Signs you need this
- Traffic lanes are darker than the rest of the carpet tiles
- Vinyl has gone dull and scuffs are no longer coming out with a mop
- The sealer on a lino floor has worn through at the door and the lift
- Entrance matting is saturated and grit is reaching the office floor
- You are handing a lease back and dilapidations mention floor condition
- A new tenant is moving in and the floors are the last thing outstanding
How floor care fits a cleaning contract
Daily cleaning keeps a floor presentable. It does not stop soil building up in the pile or the sealer wearing off at the pinch points. Those are periodic jobs, and they work best on a dated programme rather than a reaction to somebody noticing the floor looks tired.
On an office contract we usually set a programme year: extraction in reception and the corridors twice, the open plan floor once, a buff on the hard floors quarterly and a strip and reseal every two or three years depending on traffic. It gets written into the specification with a budget line against each item.
What we check before quoting
The material first. Carpet tile backing matters, because a bitumen backed tile handles moisture differently from a cushion backed one. On hard floors we check whether there is a sealer at all, how many coats are on and whether anyone has applied something incompatible over the top.
Then drainage, water and power. Extraction needs a water source and a place to empty. A third floor office with no tap on the level changes the machine we bring. Stone and terrazzo need a test before anything is committed, because the wrong pad or an acidic chemical does damage that cannot be undone.
Access and drying time come last. There is no point cleaning a floor at eight in the evening if people are back on it at seven the next morning and the building has no heating overnight.
Manchester buildings and their floors
Mill conversions in Ancoats and the Northern Quarter often have original timber, sealed concrete or reclaimed brick underfoot in circulation areas. They look good and they want a light touch. Too much water in a timber floor over a converted mill deck is a problem you do not want to create.
City centre and Spinningfields office floor plates are mostly carpet tile over a raised access floor, with vinyl in tea points and stone or terrazzo in the lobby. That mix is straightforward, provided the lobby stone is not taken on with the office chemical.
Trafford Park is different again. Unit offices, welfare blocks and canteens sit on vinyl and safety flooring that takes industrial traffic and, in winter, a lot of salt and grit from the yard. Those floors need a harder programme and a proper matting run at the door, or the sealer goes within a year.
The lease handback case
Dilapidations schedules frequently mention floor condition, and it is one of the few items a tenant can improve cheaply before handover. Extraction on the carpet tiles and a strip and reseal on the hard floors is a modest cost against a surveyor’s assessment. Do it after the furniture goes and before the final inspection, and get the dated record so you can evidence it.
How the work runs
- 1
Identify the floor
Carpet tile, broadloom, vinyl sheet, safety flooring, lino, engineered timber, terrazzo and stone all take different machines and chemicals. We check the finish and any manufacturer guidance before quoting a method.
- 2
Test an area
On anything older or unusual we test a small discreet section first. That settles how much soil will lift, whether a sealer is still present and how long the floor needs to dry.
- 3
Agree the window
Extraction and hard floor work happens out of hours. We agree the access, the drying time and when the space has to be back in use, then set the programme around it.
- 4
Carry out the work
Pre-vacuum, pre-spray and agitate, then extract. On hard floors, strip the old sealer, neutralise, apply coats to the right build and buff. Furniture is moved and put back where that is in scope.
- 5
Plan the next visit
You get a dated programme showing when each area is due again, so floor care sits in the budget rather than arriving as an unexpected quote.
What it typically costs
| Job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Carpet cleaning, hot water extraction Carpet tiles and broadloom, with a minimum charge on small areas | £1.80 to £3.50 per square metre |
| Minimum charge, carpet Covers machinery, water and the out of hours slot on small offices | £180 to £320 |
| Hard floor strip and reseal Vinyl, lino and safety flooring, including two to four coats of sealer | £6 to £14 per square metre |
| Buff and burnish, maintenance visit Between full strips, usually monthly or quarterly on a programme | £1.20 to £2.60 per square metre |
| Stone and terrazzo restoration Diamond pad work and impregnation, priced after a test area | Quoted per site |
Typical ranges for Manchester and the surrounding area , reviewed September 2026. Every quote is written and fixed before work starts.