Most commercial floor strippers come with weights. These weights are applied based on the type of floor surface, how much wax may have built up over time, and other conditions. Adding more weight could certainly help it seem as though the stripping is going faster, but it comes with a catch.
It could cause damage to the floor surface.
The older a machine is, the lower quality it is, the riskier this move will be. Remember, when you add weight or push down on something that is intended to strip or sand surfaces down, it’s going to do this type of work faster, and it might not do it evenly.
Some maintenance personnel apply more pressure in certain areas.
They may get to a point along the commercial floor surface when it appears as though there’s excessive wax and they need to work a little bit harder. When they get to these areas, it’s far better for them to simply let the machine do the work, even if it takes an extra five or 10 minutes rather than applying more pressure with their arms and body weight.
If they apply more pressure or add more weights, it could cause the machine to get way beyond the wax surface and begin tearing at the linoleum tile instead.
When that happens, the tiles may need to be replaced. The damaged tiles, if not replaced or repaired, will cause even greater issues and look terrible once the new wax surface is applied and it is polished.
Imperfections are brought out, amplified, with the waxed surface. So, if the temptation is to apply more weights because the floor hasn’t been stripped in a long, long time whether the machine is getting old and showing signs of its age, it’s time to think about other options. One of the better options is to invest in a better machine that is more balanced, easier to use, and provides better results.