or polishing. The difference would be which one to use depending on the surface you are burnishing/buffing/polishing. You might choose high for VCT tile and low speed for wood floors or marble floors. You can use chair mats, use a higher percent of solids floor finish or change the coasters on the chairs to prevent dirt rings from appearing. You can also do a spot scrub and re-coat on a regular basis.
This is a very informative video. I am having polished concrete overlay floors installed in my condo - 3000 grit polish. I am being told I won't need to polish too often, but just in case I need to to keep it reall shiny - what is the difference between the slower machine for buffing and the faster for burnishing? Should I use burnishing for the concrete overlay? What kind of buffing solution and pad would I need for polished concrete? My contractor isn't giving me too much advice, help!
nimbette2 for concrete you can strip and seal. i use a trizac honing disc. its a 3 step process. 3m makes a decent one. if your floors are in good shape you can use the white pad with a burnishing machine to achieve a high shine. but they do make special diamond pads that will make your floor pop.
There are many reasons why you might have had problems with the floor, here are just a few: Did you spray buff or burnish the floor? If spray buffing did you vacuum the floor and then mop with neutral floor cleaner before buffing? Mop head contaminated? Used wrong color or type of floor pad did you use? Finish coat applied too thin? What was the rpm of the floor machine you used? Slow rpm? Wrong detergent/solution used?
the spots were about the size of a golf ball. I used the white pads this week and the floors look great.... Also, is it ok to put some wax into the spray buff solution?
White pads can be used for spray buffing. You want to match the pad to the floor finish and the out come of the process. A red pad is for deeper cleaning. We will use a red pad when we do a clean and burnish. What size are the spots? I have seen them the size of a penny before and it was caused by a contamination of the surface. Review your process and products being used.
You may or may not need to move tables for spray buffing. It will depend on the account. In this case since it's an employee breakroom the customer did not want to pay extra for having the tables moved. If it was a public area like a restaurant the tables would probably be moved.
@nickmendezrico A coating is a two part resin floor finish that is very durable. It is used in high traffic and industrial areas. Most are an epoxy. You can check at your local janitorial supply store for the product.
It does not make a difference where you start in the center or along the edge if you are doing a hallway, what ever work best for you. If you are doing a large floor area, start at one end along the edge and walk back and forth just like you are mowing grass, continue this process until you reach the other end of the room/area.
@KeepColdwithCoolidge Sorry - missed your post. It all depends...some floors that don't get a lot of heavy traffic don't need buffing. But if you've got a lot of traffic, chairs scraping against the floor like in this lunchroom, it helps to smooth out the scuffs and snap the shine back.
I'm a custodian for NY and im having trouble understanding the difference between high speed buffing & low speeds. Also I recently finished stripping & waxing a floor in a high traffic area & dirt rings from office chairs are starting to appear, should I mop the floor & buff it with floor finish? Any info you can give me is appreciated
nimbette2, The difference in machines is the rpm's. A slow speed will turn at between 175 to 350 rpm's and a high speed will be 1500 to 2500+. If you do a search for twister diamond cleaning system or spinergy stone care solutions you will see that you can use diamond pads with a slow speed machine to keep the gloss on your concrete. Depending on the soils coming in you should not need to perform this often.
@rockywaseem Before you can buff or burnish a floor with floor finish on it, there needs to be plenty of floor finish on the floor. Depending on the location you might have 4-7 coats of finish on it. If there is heavy soil you might need to scrub and re-coat or strip/wax first. After 24-48 hours you can spray buff or burnish the floor.
@rockywaseem - Go to home depot or lowes, go to floor title section, look for floor polish, one gallon, buy a spong mop, need bucket big anuf to fit spong mop into, be sure to clean floor before applying floor polish, put 4-5 coats on floor, make sure floor is dry before re-applying, use a soft cleaner when cleaning floor from week to week, mop lightly so floor will look shiney, don't use wax for VCT, there is a floor polish for linolum that is better for home use.
