Useful Tips for Hardwood Floor Finishing
Hardwood is a cosmopolitan and efficient flooring material for homes. It offers a stylish and classic finish that lasts for several years. Hardwood flooring fits perfectly in modern homes besides bringing with it memories of old King’s palaces of early American and European homes. Hardwood flooring has a downside of wearing off after some time. Even if the hardwood floor is said to last for decades, the polish with time gets damaged and looks dull from overuse. The wearing off can be seen on the hardwood floors where there’s a lot of human traffic.
Dilapidated and worn off hardwood floors are a sore sight and not easy to clean. This is true, especially for hardwood floors that have coatings or polishes that are chipping off. This means that maintaining the luster and beauty of hardwood floors relies on regular refinishing and maintenance. It is important to note that chipping away and dullness of hardwood floors must get a full refinishing rework. You need cloth and plain water to restore the shine on the wooden floor. Fortunately, you can quickly tell if all you should do it mop it or if its time to remove all the furniture and thoroughly clean it.
You should start with the place where there is a lot of human foot traffic and drench the area with some water and watch. If beads are forming on the water, this is a sign that the hardwood protective polish is still at work, so you should not do a complete refinish. All you can do is wipe the floor with a stain remover or a wet cloth, and the shine comes back. But if the water becomes percolated on the floor and brings out a dark color, this is a sign that the coating is damaged, and you should do a full scare hardwood floor refinishing.
Hardwood floor refinishing is a hard job, and hiring flooring experts who have experience and tools to restore your hardwood’s beauty is a perfect idea. But for those who prefer doing it by themselves, then the tips given below can be helpful. Start by determining the area that you want to refinish. You will need kneepads and sanding paper to finish the job. But if the area is large, you will require a power sander to save your joints and kneecaps. After you’ve removed all the fixtures and furniture that are likely to come in your way when refinishing, remove the old coating which is on the floor. This coating is made of paint, wax or varnish. It is easy to eliminate wax covering with a standard wax stripper, but petroleum-based or varnish floor lamination should be struck out using lacquer or acetone thinner. After the coating has been removed, it is time to sand the floor.
Always remember to remove carpet tacks and nails on the surface of the floor. These, if not removed, will ruin the power sander or sandpaper. In fact, if they are not properly removed, they damage the hardwood refinishing designs. Fill the holes that these things have left with wood filler and color to match. Now sand the whole hardwood surface and using a damp cloth or floor mop. A resin-coated cloth is best to use because it has unique material to remove microscopic dust particles that vacuum cleaners may not remove. After the floor is dry, you can begin to apply a fresh wax coating, paint, or varnish. It is best to use three varnish coats, leave it to dry, and lightly sand the floor after every application. Finish by wiping the refinished hardwood floor with a resin-coated or damp cloth to achieve that desired shine.