How to Repair Wood Floors With Saw Dust
Hardwood floors are a beautiful addition to any home. However, they are subject to abuse from normal traffic and can be damaged by heavy furniture. One of the benefits to a solid hardwood floor is that it can be refinished several times before they have to be replaced. There are ways to repair small areas of the floor without having to completely refinish or replace the entire floor. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Carpenters pry bar
- Painters tape
- Palm sander
- Sandpaper (80, 120, 180 and 220 grit)
- Foam brush
- Lacquer sealer
- Stain to match existing floor
Instructions
-
-
1
Determine what type of flooring that you have. You need to know if it is true hardwood, engineered hardwood floor or a laminate floor.
-
2
Remove a threshold carefully where the flooring runs perpendicular to the threshold with a carpenters pry bar. Be careful not to damage the threshold. You can look at the end grain of the flooring and determine the type of flooring. Solid hardwood will be one piece of wood. Engineered hardwood flooring will have a 1/16 to 1/8 inch of hardwood adhered to a plywood base. Laminate flooring will be a plastic looking product normally 1/4 to 3/8 inch thick.
-
-
3
For a laminate floor you will need to replace the bad section of flooring.
-
4
For an engineered hardwood floor you need to look closely at the damaged area. Determine if the damage is into the plywood base. If this is the case the damaged area will have to be replaced not repaired.
-
5
For solid hardwood and repairable engineered hardwood flooring the damage can usually be repaired without having to replace the section of flooring.
-
6
Use painters tape to mask off the flooring planks around the damaged area. You need to repair the planks that are damaged in their entirety.
-
7
Use a random orbiting palm sander with 80-grit sandpaper to sand the entire plank down to raw wood. This should take most of the damage out of the plank.
-
8
Mix the saw dust you made with a lacquer sealer to make a wood putty to fill any remaining damage.
-
9
Sand the damaged planks again with 120-grit sandpaper.
-
10
Stain the sanded plank to match the rest of the floor. Wipe off excess stain. You might need to repeat this step until the stain matches. Let dry.
-
11
Vacuum the floor to remove any sawdust. Use a foam brush to apply a layer of polyurethane on the floor working in the direction that the grain runs.
-
12
Lightly sand with 180- or 220-grit sandpaper after the polyurethane has dried. Repeat until you have built up three to four coats.
-
13
Remove painters tape after 48 hours. It is best to leave the tape on the floor during this time to help remind you not to walk on the damaged area until it has cured.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Wipe up any dust before you apply the next coat of polyurethane to help keep from getting dust and debris in the finish coat.
Read label directions for any precautions for the stain and polyurethane.
