Hardwood floors are a classic and beautiful addition to a home and can even add value, according to the National Wood Flooring Association. The floor’s finish plays a large role in the appealing look and a solid refinishing job can have the floor looking like new again. We have provided some tips for making the process a smoother one. Refinishing floors is no easy task and requires thorough understanding of the process and years of experience to achieve a quality look. We have often been called upon to fix DIY refinishing mishaps and our advice would be to get in touch with a professional to do your wood refinishing job. Finishing wood floors is a meticulous and skillful process, and the job will come out better when done by a proven expert.
Prep
Before you start the sanding process it is important to inspect the state of your floor and check for exposed nails or staples. The most time consuming portion of the preparation will be the researching and choosing of a sander. When at the hardware store purchase extra sand paper because you will find yourself using more than anticipated. Remove all items from the room and tape off all areas that you are not walking on to protect from dust.
Sanding
When selecting sandpaper, we would recommend starting off with a coarse paper and gradually moving towards a finer grit. It will be important to get a feel for the sander and keep the sander moving along the surface at all times. When you are working on the corners it will be useful to switch to a hand sander.
Staining
There are a lot of choices to select from when it comes to stains, and we recommend reading our post on finishes to get an idea of what your options are. Ideally you want to achieve your desired look in as little coats as possible, hopefully the first one. Less is better than more when it comes to applying stains because you don’t want to over saturate a particular area.
Applying polyurethane
Practice with a few different applicators before diving into your floors. This can be a frustrating process and we would recommend to not be a perfectionist. The coating will bubble when placed over any hair or dust particles on the floor. Try to ensure that the area is as clean as possible before applying the polyurethane.
Hopefully these words of advice can make your refinishing project a smoother one. If you have any specific questions regarding finishing floors, please comment below. Going the DIY route may seem like the cheaper option to begin with but from our experience people often end up spending more money and time on the project than originally expected. Often times Metro Atl. Floors has been called upon to remedy a DIY floor finishing job gone wrong. Like we mentioned earlier, Metro would recommend using a local professional to refinish your wood floors. Although, there is a definite sense of accomplishment felt when completing a do-it-yourself project as difficult and time consuming as refinishing.
These tips on floor refinishing are incredibly awesome. The insights are great. Floor refinishing is indeed a great project for every homeowner. This may be costly but the results are absolutely amazing and beautiful. It really pays to have hardwood floors done this way. This helps in the preservation and beautification of floors.