[Wendy]

Does anyone have any comments about the maintenance of VCT?

[kelly]

Vinyl composition tile (vct) is a mix of thermoplastic binder, fillers and pigments. Vinyl Composition tiles offer moderate pricing, durability, easy installation, and assorted colors and patterns. They effectively resist scuffs, burns, dents, and grease, but may require occasional heavy duty cleaning because the embossing can trap dirt.
--floorbiz.com

Retain extra V.C.T. for possible repairs that may be needed in the future. Keep the materials in a dry place that stays about room temperature. Keep the V.C.T. laying on a flat surface. Do not stack more than three boxes high.
Non-staining walk off mats (avoid rubber mats) and entry rugs are strongly recommended at building entry ways (both inside and outside) to catch most of the soiling. The mass majority of the soil and grit that will fall into the room will do so in the first six feet of the entrances. Mats should be cleaned recurrently; otherwise, the mats will accelerate the soiling.

Sweep or dust mop your V.C.T. once per day. Sand and grit will scratch and dull the finish.

Damp mop your V.C.T. floor with water or an appropriate cleaner to remove stubborn soiling.

Clean, strip and polish the entire floor once every 6 to 12 months. You should strongly consider using a professional company like Wolfe Flooring to strip and polish the floor if you're not trained in this area. Never dry strip a V.C.T. floor. Standard surfaces should receive between 3 to 5 coats of finish. Slip resistance surfaces should receive 1 to 3 coats of finish. Apply finishes in thin layers only.

Do not ever let the finish wear completely through in any area. Apply a refresher coat as necessary to the high traffic areas.

Occasionally, spray buff or perform high-speed burnishing with a polishing machine and the appropriate pad (or, brush) to restore luster, dislodge soiling and smooth out blemishes in the original finish coat.

Use a nonabrasive polishing cleaner to remove scuff marks and black heel marks.

Tend to stains and spills immediately after occurrence. Stains set with time. Many stains that may be removable will become permanent if not wiped up immediately. Try to remove stains with mineral spirits, isopropyl alcohol, lighter fluid or acetone. (CAUTION: These are flammable liquids and should be handled carefully.)

Reflect direct sunlight away from V.C.T. to prevent fading and discoloration.

Avoid placing an appliance directly on your flooring that produces high levels of heat. Refrigerators and ovens are known to produce heat that can permanently damage your flooring.
--http://www.wolfeflooring.com/maintanence_vct.asp

Uhmn, sounds like a full time job! And that last part regarding refrigerators and ovens not being the best choices...maybe not?? Sounds like this describes institutional settings, not residential, so the heavier traffic indicates more consistent attention- still, you will have to do some of this stuff,even if on a less frequent basis. Also, I know I'm supposed to brush 3x, floss 1x, exercise daily, and meditate. Not meeting those requirements, still pretty much ok. Maybe VCT is like that.

Maybe we're not hearing the whole story...anybody have a VCT floor?

Kelly

[DesignDiva]

I have VCT in my DD's room. With proper maintenance, it can look great for a long time. It is commercial flooring, and can stand a lot of abuse and still be brought back to looking great.

Clean, strip and polish the entire floor once every 6 to 12 months

This is definitely for commercial applications. If you use wax regularly, you'll need to strip it now and then and start over with fresh wax. I used Floor Revive on mine and it looked terrific. Stripping it isn't difficult, just messy and time consuming and not a chore I love. But you don't have to do it that often...I would think when you redo the furniture arrangement you would want to move everything out and strip and wax the floor fresh, but not otherwise.

[splatgirl]

I agree with Eva. I put it in a bathroom and absolutely loved it. Extremely durable and decent looking with very little upkeep in a residential setting, plus the color choices are fantastic. I wiped on a coat or two of the liquid polish now and then but even when I was lax about doing so it still looked decent.
Don't let those mfgr. guidelines scare you off. It's a great, inexpensive product that would last basically forever.