Are you talking about the spray buff chemical? It would depend on the frequency of service. The less frequent the service (every month or so), you'd probably spray buff. The more frequent the service (daily or weekly), the more likely you'd burnish.
There are 3 things that need to happen. 1. When applying floor finish we need to think about the area, soil loads and maintenance schedules. In high traffic we should apply 5-7 coats of floor finish. 2. In any high traffic area we should apply a high solids floor finish so it can withstand the high traffic. The floor finish you applied, what is the percent of solids? 17, 20, 25, 30%. Lower solids with scuff and need repairs more often. 2. The chairs may need non-marring or felt pads on them.
i have a high traffic breakroom and we just waxed it but its already scratch up because of the chairs what can i do to maintain this floor looking good does it need more coats of wax cuz it just had 2 ???????????? any advise?
That would be a good floor program. But if you burnish once per week you might find that you will not need to spray buff. If you scrub and re-coat in 6 months and a strip/wax once per year, the floor appearance should be at a level the customer would be happy with.
@nickmendezrico If you are thinking of applying a finish you might consider applying a coating because of the dog traffic. A sacrificial wax coat will not hold up and you will find yourself re-coating often. With the coating you will be able to buff when needed to maintain the level of appearance you desire.
You would not match the pad to the tile, you would match the floor pad to the finish on the floor. All floor finish will have a percent of solids, the higher the solids, the more durable the floor finish, the more aggressive the pad might be to get the results you are wanting on the floor finish. All high speed floor pads are color coded based on the manufacturer of the pad. You might see a white pad for polishing (less aggressive) or a horse hair blend (more aggressive).
Perform a clean and burnish to the floor. 1. Vacuum floor. 2. Mop on restorer to a manageable area 3. Scrub quickly with 175 rpm floor machine with red pad [this will remove any soil and black marks] 4. Pick up solution with wet vac-let floor dry [it will appear dull] 5. Burnish with a 1500-2500 rpm floor burnisher with a pad that matches the finish on the floor.
The four wheels are used for transporting the floor machine. You would raise the handle and lean the machine back onto all four wheels so you can move it to another area or place in storage.
machine does not pull side to side. Also work your way through the floor with the buffer. Don't walk straight line like this guy. Spray solution of your choice as you go also. Don't spray half the floor ahead of time. It will leave water like sports through the floor.
A high speed floor machine will only move forward and back. Using a slow speed floor machine takes much longer and is not productive when spray buffing or burnishing
i thought white pads were for polishing not buffing..... i been using the red pads. ALSO, after i buff it looks like white spots throughout the floor... what im i doing wrong?
Eli in the UK buffing pads are graded by colour. White pads are soft and just polish, pink polish and remove light marks, green/blue are medium and remove many marks, black pads are coarse and remove heavy marks and wear.
Buffing is done using a low speed machine such as a 175 to 350 rpm or a high speed machine 1500 to 2500. A solution is misted on the floor and then buffed with the appropriate pad until dry.
Is performed on small areas of floor.
Burnishing is done with a high speed machine 1500 to 2500 rpms, the conditioner or restorer is mopped on, let dry and burnish with the proper floor pad.
Is performed on any size floor, daily, weekly or monthly.
omg this is amazing, im gona be able to make my employers think ive used a floor buffer before
thank you
How often will the floor be swept, mopped and buffed? Will the floor receive heavy traffic and soil? This will help you determine if you should burnish weekly/bi-weekly or spray buff monthly. Spray buffing will provide a deeper cleaning.
When buffing or burnishing you should use a 1500 to 2500 rpm floor machine. You can do it with a 175-350 rpm machine but it will take much longer to complete the job.
High speeds can be used for spray buffing and burnishing, slow speed are used for buffing or polishing. The difference would be which one to use depending on the surface you are burnishing/buffing/polishing. You might choose high for VCT tile and low speed for wood floors or marble floors.
You can use chair mats, use a higher percent of solids floor finish or change the coasters on the chairs to prevent dirt rings from appearing. You can also do a spot scrub and re-coat on a regular basis.
