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Hardwood floor refinishing and sanding is unforgiving work . Make a mistake , and it will show . However , a refinished trading floor can get beauty to a way like no other labor . To hire a pro to sand , seal , brand , and apply several stopping point coat of an oil - based poly will cost $ 4 per square foot or more . This means it will be around $ 8,000 for the labour and material to refinish the hardwood floors in a 2,000 - square - metrical foot home plate . Doing it yourself can pull through at least half of that . Think you ’re up for it ? hold out some helpful tips below about how to refinish hardwood floors .
Are you undertaking this domicile improvement projection yourself ? bear that some prep work , such as desexualize gouges in the wood , as well as the real summons of sully and refinishing hardwood floor to take about 4 Clarence Shepard Day Jr. of work and be around $ 700 . Ahead , we accost the materials , work , and process to refinish hardwood floors , including :
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As you will see , refinish your home ’s floors will take some time and endeavour . But if you yield attention to each step and apply the right instrument , you will have like - newfangled hardwood flooring in under a week . If you conceive you ’re ready to get start on this project , read on for some helpful peak about refinishing hardwood floors .
10 Tips for Refinishing Hardwood Floors
Recoating hardwood flooringis an excellent project for homeowner to undertake , whether you ’re renovating a single room or you want to respire raw life history into the floor throughout your home . This advice will help you achieve the best results .
1. Choose DIY-friendly sanding equipment.
Random orbital smoother are the best choice for do - it - yourself hardwood floor refinish . They take longer to withdraw former finish than tympan sanders , but they do not ask a peck of experience to practice and are less likely to damage your woodwind floor . With a random orbital sander , you could move with or against the wood caryopsis .
It ’s important to keep the sander level at all times , as even an orbital sander can “ range away ” from you and cause sander marking that are unmanageable to remove . With some longanimity , however , it ’s potential to expend arandom orbital sanderfor good answer .
Be sure to organise your home before sanding and refinishing wood flooring .
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Sanding your floor properly is one of the most critical steps involved in refinishing hardwood floors . This is because it bump off the old smear and turn your intact floor into a blank slate .
2. Be careful when lifting equipment and working on the floor.
As for any other plate betterment project , you will need to take precaution to fend off back injury when transporting sanders from the rental store to your house ( or on a higher floor ) by always having a assistant . Use incline to move the machine whenever possible . likewise , get help moving heavy furniture out of the room . ( A room has to be completely empty before you begin . ) You also need to use right form when bent over sanding , enforce varnish , or cleaning up throughout the labor .
3. Use the right safety equipment.
Hardwood story refinish and sanding generates a big amount of dust and fumes . Stock up on detritus masks andearplugsand , when applying sealer and oil - establish polyurethane , weary a National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ( NIOSH)-approved constitutive vapor gas helmet , neoprene orvinyl gloves , andeye protectionwith spatter guards .
You will also involve to put up charge card sheeting to forbid the spread of junk throughout your home . Be indisputable to choose the right case of plastic establish on the desire durability , and cover up vents to keep junk at a minimum .
4. Choose the right sandpaper and floor sander.
Begin withcoarse - grit sandpapersufficient to take away the honest-to-goodness finishing and most surface scratch . Avoid using grits coarser than 60 ; this will help forestall you from damaging the floor . continue with abrasive that are step by step finer until you reach the desired level of smoothness . ( My favorite progression for a hardwood floor such as oak tree begins with 60 - grit abrasive , goes to 80 - grit , and finishes with 100- or 120 - grit . )
Move the trading floor sander as though you are mowing the lawn . go on row by dustup , overlapping running game by half the sander ’s width . You will have to make legion passes with each grit .
5. Remember the corners.
A palm smoother may be used to sandpaper near baseboard moldings , but expend a sharp scraper or putty knife to remove any former finish area the drum sander may miss . scraper allow you to get into time out ( along board edge and at butt joints ) without cause to remove a mass of material with the electric sander .
6. Clean up dust and hair.
When you ’ve finish sanding , remove all debris by vacuum and wipe the sand area with a saddlery cloth . If you find a stray tomentum embedded in dried polyurethane and you still have at least one pelage to go , softly sand over the hair with a very o.k. ( 320 ) abrasive . Carefully turn over out the fuzz with a pin or fingernail , if potential . Then resand with the same very all right abrasive , taking care not to breach the stain layer . Upon recoating with polyurethan , the hair mark will all but disappear .
7. Apply sealer.
A sealant coat is not typically needed , but if your floor take grime unevenly , it will facilitate ensure a more logical stain coverage . try for this by apply soil to an sphere that will not be seeable once the furniture is moved back into place . It is of the essence to apply the sealant evenly . Otherwise , skipped areas , hold back Mark , and lap soft touch ( chevron ) may show through after sully hardwood floors .
8. Apply wood stain evenly.
Applyingwood stainevenly , peculiarly over a big area , is n’t as easy as it might seem . We advocate that you try out apply the grunge with an applier to one small-scale arena at a meter ( about 18 inches by 3 foot ) , and rubbing off all excess with a rag . Avoid letting the leading bound of your job dry ; you will cease up with lap marks . oil color - based mark stay workable longer than water - found stains .
9. Carefully apply polyurethane.
Many pros pourpolyurethanealong the floor and then spread it with an 18 - column inch lamb ’s wool applier , but this is likely to result in a bed that ’s too thick for the novice . A sound way for the DIYer is to roll out on the polyurethan using a foam crimper , preferably a gamey - density foam roller . The coat will be thin , even , and will speedily dry out to a glassy bland ending . Use a good brush for cutting in around the elbow room perimeter .
10. Have an exit strategy.
Begin your app along the bulwark opposite the room access you stand for to exit . oeuvre in rows parallel to the threshold toward the wall with the room access . When you get close , you will have to change your work pattern and piece of work from the end walls toward the door . This make it tough to reach continuous smoothing strokes , so apply a little extra poly and count on its ego - leveling properties for a liquid finish .
FAQs
Refinishing your hardwood floors may seem like a unmanageable task , but with the right equipment , knowledge , and time you’re able to preserve a lot of money by doing this project yourself .
Typically , a professional declarer will bill between $ 3 and $ 4 per square foot for preparation , sanding , and other steps needed to refinish hardwood floors .
If you are looking for a DIY home improvement project , this one will take you about 4 days and be approximately $ 700 .
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