How To Refinish Wood Floors

You will apply this with a large putty knife.

How to refinish wood floors.

When a wood floor loses its luster the usual solution is to sand it down to raw wood and completely refinish it. All wood floors are protected by a clear coating that eventually becomes scratched scuffed and dull. You also want to rent a handheld power edge sander for sanding tight against walls and in corners and doorways. Both units have a vacuum and dust.

You need a walk behind floor sander which you can rent. Once the floor is ready to be refinished use a paintbrush to apply the water based stain or finish. If the scratches don t go all the way through to the wood you can scuff sand your floors with a buffer and apply a fresh coat or two of finish. Then plug in any holes with wood paste or wood plugs and vacuum the floor to remove any sawdust or debris.

If the floor is warped deeply stained squeaky or otherwise damaged you ll need to make repairs first then refinish. But if your floors are less damaged use a wood patch filler on individual spots image 2. To refinish a hardwood floor the first thing you need to do is sand off the old finish. If a drop of water soaks in immediately the wood fibers may already be exposed and the floor needs refinishing.

A step by step video for a home owner on how to use various wood floor sanders and how to apply the finish. After sanding fill in holes in the floor with wood putty or wood filler. But often that s the wrong solution. Before refinishing your wood floors rent a detail sander from your local home improvement store and use it to buff away the old finish.

Rent equipment such as drum sanders and edger sanders. Most drum and edger sanders have built in vacuums and dust bag systems to reduce dust emissions. Let the filler dry completely. The hardwood floor refinishing process is easier and less expensive than sanding down to bare wood and takes less time.

If your floors are heavily damaged it is best to use a trowel filler a thinner wood filler that spreads and covers large areas image 1. Find the detailed instructions on sanding and refinishing hardwood flooring here. Refinishing hardwood floors is the right solution.