Red Oak flooring
#1
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Red Oak flooring
Hi all, I pulled up some nasty looking old carpet in a bedroom and hallway. The pad was glued down (you can see the trowel marks) and the glue is a biatch to get up. The original finish appears the same as the rest of the exposed hardwood floors. I've scraped and chiseled what I could without wrecking the oak underneath but as you can see there is a lot of glue left. Some of it scrapes easy on the places the old finish is hard (it actually looks like new in these places), but some also appears to be into the wood itself. Will this come up with a sander? Also, if I do get it off, can someone help me with matching the finish in the adjoining bedroom. I cant tell if its stained or not (floor is red oak) but I dont think so, and I dont know what the finish is (oil-based, water-based, urethane, etc).
Thanks!
Thanks!
#2
Good morning and welcome to the DIY Forums!
What a pity, huh? That beautiful hardwood hidden under that gunk.
I am not certain if a rented drum sander will take that up...I THINK it will. It would be best to ask at the rental site.
As for a color match, that probably won't be possible, because the finish on the other floors is aged. Your best bet for a match would be to get all the floors sanded and stained at the same time.
Sorry I didn't have better answers for you. Check back again, because someone else may come along with a better solution.
Connie
What a pity, huh? That beautiful hardwood hidden under that gunk.
I am not certain if a rented drum sander will take that up...I THINK it will. It would be best to ask at the rental site.
As for a color match, that probably won't be possible, because the finish on the other floors is aged. Your best bet for a match would be to get all the floors sanded and stained at the same time.
Sorry I didn't have better answers for you. Check back again, because someone else may come along with a better solution.
Connie
#3
Isn't it fun to find a gem in the rough under crap? Appears to me as if your old floors are natural finish (no stain) but have aged and yellowed as is normal. Getting a perfect match will be close to impossible. I've found that, since it's a different room, having a slightly different shade is really no big deal and won't be noticed within a week of having the floors done.
Now to having it re-done. Your floor will need to be re-sanded to get all the gunk off/out of the wood. You can rent floor sanders at a rental shop - but I've got to say, it's a difficult job for a DIYer. Typical rental equipment isn't as good as the pros equipment - and mastering the use is sometimes difficult as well. It's easy to gouge a floor and ruin it. I do everything that has to do with remodeling myself - with the exception of floor finishing. At around $2.75/sq. ft - it pays to have a pro do it properly. By the time you rent equipment (you'll need a floor sander as well as an edge sander - various grits paper) , spend the hours required, and the $$ for materials - you end up saving minimally.
The good news is that a pro can often come up with a light stain that will closely approximate the existing floor. Why not get a couple of free estimates and then decide?
Now to having it re-done. Your floor will need to be re-sanded to get all the gunk off/out of the wood. You can rent floor sanders at a rental shop - but I've got to say, it's a difficult job for a DIYer. Typical rental equipment isn't as good as the pros equipment - and mastering the use is sometimes difficult as well. It's easy to gouge a floor and ruin it. I do everything that has to do with remodeling myself - with the exception of floor finishing. At around $2.75/sq. ft - it pays to have a pro do it properly. By the time you rent equipment (you'll need a floor sander as well as an edge sander - various grits paper) , spend the hours required, and the $$ for materials - you end up saving minimally.
The good news is that a pro can often come up with a light stain that will closely approximate the existing floor. Why not get a couple of free estimates and then decide?
#4
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Well I bought a good paint scraper and most of it is coming up with a little elbow grease thankfully. I'm probably gonna sand and finish it myself next weekend. I'm pretty confident I can do it myself and not worried about it being perfect. Its going to be a kids room and it will give me practice for down the road when I rip carpet out of the other bedrooms.
Is there any difference between an edger and a palm sander?
Thanks for the responses!
Is there any difference between an edger and a palm sander?
Thanks for the responses!
#5
A lot will depend on your floors condition. If you're simply sanding a smooth surface to remove paint/glue/varnish/etc., then hand tools will work. If you need to smooth out cupping/gouges/etc., or remove wood stain - then sanding a hardwood floor is next to impossible with typical hand tools like a palm sander/orbital sander/belt sander. That wood is hard, hard, hard. (I ruined a brand new belt sander trying that once). The pros use heavy duty (100lb) drum sanders and similarly industrial edge sanders (Look like a floor buffer without the long handle).
Hopefully your floor will clean up without the heavy duty equipment normally associated with wood floor refinishing.
Hopefully your floor will clean up without the heavy duty equipment normally associated with wood floor refinishing.
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I got the floor sanded this past weekend and plan on putting some water based urethane down this weekend after I finish up some edges this week.
What should I use as a final wipe down prior to applying the finish? The vacuum doesn't seem to get all of it. Can I use some denatured alcohol on a lint free cloth?
What should I use as a final wipe down prior to applying the finish? The vacuum doesn't seem to get all of it. Can I use some denatured alcohol on a lint free cloth?
#7
If it's dust/dirt/etc., that you're concerned about, use "tack rags". They are small sheets of cheesecloth impregnated with a tacky/waxy product that you wipe the surface with - and will pick up every spec of lint/dust on the floor. They're cheap and found in the paint department.
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Well I got the room done finally and it turned out pretty decent. I rented a 4-head orbital sander for the day and sanded the hallway and bedroom in 4 passes, 40-60-80-100 grit. Then I vacuumed, used a swiffer on the walls, and used a tack rag on the floor. The next 2 days I put down 4 coats of water based polyurethane down with sanding, vacuuming, swiffer and tack rag in between coats.
Here is some before and after pics and a small video.
It is gonna be my boys room and he approved it after a thorough inpection!
http://img532.imageshack.us/img532/4...sroom01ls8.flv
Here is some before and after pics and a small video.
It is gonna be my boys room and he approved it after a thorough inpection!
http://img532.imageshack.us/img532/4...sroom01ls8.flv