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Hardwood Floor Refinishing For The Faint Of Heart
By By Luz Madera
Are your beautiful hardwood floors not so beautiful anymore? Maybe they just need a refinishing job. It can be a daunting task, but here are some ideas to make it a little easier. If your hardwood floors are in dire need ofrefinishing, get a few estimates from professionals. You may be surprised at the figures. You’ll want tosit down when they tell you it will cost you $1200 tohave your living room redone. You could carpet over itfor less, but doesn’t carpeting over beautiful hardwoodfloors seem, well, wrong? Contrary to what you may have heard, the finish doesn’ttake days and days to dry. It’s quite simple actually.Go to your favorite local home improvement store,Lowe’s, Menard’s, Home Depot or other. Rent a sander.You’ll need a drum sander, a belt sander or both. Theywill explain to you how to use the machine and tell youwhat kind of sand paper to purchase. They will alsotell you what kind of stain and finish to get. Makesure you also pick up some dust masks because you willhave saw dust everywhere. The sanders are very easy to use. They’re a bit on theloud side. The key is to keep it moving at all times. Do not stop or you will get a divot in your wood. Think of it like a clothes iron. You need to keep itmoving or you will burn your clothes. Same deal withthe sander. It creates a lot of heat and you willburn or dent your floors if you hesitate in one placetoo long. You will feel like a Zamboni driver smoothing out yoursurface. Word of caution, you do need to maintaincontrol of the machine at all times. It is selfpropelled, like a lawn mower or a basset hound on aleash. When
you power it up, hold on to the machinetightly. Don’t be afraid of it and after a few passes,you’ll start to even have fun.First you need to remove the old finish, basecoat,color, and top coat. You may opt to forgo the color(stain) and just use the nature color of the wood. Youwill still need to apply a finish to it. There are basically two types of floor finishes: one isoil-based and the other is water-based polyurethane.Oil-based is available in a satin, semi-gloss or glossfinish. Satin works well on floors because it hidessmall flaws and lets the natural beauty of the woodshow without a bright shine. Oil-based also produces awarm amber look that gives you the traditional glow ofwood floors. Water-based polyurethane dries clear andresists yellowing. Water-based also dries quicker. Make sure you let each coat thoroughly dry beforeapplying the next; same as you would nail polish. Giveyour floor at least 24-36 hours before moving furnitureback on it. It will continue to harden in the firstcouple of weeks. Don’t be overwhelmed. Instead of looking atrefinishing your hardwood floors as a humungous job,look at it as giving your room a manicure, one step ata time. You’ll also save yourself as much as $1,000by doing it yourself.
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