When was this video made?
This is a very informative video. I am having polished concrete overlay floors installed in my condo - 3000 grit polish. I am being told I won't need to polish too often, but just in case I need to to keep it reall shiny - what is the difference between the slower machine for buffing and the faster for burnishing? Should I use burnishing for the concrete overlay? What kind of buffing solution and pad would I need for polished concrete? My contractor isn't giving me too much advice, help!
nimbette2 for concrete you can strip and seal. i use a trizac honing disc. its a 3 step process. 3m makes a decent one. if your floors are in good shape you can use the white pad with a burnishing machine to achieve a high shine. but they do make special diamond pads that will make your floor pop.
There are many reasons why you might have had problems with the floor, here are just a few:
Did you spray buff or burnish the floor?
If spray buffing did you vacuum the floor and then mop with neutral floor cleaner before buffing?
Mop head contaminated?
Used wrong color or type of floor pad did you use?
Finish coat applied too thin?
What was the rpm of the floor machine you used? Slow rpm?
Wrong detergent/solution used?
the spots were about the size of a golf ball. I used the white pads this week and the floors look great.... Also, is it ok to put some wax into the spray buff solution?
Ello Gubna no do not
White pads can be used for spray buffing. You want to match the pad to the floor finish and the out come of the process. A red pad is for deeper cleaning. We will use a red pad when we do a clean and burnish.
What size are the spots? I have seen them the size of a penny before and it was caused by a contamination of the surface. Review your process and products being used.
You may or may not need to move tables for spray buffing. It will depend on the account. In this case since it's an employee breakroom the customer did not want to pay extra for having the tables moved. If it was a public area like a restaurant the tables would probably be moved.
The Janitorial Store if you can lift it move it! it just makes life easier in the long run.
Great video thank you, very informative... excellent tip for quick shine.
Javier
You should lock the handle at the right operating height for yourself. By locking the handle you have better control of the machine.
@nickmendezrico A coating is a two part resin floor finish that is very durable. It is used in high traffic and industrial areas.
Most are an epoxy. You can check at your local janitorial supply store for the product.
oh well i really need the job , I had no choice but to look up how to use a buffing machine , desperate times
Me too!
Me too.
It does not make a difference where you start in the center or along the edge if you are doing a hallway, what ever work best for you. If you are doing a large floor area, start at one end along the edge and walk back and forth just like you are mowing grass, continue this process until you reach the other end of the room/area.
@KeepColdwithCoolidge Sorry - missed your post. It all depends...some floors that don't get a lot of heavy traffic don't need buffing. But if you've got a lot of traffic, chairs scraping against the floor like in this lunchroom, it helps to smooth out the scuffs and snap the shine back.
I'm a custodian for NY and im having trouble understanding the difference between high speed buffing & low speeds. Also I recently finished stripping & waxing a floor in a high traffic area & dirt rings from office chairs are starting to appear, should I mop the floor & buff it with floor finish? Any info you can give me is appreciated
Glad to hear the spots are gone.
It is best to purchase Ready To Use (RTU) spray buff solution rather than mixing your own.
nimbette2,
The difference in machines is the rpm's. A slow speed will turn at between 175 to 350 rpm's and a high speed will be 1500 to 2500+.
If you do a search for twister diamond cleaning system or spinergy stone care solutions you will see that you can use diamond pads with a slow speed machine to keep the gloss on your concrete. Depending on the soils coming in you should not need to perform this often.
@rockywaseem Before you can buff or burnish a floor with floor finish on it, there needs to be plenty of floor finish on the floor. Depending on the location you might have 4-7 coats of finish on it. If there is heavy soil you might need to scrub and re-coat or strip/wax first. After 24-48 hours you can spray buff or burnish the floor.
