Sanding Hardwood Floors
#1
03-16-22, 01:53 PM
Sanding Hardwood Floors
I want to sand and refinish a small section of warped hardwood flooring that was water damaged.
When searching on sanding advice, it said to sand first with coarse, then medium, then fine.
Why are these 3 steps required? And, I have a hand (back and forth movement) sander and belt sander. Which should I use or does it make any difference?
Thanks,
Jerry
When searching on sanding advice, it said to sand first with coarse, then medium, then fine.
Why are these 3 steps required? And, I have a hand (back and forth movement) sander and belt sander. Which should I use or does it make any difference?
Thanks,
Jerry
#2
03-16-22, 02:29 PM
Group Moderator
When sanding a floor you usually have to remove the protective finish and any stain and imperfections like humps & bumps so you're removing a lot of wood. That's why you start with coarse for fast material removal. Then the successively finer grits remove the scratches from the proceeding grits.
You could do a small area with a hand belt sander for a bathroom or closet. You sand an entire room or as far as you have to go to get to a stopping point like a change in the flooring surface since you usually can't do just a repair area.
You could do a small area with a hand belt sander for a bathroom or closet. You sand an entire room or as far as you have to go to get to a stopping point like a change in the flooring surface since you usually can't do just a repair area.
#4
03-17-22, 03:10 AM
I'd recommend renting one of those big square floor sanders. It's easy to mess the floor up with a belt sander. A belt sander can work but it takes extreme care to not cause any damage to the wood. If you go with a belt sander you should only need it for the initial pass to level it then switch to your orbital sander for the rest.
#5
03-17-22, 07:35 AM
Hello All -
Part of my question was about the need to go through the three steps, coarse, medium and fine when sanding. This Old House and the Internet say all three steps need to be done. So, I was wondering why the three steps were required. There are some spots where maybe only medium and fine need to be done.
I know you said a small repair area, in my case it’s about 4 X 4 feet cannot be done. However, I was going to give it a try before committing to a much larger area, in my case it’s about 30 X 15 ft. That is why I thought a hand sander or belt sander might be okay to use.
Jerry
Part of my question was about the need to go through the three steps, coarse, medium and fine when sanding. This Old House and the Internet say all three steps need to be done. So, I was wondering why the three steps were required. There are some spots where maybe only medium and fine need to be done.
I know you said a small repair area, in my case it’s about 4 X 4 feet cannot be done. However, I was going to give it a try before committing to a much larger area, in my case it’s about 30 X 15 ft. That is why I thought a hand sander or belt sander might be okay to use.
Jerry
#6
03-17-22, 07:45 AM
Group Moderator
"...why the three steps were required."
Because it would take forever if you just used the fine grit.
It is almost impossible to sand and refinish just one area without it being pretty obvious. That is why the entire room is sanded or you go until there is a break point like a change in the flooring surface.
Because it would take forever if you just used the fine grit.
It is almost impossible to sand and refinish just one area without it being pretty obvious. That is why the entire room is sanded or you go until there is a break point like a change in the flooring surface.
#10
03-18-22, 05:11 AM
Group Moderator
That's the problem. That transition between bare wood, stain and top finish is almost impossible to blend together and not be visible. You're going to see the repair unless you sand it all. But, I've seen many older homes & converted warehouses where they didn't go for perfection and the patina look (scratches & imperfections from a hard life) is quite nice.
