Sure, it's a no-brainer that dirt and dust … Wipe the floor with a cloth dampened with mineral spirits to get up any remaining dust. This is a great video from Ken Fisher which explains the process of refinishing pre-finished floors and how to eliminate (or reduce) the bevels. New wood may be sealed with a water-based finish or penetrating … The hardwood floor refinishing process is easier and less expensive than sanding down to … This is why gym floors are strictly constructed with maple flooring. How to Patch Scratches and Small Holes i... How to Patch Scratches and Small Holes in Hardwood Floors. Open all windows for ventilation. It was a project I was looking forward to tackling. Gabriel Connor Salter is a freelance writer and editor who has had over 280 articles published by various organizations.   Refinishing Old Hardwood Floors. Leave the putty undisturbed for several hours so it dries completely. If a floor is scratch-sanded or screened (not entirely stripped of its old finish), then you must use a compatible finish for reapplication. Cover light fixtures with a trash bag secured with masking tape. It was a project I was looking forward to … The carpet was crap and the linoleum was old school. Go with the woodgrain to smooth off old varnish, urethane and other finishes. We could have hired a pro, they would have done a good job, and the floors would have looked great. Fill damaged areas with wood filler. Situations differ, but you may not be able to refinish your hardwood floor more than 10 times. Continue to Step 2 if you decide to go ahead with the complete refinishing. Move the sander against the grain to level off warped or bowed planks. Nevertheless we thought long and hard about whether to install a new floor or simply refinish the old one. Have 1 person put the stain on, and another to spread it and wipe up spills and pools. I need advice on refinishing an 80 year old maple floors. Fill any gaps at plank ends and any cracks in planks with a suitably colored wood floor putty. Allow to dry. This means that you do not have to re-coat your maple hardwood floor often, and it can last up to 25 years with careful maintenance. Learning how to refinish hardwood floors involves taking care during the sanding process and the application of finish. Get fair costs for your SPECIFIC project requirements. If the room includes a closet, remove the closet contents. the home has hardwood floors underneath carpet and linoleum. 3. Pour liquid refinisher into a shallow pan. Herb Kirchhoff has more than three decades of hands-on experience as an avid garden hobbyist and home handyman. Many consider this a nice, contemporary “Scandinavian” look. You can prepare the floor for refinishing by using a liquid floor refinisher, which is a type of chemical finish stripper designed to remove hardwood floor finishes. Apply stain and floor finish as in Section 1. HEAR PINE. Scuff-sand the Floor Finishing. ... It’s a good idea to vacuum the floors and anything else nearby to prepare the perfect refinishing environment. It’s more expensive than oak – for one reason. Floors that have been painted may even require you to go tougher and use 24 or 16-grit paper. Best for: Situations requiring the toughest floor finish. Sweep the entire floor with both a broom and a dust mop, then vacuum with the shop vacuum. You can leave the baseboards in place unless you're planning to replace them. The job of refinishing our 25 year old maple floors as part of a renovation, especially since there were areas that needed wood replacement, seemed like a daunting task. The cost to Refinish Floors starts at $4.43 - $5.89 per square foot, but can vary significantly with site conditions and options. We're doing a kitchen remodel on our 100 year old American foursquare. Many mistakes happen as a result of jumping into the refinishing project too hastily without getting a good idea of what is needed regarding material, … He has also worked as a seasonal employee for the landscaping companies Fisk Lawnscapes and Davey Tree Expert Company and as a Remodeling Assistant for the home renovation company Improvement Pros, LLC. Everyone should be on the same page about the expectations and what to expect. Moisture-Cure Urethane. I had a question about wood floor refinishing. – If your floors are REALLY OLD and have been refinished many times, it may be time for a new floor. Inspect the stripped floor for gouges. Stick a maroon buffing pad to the buffer, and put … Since Wrecking Ball showcases some of the scary sides of remodeling, I thought I would share with you the most challenging part of our remodel – our maple hardwood flooring. Fir bedoom floor before. DoItYourself.com®, founded in 1995, is the leading independent My wife and I had an open weekend last week and decided to hammer out sanding and refinishing our hardwood floors in our Wisconsin home. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Professional Writing from Taylor University, which enabled him to write for several Indiana newspapers, including The Waynesdale News and The News Herald. Let me show you some before and afters. I tried various colors but was not able to get the floor to not look splochy. We welcome your comments and 2. Many homeowners believe the best way to refresh a wood floor that looks dirty or worn is to sand and refinish it. This is a question we get every week in our field “Can you stain my maple floor?”