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james t kirk · 05-19-2003, 10:13 AM

My advice would be to do the sanding and finishing yourself too.

It's not that hard at all.

Use an orbital sander, not the drum style. Basically, you can be drunk with an orbital floor sander and still do a good job.

Use progressively finer grit paper.

Put on the first coat of varnish - best quality you can find, don't skimp on that. After it dries, you will have to give the floor another quick sand with a very light weight paper to remove the "stubble"

Then another coat of varnish.

Then another quick sand, but this time, even by hand with drywall sanding block

Then a third coat of varnish.

This time, the floor should still be smooth, if not, a light hand sand in any rough areas.

Then a fourth coat of varnish and you are done.

Sanding is what makes it come out right. Even the so called pros skimp when it comes to sanding.

Oh, and make sure you clean up all the dust between sanding and varnishing.

Or, if you really want to be ambitious, do it like they used to do hard wood floors in the 20's and 30's and 40's and that is to oil the floor with Danish Oil.

It's super easy to apply, just make sure you wipe it on, let it sit for maybe 3 or 5 minutest then wipe it off.

Whatever you do, don't let it sit too long, or it turns kind of sticky.

Give it another coat of oil the next day and another one after that.

Then wax the whole floor with Johnson Floor Wax.

You never have to sand anything between varnish coats because there is no varnish.

The oil and wax treatment looks GREAT and is authentic for older homes, and it doesn't scuff like varnish will.

BUT,

you can't allow the floor to get wet (water, spilled drinks etc.) because it will stain if the water sits there.

You will have to wax your floors every 3 or 4 years (at my place i oil and wax and it's not bad at all for maintenance.)

Oil - looks great, doesn't scuff, no sanding but you have to wax and you can't spill anything without mopping it up.

Varnish - scuffs, you have to sand between coats, but it protects the wood and is easy to clean.

Personally, i do the bedrooms and less travelled portions with oil and wax, and the main entrance hallway with varnish to protect from wet shoes and boots.

05-19-2003, 10:13 AM	#13 (permalink)
james t kirk Junkie Location: Toronto	My advice would be to do the sanding and finishing yourself too. It's not that hard at all. Use an orbital sander, not the drum style. Basically, you can be drunk with an orbital floor sander and still do a good job. Use progressively finer grit paper. Put on the first coat of varnish - best quality you can find, don't skimp on that. After it dries, you will have to give the floor another quick sand with a very light weight paper to remove the "stubble" Then another coat of varnish. Then another quick sand, but this time, even by hand with drywall sanding block Then a third coat of varnish. This time, the floor should still be smooth, if not, a light hand sand in any rough areas. Then a fourth coat of varnish and you are done. Sanding is what makes it come out right. Even the so called pros skimp when it comes to sanding. Oh, and make sure you clean up all the dust between sanding and varnishing. Or, if you really want to be ambitious, do it like they used to do hard wood floors in the 20's and 30's and 40's and that is to oil the floor with Danish Oil. It's super easy to apply, just make sure you wipe it on, let it sit for maybe 3 or 5 minutest then wipe it off. Whatever you do, don't let it sit too long, or it turns kind of sticky. Give it another coat of oil the next day and another one after that. Then wax the whole floor with Johnson Floor Wax. You never have to sand anything between varnish coats because there is no varnish. The oil and wax treatment looks GREAT and is authentic for older homes, and it doesn't scuff like varnish will. BUT, you can't allow the floor to get wet (water, spilled drinks etc.) because it will stain if the water sits there. You will have to wax your floors every 3 or 4 years (at my place i oil and wax and it's not bad at all for maintenance.) Oil - looks great, doesn't scuff, no sanding but you have to wax and you can't spill anything without mopping it up. Varnish - scuffs, you have to sand between coats, but it protects the wood and is easy to clean. Personally, i do the bedrooms and less travelled portions with oil and wax, and the main entrance hallway with varnish to protect from wet shoes and boots.