About Sandless Wood Floor Refinishing
Refinishing floors the conventional way, which involves sanding, is a messy, dusty and difficult job that should probably only be undertaken by a professional. But if a floor is in relatively good shape without any deep gouges or scratches, another easier and cleaner method produces excellent results. An entire room can be done in a little over one day, as opposed to the several-day project of sanding and refinishing. Does this Spark an idea?
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Equipment and Supplies
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You will need a 175-rpm floor buffer to prepare the floor. For a residential room, a 17-inch machine would be ideal. You will also need black floor-stripping pads that fit the buffer. If it is just a small room, one pad should suffice. You will also need several white Turkish towels along with a dust mop frame. For every 600-square-feet, you will need two gallons of mineral spirits and, for one coat, a gallon of polyurethane wood floor finish. To apply the finish, you will need a long-handled paint roller and a paint roller pan. You will also need a plastic drop cloth.
Initial preparation
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Attach a black stripping pad to the pad holder on a buffer. Lay a Turkish towel on the floor, set a dust mop frame on top and pull the front of the towel over the top of the frame. Saturate the towel with mineral spirits and cover a 10-by-10-foot area with mineral spirits. Clean the wood by buffing the dampened area. When the entire area has been cleaned, repeat the process on another 10-by10-foot patch. Continue the process on all the flooring.
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Final preparation
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Use clean Turkish towels dampened with mineral spirits to remove white residue. You won't be able to remove all of it, but you do want to remove as much as possible. You don't need to work in small sections. Walk in straight lines, turning around and walking the opposite direction when you get to the end of a row. Change towels frequently to avoid too big a build up of residue. When the entire floor is done, dampen a clean Turkish towel with mineral spirits and wipe the corners and edges of the floor that you missed.
Applying the Finish
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Prepare an area, with a plastic drop cloth, where you will walk off the floor when it is finished. Start on the opposite end of the room. Pour polyurethane wood floor finish into a paint pan. Dip the roller into the urethane and roll the finish onto the floor. Work in two-foot sections moving across the entire floor. When one two-foot section is completed across the entire floor, move back and start a second section, working your way back and forth until the entire floor has been covered. Pour any unused finish into the polyurethane container and seal. Discard the paint roller pad, and clean the roller and handle with mineral spirits. Allow at least four hours for the floor to dry before stepping on it. The floor should be ready for a second coat after 10 hours.
Precautions
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The fumes from both the mineral spirits and polyurethane are toxic; avoid breathing them for extended periods. Ventilate the area you are refinishing, but make sure the floor is not exposed to a breeze while drying. If the space is closed in and cannot be ventilated, wear breathing apparatus. Don't walk over any finish that has not completely dried.
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