. If you have finished your research, and are ready to hire a contractor to clean your old wood floors without refinishing, these are a few tips worth considering. From what I have been told, Maple is one of the most difficult floors to sand, refinish. and make it look good. Successfully refinished hardwood flooring can bring a new shine to your old floor. As you’ll see, refinishing pre-finished hardwood floors are a bit more challenging to do (and best left to the professionals). I’m not talking about oak floors that have been dinged and scratched up…I mean if your floors have been down for over 100 yrs and refinished at least 5 times. Don't think you can do it just by sanding, though. I’m not talking about oak floors that have been dinged and scratched up…I mean if your floors have been down for over 100 yrs and refinished at … Staining Maple Hardwood Floors. If the floor is pine, it's a little more difficult to deal with, but with care, you can create a beautiful floor. We are a full-service hardwood floor contractor providing quality service to residential, industrial, and commercial clients in Wisconsin. Wear gloves and eye protection when working with the refinisher and open all windows to ventilate the room while you work. Most homeowners spend between $2,200 and $8,100 to install new wood flooring vs. an average of $1,550 to refinish. What are the cons of sandless floor refinishing? Maple floors are so hard that they often require 36-grit sandpaper as well. For both applications the best way to start is by sanding the maple floor flawlessly. Flooring experts estimate that hardwood floors can be sanded for refinishing up to 10 times, depending on the thoroughness of the sanding and the level of wear and tear on the floor. Fixing my hardwood floors – Replacing the kitchen & joining old and new flooring. First read the article “hardwood refinishing” this will get you acquainted with how hardwood refinishing is done so we can move on from there. Maple is a slightly tougher material. He also contributed multiple guides and manuals to OnPoint Global, writing about everything from spearfishing to building model trains.  Wood floors. Smithwood Floors has been providing high quality flooring services in the greater Toronto area, since 1967. Rinse the pad often in a second pan of refinisher. Check the floor for larger holes or cracks and repair using … Copyright© We love them here at ABM, and were so excited when we pulled back the gross carpet in the Habitat house to reveal the house had (possibly original) wood floors in OK shape. Follow these directions to refinish your maple hardwood floors effectively. submitted to our "DoItYourself.com Community Forums". The timber is hard so it can hold maple stain extremely well. Granted, we didn’t even know … Avoid dragging furniture across the floor. 2. View Abrasives Suppliers. Maple is a domestic hardwood. Begin with coarse-grit abrasives sufficient to remove … Work carefully to ensure an even stain coat. The extra steps to stain maple take more time- considerable more time. After removing a vinyl & a linoleum floor, we came to a maple floor, … The kitchen was hidden behind a wall. While this can certainly produce good results in relatively short order, consider that every time a floor is sanded up to 1/16" of the wood is removed. A: The Editors of This Old House reply: Not necessarily. Sand the perimeter of the floor with the edge sander, using the same medium grit as the floor sander. When refinishing floors, study the floor and existing finish first. Apply the floor finish with an applicator pad. To ensure our content is always up-to-date with current information, best practices, and professional advice, articles are routinely reviewed by industry experts with years of hands-on experience. He has worked as a handyman for various individuals since 2013, with a focus on lawn care and home renovation.  Don’t get too aggressive. If your maple hardwood floor’s finish looks scratched, scuffed and dingy, you can Is that correct? Use a power floor edger to smooth off the floor edges. But as every old-house owner has learned, hardwood floors are subject to a great deal of use and abuse. Existing floors can be refinished to bring out their natural beauty. Because it's hard and has a relatively closed grain, maple can be easier to strip than other types of wood. Steps: 1. Vacuum the floor to remove dust and debris. Remove the old finish from one small area at a time until you completely strip the floor. Allow to dry completely before returning furnishings to the room. Dust Can Be Your Friend. Thoroughly clean the floor with a pH-neutral cleaner and lightly rub it down to provide a key for the next coat. But eventually most wood floors with need some work to bring them back to their former glory; that’s where this guide comes in. Remove furniture and wall hangings. Use clean dry rags to apply the maple stain evenly. In this video, This Old House general contractor, Tom Silva applies new finish to an old floor. Pull up all the heating grates and any old carpet tacks before you sand. Refinishing them was added to the list of to-dos. I am working on refinishing 100 year old maple floors. You need to be extra careful with the sanding because any imperfections will be highlighted once you start staining and finishing the maple floor. Maple flooring is literally the only hardwood that is allowed to be used for gym floors. Engineered wood floors, however, typically aren't good candidates for refinishing, as the veneer on the top comes right off as soon as you start … I had never restored old wood floors before and had only a slight notion of the process from watching HGTV. The floor should take on a soft sheen. 110 year old stained maple floor restored. The wood in vintage floors can be harder than in contemporary ones because there is more chance it was obtained from old-growth trees and that the boards are quartersawn. Change the sandpaper disks to medium-grit (#100) and go over the entire floor a second time. Most likely this will be an oil-based varnish or oil-based polyurethane. Sand the floor down to bare wood using a floor sanding machine and edge sander, both of which can be rented; be sure to vacuum between sandings. I have 90 year old heart wood pine floors with this problem. See professionally prepared estimates for floor refinishing … From what I have been told, Maple is one of the most difficult floors to sand, refinish. If your maple hardwood floor’s finish looks scratched, scuffed and dingy, you can restore its color and luster with a new finish. This customer was not happy with the appearance of the floor, but he also wanted to add two new rooms, and then figure out what could be done about the appearance issue. 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