Floor Buffing vs. Floor Polishing: What Is the Difference?

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Commercial cleaning techniques are often far more thorough than personal home cleaning, and it’s easy to see why: when you have thousands of square feet of floor to clean and your reputation is riding on the overall cleanliness of the building, you’ll want to do a fantastic job.

So, how do you know what the different cleaning techniques are and how much they cost when it comes to floors? There’s spray buffing and then there’s polishing, or burnishing as it’s more formally known.

Concrete Floors

Because of its high wear resistance, concrete floors are particularly susceptible to dings, dings, and scratches. Concrete floor buffers are the best way to clean concrete floors. Using a concrete sealer can extend the life of these floors as well as improve their overall look.

When it comes to choosing a flooring option, polished concrete floors are a viable option because they are both modern and low-maintenance.

Buffing Vs Polishing

People may talk about buffing a floor or polishing a floor, but the truth is that both types of cleaning are identical in that they modify the nature of the floor’s surface as they clean.

Buffing, also known as spray buffing, involves the use of a buffing machine with slower moving pads. You’ll use the spray bottle to fill in any nicks or smudges, then buff it in to create shine. Buffer pads are used with floor buffers to remove scuffs and other sorts of debris or blemishes, resulting in a more equal shine.

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Floor Polishing, Burnishing

Polishing, or burnishing as it is more formally known, is not as popular as spray buffing. A burnishing machine works significantly faster than a buffing machine. Burnishing is the process of removing the top layer of the floor in order to smooth it out and generate a shine.

A floor polisher, like a buffer, generates a smoother surface on a floor, making it appear cleaner and shinier. Polishing can alter the material’s quality by, for example, adding an extra substance to protect it.

They both leave the floor with a shinier overall finish. Any polymer-based floor develops little dents, resulting in a less polished appearance that appears dull and filthy. Floor buffing is the process of smoothing out the surface of a floor with a buffing machine.

Are Polishing and Buffing the Same Thing?

Often used alternately, floor polishing (also known as burnishing and buffing) is a more intensive technique that removes imperfections and chips from a floor’s finish. The removal of chips and pits is similar at the industrial level, but both require specialist machines and attention, especially for floors made of fragile materials. Both are also similar at the residential level.

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