Buying floor scrubbing equipment for your company is a considerable investment. These machines are fairly expensive, but as with any machine, there are additional expenses to operate the machine.

Consider the following guidelines concerning pricing and costs of floor scrubbers when determining the long-term expenses associated with your purchase:

1. Figure out the cost buying of brushes and pads periodically for your floor scrubbing equipment.

2. Think about the overall cost of purchasing floor scrubbing supplies, such as cleaners, needed to properly care for the floors.

3. Remember you may have to purchase replacement parts for commercial floor scrubbers, especially once the warranty expires.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Consider the cost of brushes and pads for the floor scrubbers

Many industrial floor scrubbers, including automatic scrubber equipment, use brushes, pads, squeegees or a combination of all of these. Regardless of the type of machine you purchase, you will have to purchase replacements for these items periodically to keep the machine working like new.

I recommend: CleanFreak.com sells brushes for floor scrubbers, including automatic scrubbers. These items are priced from around $75 to about $400. Parish Maintenance Supply has a varied selection of scrubbing and stripping pads for floor scrubbing equipment. This company offers discounted prices starting at around $15 per case for the smallest pads, with the price increasing with each size and type.

Determine the cost of buying floor scrubbing supplies

Floor scrubbing supplies, such as stripper, wax and cleaner, are necessary to keep the floors clean and looking nice. These costs associated with these chemicals are recurring costs as these products aren't reusable.

I recommend: Valtec offers industrial floor cleaning chemicals at wholesale prices. You can find floor stripper, sealer and finishing products at this company. WholeSale Industrial Supply offers discounted pricing on all floor cleaning products. You can save even more money by registering as a member of the website to take advantage of member pricing. Floor cleaning chemicals from either company start at around $60 with prices going above $600 on some chemicals.

Think about the cost of replacement parts for the floor scrubbing equipment

When your floor scrubbing equipment isn't working properly, you may find that you need to purchase replacement parts. Many of these parts are inexpensive compared to the cost of the machine, and others are almost as costly as purchasing a new machine.

I recommend: Bortek offers replacement parts and owners manuals for many different brands of floor scrubbers. The price of each part varies greatly depending on the part and manufacturer. IVIE Enterprises sells replacement parts, including motors for many different floor scrubbers. Replacement parts for floor scrubbers start at about $150.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Remember that some floor scrubbers, including commercial kitchen floor scrubbers, require splash guards to avoid splashing chemicals onto surfaces that must remain sanitary.

Commercial floor scrubbers are large, expensive pieces of equipment, so when you start shopping for one, you'll want to make sure you know what you need.

Floor scrubbers, which are different from floor sweepers, generally come in riding and walk-behind varieties and in several different size machines, depending on the size of the area you need to clean.

Whether you're shopping for industrial floor scrubbers or kitchen floor scrubbers, there are several considerations to keep in mind:

1. Deciding if you want a walk-behind or riding floor scrubber.
2. Shopping for the floor cleaner with the proper power source for your business.
   
3. Determining size limitations for a commercial floor scrubber.
4. Looking at smaller scrubbers or considering a lease agreement for less intensive cleaning jobs.
5. Comparing prices and shopping refurbished or used to save on a commercial floor scrubber.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Decide on a walk-behind or riding automatic scrubber

Walk-behind commercial floor scrubbers are generally self-propelled and don't require you to push. Riding models are typically larger and more expensive.

I recommend: CleanKing stocks both riding and walk-behind floor scrubbers, which can be helpful when comparing features. You might find some walk-behind scrubbers by the term cylindrical auto floor scrubbers.

Power up with different sources for floor scrubbers

Floor scrubbing equipment can be powered several ways--electrically, which requires a cord, by battery or by propane. Battery powered scrubbers offer the most convenient option because they are cordless, but you'll have to replace batteries periodically.

I recommend: Shop with a manufacturer such as Janilink that offers floor scrubbers with several different power sources so you can easily compare their specifications. Visit Apex Battery to get replacement batteries.

Pick an automatic scrubber size

Industrial floor scrubbers generally come in two size options for both walk-behind and riding models, and you can choose based on the model specifications.

I recommend: View the specifications for small frame walk-behind as well as mid-size walk-behind floor scrubbers, as well as micro riders and mid-size riders at Tomcat Commercial Cleaning Equipment to get an idea of how much floor area each rider can clean and other product information. Compare model sizes at Janilink, as well.

Don't overshoot your automatic scrubber needs

Not every job is an industrial strength job, and you may find that you need a commercial scrubber but only for a short amount of time. You can lease floor scrubbers or shop for smaller model kitchen floor scrubbers for short-term or smaller cleaning projects.

I recommend: Most floor scrubbing equipment suppliers also offer the option of leasing equipment. Apply to lease at Southeastern Equipment. For smaller jobs, try a kitchen floor scrubber from Hoover that looks more like an upright vacuum than commercial floor scrubbing equipment and is much cheaper than an industrial model.

Shop used and refurbished floor scrubbers

Savings can be substantial on used cleaning equipment. Many manufacturers of floor scrubbers and buffers offer used or refurbished floor scrubbing equipment for sale.

