Tips for sanding and polishing a hardwood floor

 

Wooden floors require special care so as not to damage them when cleaning. But, of course, you have to clean them to avoid being in contact with dirt.

In this post we give you some tips and advice on how to clean and polish your wooden floor so that they always look great.

Renewing your hardwood floors

Renewing that wooden floor in the bedroom or living room is already one of your top priorities at home. You know that smooth and shiny wood will allow you a more pleasant daily life, because there is nothing warmer in a house than a wooden floor. Sanding, polishing, cleaning: those are the three actions that you must record, only that we will allow you - and even advise - the use of an electric sander.

As we always say, if you don't have this tool for sanding and polishing wooden floors, don't get frustrated. Think, find out, sure that someone in the neighborhood, a friend or relative, has or knows someone who has one: borrow it. This is how those of us who like to do things ourselves should handle ourselves: today for me, tomorrow for you.

Before starting to sand the wooden floor, keep in mind:

Your safety and that of the people who live with you. For the first, guarantee yourself some masonry glasses to prevent the dust from damaging your eyes; a chinstrap; and if possible rubber gloves. For the safety of others, take care that the dust does not leak throughout the house, since there may be allergies.

The necessary elements to sand, polish and clean the wooden floor, in addition to the electric sander - which can be small or medium, depending on the proportions of your floor and what you can get; also get a brush for the varnish with which you will then cover the wood and protect it.

Get to work: renovate your wooden floor

The electric sander removes the old varnish from the wood floor, while leaving it polished. Before you begin, try to remove all the furniture from the room and clean the floor. It is best to start the process from the farthest angle from the door.

The job requires three passes with the polisher, each with a different grammage of sandpaper, that is, gradually going from coarse to fine grain. When finished, clean the wood well and vacuum the floor if necessary.

Protect and varnish the wood after polishing

There are specific products to vitrify wooden floors, although it is also possible to use a thin layer of wax for such purposes. In both cases, you should let the product dry well before varnishing.

The varnish for your wooden floors is a special varnish that will give your floor a shine. Both varnish and wax must be applied with the same directional criteria: from an angle towards the door. The varnish takes a long time to be perfectly dry: do not be impatient to put the furniture back. Wait at least five days and then yes, proceed to polish and rearrange the objects in the room, being careful not to drag them.

Safety recommendations for polishing hardwood surfaces

When using tools to polish surfaces, take certain safety precautions:

• First of all, it's advisable to figure on safe surfaces, even better if you've got a workbench.
• Professional gloves and protective goggles should always be worn to prevent the parts that come off the surfaces when polishing them from damaging the eyes.
• For the same reason it suggests the use of aprons or coveralls for splash protection of abrasive pastes exiting projected.
• Polishing tools are safe, but must be kept in good shape for a proper operation and far from exposure to water.
• Once the work is finished, clean the tools to prevent the remains of adhered pastes from compacting and can generate some kind of defect or problem.

Things to keep in mind during polishing and finishing:

During roughing

• Use orbital sanders with small 2.5 or 3 mm orbits. In this way the dreaded “snail marks” will be less visible and easier to remove in subsequent steps.
• If we want a less aggressive roughing, it is convenient to spray drops of water on the surface we are sanding. In this way the presence of water acts as a coolant generating shallower lines.
• Avoid carrying out roughing work with the perimeter of the disc. Support it completely horizontally on the work surface.
• Use abrasive discs with polyester film backing instead of conventional paper-backed discs. Film discs generate lower and more uniform roughness than paper discs.

During polishing

• Carry out the polishing operation with fast cutting pastes, avoiding overheating the surface to avoid removing or blurring the finishing material.
• Wool berets, despite their soft touch appearance, are more aggressive than polishing sponges. This is because the wool fibers allow a greater amount of cutting compound to be retained. If the use of wool berets is very aggressive, you can choose to use polishing sponges of medium-high hardness.
• Make sure that the abrasive compound to be used is in perfect condition: not too liquid, not too hard or dry. Poor storage conditions deteriorate these compounds.
• Use as much as possible polishers with anti-hologram movements and with a speed regulator. It is recommended to select a low working speed, around 900 rpm.