How to care and clean tatami mat in 9 Simple Steps. Easy for Everyone! Keep these words in your mind!
If you follow this advice your tatami will be serving you for many years. Proper care means clean tatami. How to clean the Tatami mat? NEVER go against the surface…
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If you follow this advice your tatami will be serving you for many years. Proper care means clean tatami.
How to clean the Tatami mat?
NEVER go against the surface (omote) of the Japanese flooring. We know a lot of methods of cleaning mats, but the most important thing is how to care properly about the tatami. Don’t forget! Clean in line with the mat or vacuum along the grain, because if you don’t do this, you can damage the tatami (omote). I’m sure this is the last thing, you want. This rule also applies to dry cloth cleaning.
Vacuum cleaner
The vacuum cleaner will become a part of your cleaning routine. It’s helper number one! The best way how to achieve a clean tatami, but you have to be very careful.
Vacuum alongside the grain.
Move slowly and don’t push or pull the vacuum back.
Select lower mode on your vacuum.
We don’t recommend robot cleaners, because they can’t recognize the Tatami (omote) floor and it can be damaged.
After vacuuming, wipe the Tatami once a week with a dry cloth.
Cleaning with a Broom
The cleaning method that is known for a long time includes a broom. If you don’t have any experience at all with a broom cleaning and sweeping on the tatami floor, here are some helpful advice.
All you need is a broom and dry cloth for cleaning.
The fact that the Tatami (omote) is a soft floor, a broom is a better choice than a vacuum cleaner. The reason for this is, picking up the dust is easier for a broom.
Wipe away the dust in the line on the Tatami (omote).
Then you should use a dry cloth to remove dust. Cleaning in line on the Tatami (omote). If you don’t do the cleaning in this way, you may damage the Tatami.
Dry wiping increases the shine of the tatami.
Don’t let moisture get inside your Tatami!
Do you know what will happen when your mat is wet? Damage could occur! What is the cause of the moisture? Let us explain: The best ideal condition for fleas and mold is moisture, also the mat is highly absorbent, you have to provide ventilation in the room. To make the mats “healthy” and clean without a mold. Another reason, why the Tatami starts to mold is the use of wet cloth for cleaning.
Wipe with a dry cloth!
Benefits of using a dry cloth:
A dry cloth will keep all the natural oils, on the Tatami (omote)and protect against rapid aging.
For a deeper cleaning of the mat use a dry cloth, but wipe it in the line!
Mold prevention!
Can you imagine summer and rainy days without humidity? This idea is beautiful, who doesn’t what this? But this is a part of these seasons. During these days moisture can increase in your house and that is a perfect condition for mold in the Tatami.
Learn new information, how to “fight” against a mold, life will be much easier. Life without mites!
How to maintain a clean tatami you may ask, to reveal this secret you should follow these steps.
- Tatami needs fresh air and regular ventilation, due to keeping durability for a long time.
- De-humidifier is highly recommended
- Leave windows open all day, Air exchange in the room is really helpful
- Use a fan to circulate air in your house
- When you finish a shower or bathe use turn on the ventilate
- You need to do regular checks of critical places in the house, where mold can be expected such as window frames, in the north corners of your room, and in the back of closets
- The quality of sleep is conditioned by many factors and a doctor from the University of Lisbon Dr. Nuno Canha explains, what benefits have sleeping with open windows during the night, and some are, getting rid of the dry air
Did you notice mold?
Let’s win over it!
The old verified method is using a toothbrush to scrub the tatami with the help of ethanol.
But there is another way how to clean tatami and get rid of mold by using a chemical product. It’s called Kabi Kira カビキラー which means “mold killer”. This spray should be primarily used on walls and bathrooms, not directly on the Tatami floor because it contains bleach, which can damage the surface of the mat.
Your tatami can be infested by any mites.
Get rid of Dani!
DANI ダ are the mites. These fleas you can found in very old Japanese Tatami, which wasn’t relocated for a long time or their care has been neglected and incorrect. When the tatami is infested from the mold you should get rid of them as soon as possible.
During the night mites may surprise you while you sleep. If you have small red itchy bites on your body it is definitely a Dani. They appear around ankles, wrists, and necks.
When it is too late, your option is to use a bud spray called DANI Aasu ダニアース, which was specifically made for the Tatami. This spray can maintain a clean tatami without a mite infestation.
Can you see it? A stain on my Tatami! I would like to have a clean tatami again.
Don’t panic, keep calm, and let’s remove a stain from the mat. Citric acid or vinegar can solve your problem! Deep dirty or sunburn can be clean again.
Our tip: avoid use baking soda, it can do more harm than good, for example, the Tatami (omote) may change color, please don’t try it or don’t use any chemical product unless it is necessary.
How to proceed:
- The first thing you need to do is fill the bucket halfway with water or lukewarm water. (If the tatami remains discolored and damaged, the cause of this problem can be the use of boiling water, please don’t do this!)
- Add one teaspoon of citric acid or 100cc of vinegar to the bucket and mix
- Dampen the dust cloth in the bucket and squeeze hard
- Moisten the mats with a cloth and wipe dry with another dry cloth. Wipe the stain carefully
- The last step is to ensure ventilation and make sure that the tatami is dry, due to the prevention of mold and fleas
Tips: If you feel a bad smell from your tatami, use a cloth to wipe your mats with a small amount of vinegar or you can choose tatami-yo- kuri-na-a 畳用クリーナー is a chemical product for cleaning tatami.
OMG! I have a dirty tatami from liquids or food, what can I do?
Let’s take care of the dirty futon immediately.
Spills of water, green tea, or drink which doesn’t contain sugar is easier to clean, just wipe with a dry cloth, you don’t need any chemical cleaners.
We know that life without coffee doesn’t make any sense but it could sometimes bring some troubles. Such as spills of coffee on the Tatami. You have to fix it! You want to know how? Let us tell you how. You must soak up all the liquid with a cloth and then wipe it with a damp vinegar cloth, to this only on the affected area. This procedure can be applied to, spills of milk tea or liquids which contain sugars or fats.
During serving or consuming traditional Japanese food, eg. ramen, noodles, or sushi someone may drop a piece of food on the floor and the mats stay dirty. Here is the instruction on how to take care of this situation.
Instructions for you, provided by us:
Please, pick up all the big leftovers, then with the help of a vacuum cleaner on the lowest mode pick up all the small leftovers, after vacuuming wipe it with a dry cloth. When the Tatami (omote) is too dirty, you can use a cloth soaked in vinegar and wipe it. Make sure that the Tatami is dry and clean.
Conclusion
Finally, our last piece of advice is: take off your shoes before you enter the house, especially in Japan. It’s a cultural habit of many countries in the world. This habit maintains clean tatami.
In the previous post, we devoted time to this topic, which is full of interesting points and facts. Just open the post and learn something new and unknown for you.
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