Winter break is the perfect time for your school to take a step back and prepare your facilities for next semester. Cold weather, heavy foot traffic, and ice melt can leave behind dirt and residue, dull floors, and impact cleanliness. Taking advantage of this downtime to deep clean and recoat floors ensures your school is ready to welcome students and staff back to a bright, clean environment.
Floor Care: Scrub and Recoat for a Fresh Start
Winter floor care is essential to restore your floors after months of wear. Things like ice melt, sand, dirt and debris can damage floor finish. A scrub and recoat helps extend the life of your floors and protects them throughout the rest of the school year.
Why Buckeye Floor Finishes Matter
Buckeye floor finishes are designed to withstand multiple top scrubs and recoats, extending the life of your floors without the need for frequent stripping and refinishing. Other finishes may not be durable enough for this process, meaning these procedures will only be effective if your facility is already using a Buckeye floor finish.
Here’s how you can scrub and recoat your floors:
- Clear areas that require floor care; remove furniture, debris, and place wet floor signs.
- Clean and scrub areas using a low-speed machine or auto scrubber with a Buckeye floor cleaner.
- Rinse thoroughly and remove all solutions.
- Apply 2 to 3 coats of Buckeye floor finish, allowing time to dry between coats.
Recommended Products:
Buckeye Eco® Floor Cleaner (E32 or E33)
Buckeye Castleguard® or Clarion® 25 Floor Finish
Restroom Care: Time to Shine
Restrooms see continuous use and are a key area for germs and odors. Winter break provides the perfect opportunity to deep clean and refresh these high-traffic spaces. Focus on disinfecting surfaces, replenishing supplies, and removing buildup in hard-to-reach areas to ensure restrooms are fresh and ready for the new semester.
Download the full checklist for detailed restroom cleaning procedures and product recommendations.
Classroom Care: Spring into Action
Before students return, classrooms should be cleaned from top to bottom to create a healthy learning environment. Focus on disinfecting high-touch surfaces and organizing materials to start the semester strong.
Download the checklist to see detailed steps for cleaning classrooms, floors, and common areas.
Mat Maintenance Care
Mats take more than elbow grease. To effectively clean mats, utilize a Buckeye carpet spot remover such as Gone H202. For effective cleaning steps on mats, check out our winter preparation guide: Are Your Floors Ready for Winter?
Other Winter Break Steps
Winter break is also an ideal time to address areas that often go unnoticed during the busy school year. Wiping down windows, cleaning light fixtures, and dusting vents can make a big difference in maintaining a clean, bright environment.
Find a complete list of additional cleaning tasks in the downloadable winter checklist below.
Make the Most of Winter Break
A fresh start begins with clean, protected floors and disinfected spaces. Buckeye offers resources to help your team maintain high standards throughout the school year.
Our Honors Custodial Training Program gives staff 24/7 access to:
Step-by-step procedures for daily and restorative cleaning
Downloadable charts, testing for your team to review procedures and equipment
24/7 access to reporting and surveys to hand out to your team
Want a Downloadable Winter Cleaning Checklist?
Buckeye offers customizable tools to help keep your school clean and prepared for this upcoming spring semester. From cleaning floors to daily procedures and more check out this downloadable winter checklist for winter break.






ls like color cues, mirrors, floor decals, and flashing signs, all strategically designed to influence behavior and increase hand hygiene compliance.