5 Common Pitfalls When Refinishing Hardwood Floors

by Kevin Smith Author

The glistening sheen of newly refinished hardwood floors practically begs to be touched. But if your hardwoods floors look faded, it’s time to refinish them to restore the luster. Whether you want to do it yourself or hire a service that will refinish hardwoods floors in Marietta, you’ll want to make sure that common mistakes in refinishing are not made. Here are some things to avoid.

Inadequate Cleaning

Cleaning is vital to the success of refinishing hardwood floors, and it’s not just the floors that need to be cleaned. It’s the entire room. Any dust, hair or pet fur that makes its way to your floor as the finish is curing will blemish the appearance of the surface. When floors are still wet with finish, they practically act like a magnet in attracting dirt, dust and dander. That means everything from shelves to overhead lighting fixtures need a thorough cleaning.

Uneven Sanding

When sanding, you'll need to be very consistent in your application of pressure. A little too much or too little pressure in any spot will create a defect that will be magnified when the finish has been applied. To get the necessary consistency, it takes a certain amount of finesse and experience to do it just right.

Leaving Unsightly Sanding Scratches

When you sand any material, the sandpaper scratches the surface. Coarse sandpaper leaves larger scratches and fine sandpaper leaves more delicate scratches. If bad sanding scratches are left from any previous refinishing projects, they will haunt you by showing up in your new project. It’s best to remove old coats of finish for this reason.

Not Dealing with Stains

Stains happen as a part of life. Bathroom accidents from pets is one of the greatest sources of stains on hardwood floors. When refinishing hardwood floors, you’ll need to deal with the stain. It’s not realistic to think that the new finish can conceal the stain. To rid the stain, you’ll want to use a cleaner formulated specifically for wood floors. It’s best to deal with the stain now than to lock it in with a new coat of finish.

Using Worn Sanding Abrasives

Make sure the sanding pads and discs you use aren’t excessively worn. Pushing the limits on how much life you get out of your sanding abrasives can be penny wise and pound foolish in terms of the end results you achieve.

Give New Life to Hardwood Floors

If your hardwood floors are looking worn and faded, you may want to consult professionals that refinish hardwood floors in Marietta. It’s a good time to learn more about how to bring back the glow in your floors.