Steps To Refinishing Hardwood Floors

Refinishing hardwood floors is a great way to give worn and damaged floors a new lease on life. It’s also a good way to freshen up your home’s appearance. When refinishing hardwood floors, there are several steps to follow, which we will go over in this blog. We’ll also go over the tools and materials you’ll need for each step, which will help you stay on track. You may also want to visit Floor Sanding professionals in Perth for more information.

Clean The Floors Using Hardwood Floor Cleaner

Remove all of the furniture from the room and mop the floor with a hardwood flooring cleaner or a homemade solution of 10 parts water to 1 part white vinegar.

Wipe the floor gently with a terry-cloth mop or a mop head wrapped in a towel.

To keep dust contained in the room you’re sanding, close the windows and doors.

Preparation of the Perimeter

Hand-sand the room’s perimeter and any nooks that the buffer can’t reach with 180-grit sandpaper.

4 to 6 inches out from the baseboard, rub with the grain, working over each board until the finish dulls and a powder forms.

Pro Tip: When refinishing hardwood floors, avoid using a sanding block because it may miss uneven spots.

Finish The Floor with Scuff Sanding

Put a dust mask on and attach a maroon buffing pad to the buffer.

Move the buffer from side to side across the floor, overlapping each course by 6 inches in the direction of the grain.

As you go, the old finish turns to powder, making it easy to see where you’ve covered.

Keep the buffer moving at all times, but vacuum the pad every 5 minutes or so.

Tack and Vacuum

Allow 10 to 15 minutes for the powder to settle in the room.

Replace the vacuum’s filter and sweep the floor with a felt-bottomed attachment.

Sweep across the flooring strips in a line with the flooring strips to remove any powder that has settled between the boards.

Finally, use a microfiber cloth to dry-tack the floor with the grain.

Cut In Along The Edges

Booties should be worn over your shoes, and a respirator with organic vapour canisters should be worn over your nose and mouth.

Pour some of the strained finish into a small plastic container after straining the finish through a cone filter into a clean plastic watering can without a sprinkler head.

At the farthest point from your exit door, paint a 3-inch-wide stripe alongside the baseboards.

If the stripe’s edge starts to dry, you’ll get lap marks, so stop after 10 minutes and move on to the next step.

Roll Out the Poly

Pour only as much finish as you can spread in 10 minutes in a 1-inch-wide stripe parallel to the grain.

Roll out the finish with the grain, then across it, using a long-handled roller with a 14-inch nap cover.

To keep a wet edge, overlap each pass and work quickly.

Brush more finish along the edge after 10 minutes, then pour and roll for another 10 minutes. Carry on until the floor is completely covered.

Wait three hours before repainting and a week before reassembling furniture.

Refinish or Replace Hardwood Floors: Which Is Cheaper?

Refinishing hardwood floors is almost always less expensive than replacing them. With the latter, you’d be paying not only for the new wood but also for the labour involved in ripping out and hauling away the old.

How Long Does Sanding & Refinishing Takes?

Refinishing a 100 square foot floor will take about 5 hours. It also depends on how complicated your layout is and how well it is maintained.

Is It Possible To Refinish A Floor Without Sanding?

Without sanding, you can’t properly refinish a floor. To do it correctly, you must remove all layers of the old finish and smooth out the surface before applying a new one. You can, however, recoat a good-looking floor without sanding it first to add a layer of protection.

DIY vs. Professional Hardwood Refinishing

Refinishing wood floors, like any other DIY home improvement project, comes with risks. If done incorrectly, homeowners risk gouging their floors and paying two to three times what a professional would charge. Other dangers include:

Using the belt sander to create an uneven scratch pattern.
Due to my advanced age, I am unable to retrieve anything from the floor.
Failure to remove enough of the finish before beginning to sand.
Filling in the cracks between the hardwood planks is not a good idea.
Spending more money on additional repairs or refinishing than anticipated.

Refinishing hardwood floors is usually best left to professionals due to the delicate nature of wood floors and the need to complete the project correctly without making mistakes or causing damage. To get the job done right the first time, contact a hardwood floor refinisher near you today.

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