I recommend: Janilink offers used equipment for sale, while other floor scrubbing equipment manufacturers offer refurbished or reconditioned floor scrubbers that carry a reconditioned seal of quality. Whether you're shopping new or used, fill in information about the type of scrubber you're looking for at BuyerZone and get a series of price quote comparisons on floor scrubbers.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If you're buying a commercial floor scrubber for the first time, you may want to lease one first to make sure that you get a model that best fits your purposes. Floor scrubbers are expensive pieces of cleaning equipment and can be expensive to ship if you order one and decide to return it.

Floor scrubbers and buffers make caring for floors in high traffic areas, including factories and stores, easy. With most of these machines, you can clean, strip, wax, buff and polish the floor by simply changing the brush or pad.

When you are in the market for a new floor scrubbing equipment, you should consider these floor scrubbers basics before you purchase your floor scrubbing equipment and supplies:

1. Consider purchasing rotary floor scrubbers if you have a lot of small areas, including carpeted areas, to clean.

2. Look into buying a walk behind automatic scrubber if you have a fairly wide open floor plan.

3. Think about investing in a ride on floor scrubber if you have a very large floor to clean on a regular basis.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Decide if rotary floor scrubbing equipment meets your needs

Rotary floor scrubbing equipment, including carpet scrubbers, are ideal for areas that need fairly detailed cleaning, such as offices and exam rooms. These floor scrubbers are usually the most inexpensive models and the easiest to store.

I recommend: FloorScrubbers.com has a varied selection of rotary floor scrubbers, including a rotary carpet scrubber. This company offers online customer support via a chat server to help you choose the scrubber that best fits your needs. Marko Janitorial Supply has a large selection of rotary floor scrubbers, including a hand held version. This company offers an "Ask the Expert" feature on the website, which allows you to get help in finding the best products for your needs.

Choose walk behind floor scrubbing equipment for fairly open floors

If you have a fairly open floor plan, such as a factory floor that has few obstacles, a walk behind floor scrubber is an appropriate choice. These floor scrubbers have more detailed cleaning options than a ride on model, but less than a rotary model.

I recommend: Southeastern Equipment & Supply has a varied selection of new, used, refurbished and value priced floor scrubbers for sale. This company offers models small enough to be kitchen floor scrubbers and large enough to qualify as commercial floor scrubbers. ScrubberCare.com sells walk behind industrial floor scrubbers, strippers and polishers. This company offers discounted prices and shipping.

Consider ride on floor scrubbing equipment

Businesses with large, open floors usually find that ride on floor scrubbing equipment is the best option. These machines are very large and meant for use in wide open areas, such as an indoor sports arena or convention center. Ride on floor scrubbing equipment requires a large storage area and, in some cases, operator training and certification.

I recommend: Mar-Co Equipment has a large selection of industrial floor scrubbers, including ride on models. This company offers new, used, rental and refurbished floor sweepers and automatic scrubber equipment. Caliber Equipment sells mainly refurbished industrial floor scrubbers and floor sweepers, including parking lot sweepers. This company offers online maintenance support for the models it sells.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Consider purchasing more than one type of floor scrubbing equipment if you have different size areas to care for, such as a fairly open factory floor and multiple offices.

Floor scrubbers are an essential for most business maintenance departments. From large industrial plants to the a two-room office, floor scrubbers are used on hard wood floors, linoleum, marble, and even carpet. Use the knowledge of a few basic definitions when it comes to floor scrubbers and their uses to better understand what you need. From the different types of polishes to automatic, cylindrical and disk scrubbers, there are many terms to understand.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Auto-scrubber

The term auto-scrubber refers to the machine's capability of using cleaning solution and collecting the solution after it is used. Once the floor is scrubbed with the solution, it is picked up by the machine and kept in storage so the floor is dry when done.

I recommend: Review a brief definition of auto-scrubber and other floor cleaning terms at Essential Industries.

Pre-dilution, pre-diluted

Floor cleaning products can come in a pre-diluted form meaning the cleaning chemical has already been broken down to its correct dose by adding water.

I recommend: Find an explanation of pre-dilution at HydraQuip's glossary of floor cleaning terms.

Cylindrical and disk

There are two main types of scrubbers: cylindrical and disk scrubber. Cylindrical scrubbers use brushes to sweep debris up into a tray and wash the floor at the same time. A disk scrubber does the washing and waxing with pads or brushes that rotate. If using a disk scrubber, debris needs to be swept up before hand.

I recommend: Read over a description of disk and cylindrical scrubbers at Caliber Equipment. They provide definitions and examples of how each type of floor scrubber works.

Topical polisher

A topical polisher is a polish added to the floor scrubbing process. Some machines can handle the polish as part of their complete cleaning process, while others need to finish with the topical polisher to create a shiny protective coat on a floor.

I recommend: The Floor Scrubbers blog explains topical polisher and how it should be used.

Self polishing finish

A self polishing or dry bright finish as sometimes called, finish is a basic cleaning chemical designed to dry with a high shiny gloss, thus eliminating the need to buff it.

I recommend: Coastwide Laboratories provides a definition of self polishing finish.

Ec-H2O

Ec-H2O is an electronic process designed to turn ordinary water into a cleaning solution. The process is used in floor scrubber machines that make cleaning your floors environmentally friendly as well.

I recommend: Find out more on how Tennant has developed the ec-H20 technology and how water can be used without chemicals to clean your floors.