House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

We are moving to a house with hardwood floors. Brazilian Cherry, if that makes a difference.
We have 9 people in our house, so there will be a lot of traffic!
When we bought our current home, our carpet was already in not the best shape, and DH is very adamant about always wearing shoes because his feet are so delicate, LOL. So, we never enforced a "no shoes in the house" rule or bothered with house shoes, even though I think it is gross to wear shoes that have been outside in the house.

We agreed that we would have a "no shoes" or "House only shoes" rule in the new house. I am leaning toward house shoes so we don't have so many footprints to clean up on the shiny wood floor.

What would you recommend for house only shoes for both adults and children? They need to be inexpensive and easy to put on and take off. What would you think should be the procedure for them?

Also, how do you clean the floors? Obviously dust them with a Swiffer or something, but what about footprints?
Also, how easily do they scratch/scuff? Can the kids run cars or play with toys on them, or do we need to put a mat down?

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

Crocs. We're a 'no shoes in the house' family, but our basement needs shoes. We use crocs (or generic ones) for the basement. They're comfy, easy to clean, and simple to put on and remove. They should also be comfortable for your DH.

If you don't want to do crocs, another option are 'house slippers' like they do in other countries.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

I would do slippers and make sure you have new/fresh ones for guests. I’m a barefoot person but I think bare feet are really gross, especially if they’ve been in shoes. I also really don’t like wearing other people’s slippers so shoe covers might be a good idea for guests who might be uncomfortable.

Wood floors do scratch and you will be sweeping or dust mopping way more than you might think (especially if you have pets) Depends on where you live. Here it’s a daily thing.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

I have never thought about footprints on wood floors before, and I've only lived in houses with wood not carpet.

When I wash the floors I spray them with cleaner and use a wet towel to wash it with my feet (I scoot the wet towel over the floor).

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

I’m another that never thought abt footprints but we r a “take your shoes off” when u come in the house unless u r a guest.

I use my sh mop damp and sometimes put essential oils on it. It takes minutes.

I sweep maybe once a week if I remember and mop less :shifty I should maybe clean more but my wood doesn’t get dusty or dirty. We have a dog that doesn’t shed and 3 older kids. When we had a German Shepherd it was a different story. I swept a lot more to get the dog hair cleaned up.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

We've had hardwood almost exclusively for many years. Very little carpet.

Clean feet don't leave footprints. We are barefoot in summer and wear slippers in winter.

I sweep at least once a day. I'm not a fan of Swiffers.

I have a Shark steam mop that I use for weekly cleaning. I spot clean with my regular homemade cleaning spray (diluted vinegar and EOs).

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

Glad to know footprints are not an issue for most. My parents have wood floors and when we visit, we cannot wear shoes. When the sun shines, I always see little smudgey looking prints down the hall. Just dullness.

Those of you that sweep, do you use a regular broom? Like straw? We will have central vac with little portals in the walls, so that is supposed to make sweeping easier.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

Not straw, nylon bristles. Like this: https://www.walmart.com/ip/O-Cedar-A...Broom/28654760

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

I currently have an angled synthetic broom. Natural bristle brooms are awesome, if they're angled. I used to have a beautiful handmade one, Sweep Dreams was the brand. I'd love to get another one some day.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

We are also a no shoes house with wood floors. No footprints at all. In the winter, I wear wool clogs for slippers.

I vacuum my wood floors once a week. I sweep in-between if they need it. I use a fabric pad mop (I'm not sure how else to describe it) with water/lemon juice/Thieves spray to wash the floors, and twice a year I actually get on my hands and knees to give them a good scrub.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

Our house is largely wood floors. We have always been a no outdoors shoes in the house family (regardless of flooring).

I personally dislike walking around on hard floors in barefeet (plus my feet are always cold!) so I'm always wearing wool socks or slippers. That's probably the most ideal for wood floors. That said, I can barely keep my kids in socks and shoes when they're outside let alone in the house! So inevitably they are always barefoot in the house. We've never had much of a problem with it. Technically yes, the oils on their feet do leave some residue on the floor that can be visible after a while but I have to clean the floors way more often for other reasons for that to even become a noticeable issue. :shrug3

If your family wants to do a house only shoes rule and it works for everyone I'd go with something like slippers. Super easy on and off and still super comfy.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

Walmart sells inexpensive slippers for kids.

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

I grew up with hardwood, and now we have faux hardwood ;) No footprints here! The only smudges are whenever the baby drops food on the floor and DH tries to "wipe" it up and just smears it everywhere :Shifty

We don't do shoes inside. If guests wear them inside, though, we don't make a big deal if it :shrug I feel like that would be rude of me to do that, so I just suck it up haha.

Sweeping-- I use either a Swiffer (which picks up the cat hair better than a regular broom) or, as others have said, an angled nylon broom. I try to sweep daily or at least every other day, but I'm not the best at remembering :shifty

Re: House-only Shoes, and other hardwood questions
 

We use the Vileda spray mop that has reusable cloths and you fill with your own cleaner. I like to wear hard bottomed slippers. I like soft bottomed ones too but they wear out too fast. I also will buy just house Dr. Scholls too because they’re comfy. My children do different things depending on the child but this is what I like.