@rockywaseem - Go to home depot or lowes, go to floor title section, look for floor polish, one gallon, buy a spong mop, need bucket big anuf to fit spong mop into, be sure to clean floor before applying floor polish, put 4-5 coats on floor, make sure floor is dry before re-applying, use a soft cleaner when cleaning floor from week to week, mop lightly so floor will look shiney, don't use wax for VCT, there is a floor polish for linolum that is better for home use.
Are you talking about the spray buff chemical? It would depend on the frequency of service. The less frequent the service (every month or so), you'd probably spray buff. The more frequent the service (daily or weekly), the more likely you'd burnish.
There are 3 things that need to happen.
1. When applying floor finish we need to think about the area, soil loads and maintenance schedules. In high traffic we should apply 5-7 coats of floor finish.
2. In any high traffic area we should apply a high solids floor finish so it can withstand the high traffic. The floor finish you applied, what is the percent of solids? 17, 20, 25, 30%.
Lower solids with scuff and need repairs more often.
2. The chairs may need non-marring or felt pads on them.
i have a high traffic breakroom and we just waxed it but its already scratch up because of the chairs what can i do to maintain this floor looking good does it need more coats of wax cuz it just had 2 ???????????? any advise?
ivan grajeda add 6 coats of wax lol probably figured that out by now comment is 4 years old haha
That would be a good floor program.
But if you burnish once per week you might find that you will not need to spray buff.
If you scrub and re-coat in 6 months and a strip/wax once per year, the floor appearance should be at a level the customer would be happy with.
@nickmendezrico If you are thinking of applying a finish you might consider applying a coating because of the dog traffic. A sacrificial wax coat will not hold up and you will find yourself re-coating often. With the coating you will be able to buff when needed to maintain the level of appearance you desire.
You would not match the pad to the tile, you would match the floor pad to the finish on the floor. All floor finish will have a percent of solids, the higher the solids, the more durable the floor finish, the more aggressive the pad might be to get the results you are wanting on the floor finish. All high speed floor pads are color coded based on the manufacturer of the pad. You might see a white pad for polishing (less aggressive) or a horse hair blend (more aggressive).
Manufacturers make floor buffing compounds. Check with your local janitorial supplier.
Do you mean why is the "pad" removed? So you can clean it. Also, you don't want to leave it on the machine because it will pick up more soil.
Should the machine handle be locked or unlocked while buffing?
Whats the best way to take marks from tile i buff the floor but the black marks dont come off
Perform a clean and burnish to the floor.
1. Vacuum floor.
2. Mop on restorer to a manageable area
3. Scrub quickly with 175 rpm floor machine with red pad [this will remove any soil and black marks]
4. Pick up solution with wet vac-let floor dry [it will appear dull]
5. Burnish with a 1500-2500 rpm floor burnisher with a pad that matches the finish on the floor.
Use a scouring pad on your foot for the black marks or use a black buffing pad.
What are the purpose of the double wheels?
The four wheels are used for transporting the floor machine. You would raise the handle and lean the machine back onto all four wheels so you can move it to another area or place in storage.
why is the buff always removed from the buffer after use?
for cleaning the buffer pad to remove any objects and dirt before the next job
hi there is recommended buffing on new wax..?
Hey eduardo how do you handel the machine from going sideways?
Or going the direction I want
Hi guy Fakwes
yes I just finish thank you
machine does not pull side to side. Also work your way through the floor with the buffer. Don't walk straight line like this guy. Spray solution of your choice as you go also. Don't spray half the floor ahead of time. It will leave water like sports through the floor.
A high speed floor machine will only move forward and back. Using a slow speed floor machine takes much longer and is not productive when spray buffing or burnishing
i thought white pads were for polishing not buffing..... i been using the red pads. ALSO, after i buff it looks like white spots throughout the floor... what im i doing wrong?
Eli in the UK buffing pads are graded by colour. White pads are soft and just polish, pink polish and remove light marks, green/blue are medium and remove many marks, black pads are coarse and remove heavy marks and wear.
Only if it has a floor finish on it.
the "solution" wtf is the "solution"
The solution is the spray buff solution that is sprayed onto the floor before it is buffed with the floor machine.