Wood Floor Refinish?

Question

I have wood flooring in my dining/living room ( they flow toegther) hall and three bedrooms. I would like to refinish the floors. I know I will need to putty the holes from cable installs, sand, stain and poly them. The probelm I have is that the only bathroom in the house is only accessable from the hall floor. I hear that I cannot do the floor in sections because it will discolor. I also hear that I have to let each coat of poly dry for 8 hours between coats. So, how can I refinish the floors? Is there something I can use to seal the floor after I sand and stain that doesn't need so much dry time and is still durable? Could I just do sections of the floor without noticible differences in the color/finish? Any help at all, links too, is greatly appreciated.

I am also not a think in the box type....if there is some off the wall product that is safe and will get the job done, thats fine with me:) Like the stuff used to seal outdoor decks??

I would love to do that, but I have no friends or family in the state who can take the kids for a day or more :(. Does anyone have any other ideas...oil, wax..ANYTHING??? I love these floors, but if I can redo them I will have to carpet again.

I meant, if I CAN'T redo them...

Answer 1

Have you sanded hardwood floors before? it is a do-able project for a first timer, but if you think you are going to get all of the sanding done in 1 day by yourself, probly won't happen.
If your alternative is carpet, you can hire a pro for around 2$ SQFT to sand,fill and finish the floors, which is usally much cheaper than carpet. If you do decide to DIY you will need to go to your local rental shop, and get a Drum sander, Edger, Scraper and a buffer. You will want to sand the entire floor with 60 grit first(unless you have some realy bad spots IE glue, warping, cupping) after that is all done you will want to fill the entire floor, just get a troul and start spreading it out on the floor, very thin. Then sand that off with 80 grit , Clean it vacume, wipe it down with a wet towel to get all of the dust up.
then Buff it with 100 Grit and then 120 grit screen. clean it again, this time you will want to get everything up because you are going to poly it next and everything will be sealed in (until the next time you take on this project) Work your way out of rooms so that you don't end up spending the next 8 hours in the corner by yourself. but as far as sealing the floor in sections, I would not, you will be able to se a very distinct difference at those trasition places. as well as the odor that comes from the poly, you will not want to be sleeping in the house intil it has dried. I would let it cure for 8-12 hours before putting on the next coat, putting on at least 2 coats.
possibly plan this project for some time in the summer, and camp outside if you have no relatives or friends to stay with, or see if the kids could stay with one of thier friends for a couple nights.

Answer 2

I've seen it done, and those floor sanders are a beast to operate...(Een for a man, unless he knows what he is doing). You get your floor sander and you start in the corner and work its way down each row. You cant be quick about it, because your sanding off years of varnish and other paints, but, you cant also be slow,or you will start sanding wood too... (It takes practise and a lot of patience to do this). Once you have done a room, you will see that it will take approx 4+ hours to do one room. 15X15 approxiimate time. Then you have to wipe the floor down with a tack cloth, (dont use a sweeper, or it will just put the dirt into the air, and suspend it, and it will eventually fall back on the varnnish or poly that your going to put down!). I like polyurethane on my floors, though, its not as a hard finish as varnish. But, it brings out the "natural beauty" of the wood. I would recommend that you put down 6 coats of anything that you are going to put down on a sanded bare floor. Starting with a wood sealer first. (Remember, the more coats, the darker it gets, so pick something light, or medium and it will age over time and darken). You lightly sand with a screen, between coats and tack cloth the entire floor. (also, it may be good to do the walls to, as the dust may fall off them and go back onto the floor) You should spend a few days per room. As for the "lines" well, if you paint the flooring, all the same color, and bring it down the same way, you should have just a little discoloration, (no two floors will be the same, exactly as foot traffic and all that, in each room), but, you will get "almost" an exact match... (The big thing is, not to "overlap" the paint too much, until the last coat, {put some painters tape down to show where to start and stop}, so that you can feather it between the doors as you disc for the last time... Now, if you have "pine flooring", (most older houses that are 100+ do have), then watch with the "high heels" or it could dent the flooring, as pine is soft). Those that are putting in new "pergo" flooring are having problems with people with high heels, as it "dents" the floor and if its down, the only way to repair it, is take it all up! These are just my opinions.. I dont know your skills, so, any thing else would just be depending on your ability, and how much effort you put into this project...Its a labor of love! I wish you well... Jesse

Answer 3

You are going to have to use floor polyuretane, or it wont look right...if you have a transition moulding into each room, you could do each room first, and then do the hall.
If y ou dont have transisitons send the family with mom in law after the floors are sanded

Answer 4

If you are planning to start on your woodworking project, this isn't something you should use, it's something that you would be insane not to. Go here https://tr.im/U7lsY
Truth is, I've been a carpenter for almost 36 years, and I haven't found anything like this for less than 10's of thousands of dollars.

Answer 5

I worked for several years as furniture finisher and I can't think of anything that has that quick of a dry-time. Your best bet is to spend a night or two at a hotel while it is drying.

Answer 6

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