The second floor of our house is old growth fir, 4″ or so board width. One of the bedrooms was previously done with a drum sander that left some grooves and gouges. It is a SW facing corner room and the sunlight really exaggerates these marks. Is there a way to strip the old finish off the floor and then smooth some of the ridges with an orbital sander (or a flat sheet sander) to make them less obvious? Can one rent a large sheet sander? It seems the drum type sanders are just too aggressive for this wood, and since the floor is likely 90 years old, I’d prefer to remove as little material as possible.
TIA
Bob
Replies
Hi and welcome.
Lets see if we can get "Luvditchburns" to give you a more pro response. But I figure you can screen it flat and refinish. There are some rental places that have screen machines. The dust will be extensive so either move out or seal the room off.
The problem is not the sander, it is the person running the machine. In your case it was probably a DIY'er that sanded the floor. You could just orbital sand out the drum drop marks and edger/spinner digs at the edge and then coat them with two coats of polyurethane. Then recoat the whole floor to match the sheen, hand sanding the floor with 120g sandpaper before you vacumn and coat. You will have a lighter color on the spots where you made the repairs, but they will fade into the older finish in 6 to 9 month progressively. All this assumes there is not a colored stain on your floor.GW
I realize that by trying to take off the ridges that I might only be sanding part of the floor. That is why I wanted to know if there was a stripper I could use first to remove the finish so that there wouldn't be darker/lighter areas based on what was and wasn't sanded. The floor is a very beautiful deep red and yellow color, so I don't believe a colored finish was used. If this room goes well, I might be able to convince the Princess to let me yank up the godawful burber carpet in the master bedroom. This place has great wood in it and I'd like to make the most of it during the first pass. But, we ended up starting the family about 5 months earlier than we expected so now it is a rush to get passable work done before the little one arrives.
Bob
First, congrats on the expected arrival. Agree with the advice already given. Found myself in a similar situation about four years back: 140 year old house, nice but abused fir floors upstairs, and the earlier than expected need for a nursery. You might want to consider handsanding, especially to blend in the "gouges". Obtained a decent result from handsanding the entire floor and three coats of minwax indoor/outdoor helmsman clear gloss spar urethane. Considered a floor sander, but the room wasn't that large, still needed to get under two walls worth of baseboard heaters, and knew I would probably end up adding my own waves. Was actually surprised that one afternoon was all it took to complete the initial sanding. The slowness of a manual pace and a box fan in the window really kept the airborne dust to a minimum. Picked the finish as it was what I use to put on my Beetle Cat during my sailing days. Left the floors with a nice amber glow. Have since done the other bedrooms; found that with wheeled cribs and the energy of kids three coats is a minimum.
Jeff