Worth The Time And Money: Refinished Hardwood Floors

Hardwood floors can be a beautiful asset to your home. They lend a sense of elegance to any room. Just like anything else, however, your hardwood floors require maintenance, and there will come a time when you should consider refinishing hardwood floors. Luckily, hardwood floor refinishing is not impossibly difficult. With a bit of effort and patience, your floors will be good as new again.

Refinishing hardwood floors is only a two-step process, involving sanding the floor smooth and staining it. Sanding clears away built up dirt, dust, and wears down any surface scratches or scuffs, creating a smooth surface. After the floor has been sanded, the stain corrects the rustic look with a smooth polish.

Before refinishing hardwood floors, you should first check to make sure they need refinishing in the first place. A good test is to place a drop of water on the wood floor. If the wood absorbs it quickly, you should refinish the floor. If it is absorbed more slowly or not at all, you do not need to refinish the floor right away.

When you inspect the floor, make sure it doesn't need any repairs. Problems to inspect for include warped or squeaking floor boards, badly stained wood, and other permanent damage. If any of these issues are present, you should repair them before refinishing the floor.

After making sure your floor is in good repair, begin refinishing by preparing for the messy work of sanding. Start by clearing everything from the room. Cover all doorways, other openings, vents, and light fixtures in the empty room to protect them from all the dust.

You will use a drum sander for your initial sanding. This is a powerful tool and it is easy to inadvertently damage the wood while sanding, so keep the machine moving, never let it stall in one place for more than a few seconds, and above all, don't rush. To reach areas you can't reach with the drum sander, such as corners, use an edge sander.

After sanding the floor, clean up all debris and dust in the work space. Then, to begin staining, you will need to choose a floor stain. Decide whether water-based or oil-based stain will be best for your floor depending on the characteristics of your floor. Follow all the instructions, especially how many coats needed and how long it takes to dry.

Your stain is dry; your floor is done! Offer yourself some congratulations! Refinishing hardwood floors can be difficult, and some hire a professional, but you know how to refinish hardwood floors so you don't need to. This task takes a little time, but when you see your dull floor shining and gleaming again you will know it was all worth it.

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