SolveYourProblem: Home Tips Article Series
How To Rejuvenate Worn-Out Hardwood Floors

For years in many parts of the country, hardwood floors were a standard feature. Many older homes have hardwood floors that are covered with carpet, tile, or sheet goods. If you are one of those fortunate homeowners who have hardwood floors hiding under layers of cover-up, or just a tired hardwood floor waiting for some tender loving care, here is advice about floor renovation projects you should do and those jobs we found best left to the professional floor sanders and installers.

Run-down hardwood floors can be rejuvenated with surprising ease. This is the type of work you can always do with excellent results. Floor rejuvenators are easy to work with and you can rent a floor polisher for very little money. Many times, all a hardwood floor needs is a face-lift. This is the case when the floor is worn in high-traffic areas or if it is dull with an accumulation of wax and dirt. Use a floor rejuvenator that cleans and restores its finish; it removes dirt while it softens and dissolves some of the top layer of finish.

Here is the quickest way to give a face-lift to a troubled floor:

Step 1: Rent a floor polisher and purchase four or five extra-coarse #3 steel wool polishing pads from the rental agency. Purchase a gallon of a commercial hardwood floor rejuvenator. Remodeling contractors use these products frequently, and you'll most likely find them sold in building supply outlets as well as at paint and flooring stores that cater to the professional trade.

Step 2: Read the directions for the particular brand of renovator. Heed the safety precautions: Provide plenty of ventilation, and remember most of these products are flammable.

Step 3: Remove all surface dirt with a vacuum or dust mop. Check the floor for loose boards, especially cracked boards and splinters or protruding nails, which can snag the steel wool pad.

Step 4: Apply the renovator to the floor, working in areas of about 100 square feet, using a rag, brush, or sprayer. Wait a few minutes, and then scrub the area with steel wool pads and the polisher. The pads pick up the dirt and old finish, so you'll have to replace them periodically.

Step 5: Let the floor dry overnight and then use the floor polisher to apply a top coat of a compatible finish or paste wax for protection. If you have a home floor polisher, you can use it to renovate your floor. First check to see if steel wool pads are available for your machine. If not, purchase standard rectangular ff3 (extra-coarse) steel wool pads, and place four or five equally spaced pads (depending on the diameter of the pad) on the bottom of the floor polisher's scrubbing-brush pads. The pads stick to the brushes and can be easily changed when full of old finish.

What if the floor is too heavily damaged to use a rejuvenator?

If your hardwood floors are deeply scratched or have dark, stained areas, they usually can't be salvaged with a rejuvenator. Refinishing is the only way you can bring them back to life. To refinish a hardwood floor, the old finish has to be removed (usually by sanding) and a new finish applied. The floor-sanding part of refinishing is not a job for a homeowner to tackle. Renting the sander and purchasing the sanding belts is expensive. The sander is hard to transport and difficult to operate without gouging the floor. You can save about half the cost of a professional job, but the potential damage you can inflict on the floor with just one slip of the sander drum outweighs the money you might save.

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SolveYourProblem.com : 2007

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