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Our 1965 house came with red oak floors that needed refinishing. I elected to have them sanded, leave natural with a water-based matte finish. I was aiming for a clean, Scandinavian look and I love how they turned out. Have already had many compliments because they aren't the usual shiny finish. I believed they used Bona (?) Traffic. Oil finish holds up better but turns yellow-orange over time we were told. Since we no longer have kids or dogs, the water base will work for us. Also went out and bought suede bottom slippers (no more shoes in the house) to help protect the new finish.
My sister purchased a 1950's house with red oak. They sanded the never before stained, only sealed floor. It probably been under carpet for 50 years. After in was sanded it looked more like the floors in post #9, after the sealed, no stain, it looked more like the floor in post #5. Sealing it made it darker and much redder. Maybe you could do a test spot. If you don't want it so red maybe you can do some kind of wash stain, or white stain to tone the red down.
Oil base poly definitely yellows. I painted and did a dry brush paint technique on a piece of furniture then put oil poly on it to protect it. It turned a horrible yellow orange after less than 5 years. But that was over a white paint. The red oak may not show that color so much. It don't know how durable a water base sealer would be on floors.
Last edited by Izzie1213; 10-01-2017 at 02:24 AM..
this was a red oak floor stained the typical 1980's brown, sanded and finished with a non-oil based coating. the floor turned yellowish when they patch tested the coating so I had them keep adding white paint to it until it stopped the yellowing but didn't look whitewashed.
this was a red oak floor stained the typical 1980's brown, sanded and finished with a non-oil based coating. the floor turned yellowish when they patch tested the coating so I had them keep adding white paint to it until it stopped the yellowing but didn't look whitewashed.
I've never heard of that. Just so I am sure to understand. Used water based clear sealer and added white water based paint to the sealer and applied that mixture to the floor. Looks good.
They used Minwax dura seal quick coat for wood floors (110 neutral) and added the white water-based paint to it. I'm not sure if the paint was designed for floor refinishing but it was called Country White. This was only for one coat and I believe they put at least one more coat of clear on top. It has been several years and has not yellowed. Thanks!
Wanted to come back to this one, as this is my next project to do. I will be taking a week off from work to refinish our floors (see comments above).
I am going to rent the equipment (drum sander, edge sander, orbital) and spend a week next month while the wife and kids are at grandma's doing this project.
I've viewed countless YouTube videos on sanding tips, with the most detailed being those from Bona. Going at the grain at a slight angle of approach (10 degrees or so), how to help keep dust down, three-step sanding process with no more than 20-grit changes between steps, start/stop with drum sander technique to prevent burn in on the floor, etc.
Wanted to ask for any insider tips as well from the experienced on this process. This will be a big one, probably the biggest I've taken on thus far. But the cost difference is tremendously in my favor to tackle myself. I can rent all of the equipment for a MONTH for around $700, or pay my flooring guy close to $10k to do it for me. So, I'll give it a shot (I'm pretty handy).
Your biggest fight and learning curve will be the drum sander. So, with that in mind start in more inconspicuous areas so you can get a "handle" on that monster.
My sister took off baseboards (or at least 1/4 rounds if you have them) so she could get as close to the wall with the big sander as possible. She and her husband still had to use small palm sander to finish sanding along walls, that I am sure is a given. They taped off rooms so the fine dust didn't disperse so much into other rooms. Don't forget to dust off walls too before you put any of finishes on.
I completely agree with both suggestions! K'ledgeBldr, the videos I've seen with the drum sander, is that it indeed looks to be a machine to respect, especially on the pullback. I wish I could avoid using it, but given the amount of flooring I need to cover and the amount of time, I don't think I'll get it all done without it. Going to start in our closets and changing area in our master bedroom first to do just as you mention, get a handle on using it. That area won't be terribly expensive to replace if I screw it up beyond repair.
Izzie, I totally agree as well on the 1/4 rounds. I've got 6 weeks until I start this one (kid's spring break), and planning on starting to pull some 1/4 rounds up ahead of time. I am going to rent an edge sander as well, but have one of those "multi-tools" with the triangle sander pads ready to go for the deep corners.
I'm also thinking about renting a shop-vac setup that can attach to the machines to pull the dust into it as well. Bona has a system that looks fantastic, but I can't find anywhere to rent their stuff.
I am thinking to start with 60-grit, then 80, then 100. Do you guys think 100 is fine enough for a smooth surface? Or am I off a bit with my thinking? Maybe 80-100-120 instead?
Question - I am seeing all of these videos where wood filler is being put down after the initial run with the drum sander to remove the existing. I understand why the filler, and like the idea.
But I have a question/concern about using it.
The floor is 17 years old, has been in the home since day 1. I am going to be doing this project in two weeks during the last week of March. I live in the DC area. There are not that many "gaps" in my flooring between the boards.
I am curious if using wood filler across the floor is wise in the sense that it'll all get pushed back out as the wood expands/contracts during the seasonal changes? Don't I want some minor elbow room between the boards to allow for natural swelling? We get pretty humid around here in the summer, and quite dry in the winter (although I do have a whole-house humidifier that I use to maintain around 30% humidity level at a minimum).
I don't want to see little lines of goop coming up from the floor in a few months. Do I need to be concerned about that with using this wood filler mixture?
thanks!
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) to help protect the new finish.
