What kind of refinish?

Pre-fabricated hardwood floor planks are usually pre-treated for protection against certain things, such as insect damage and moisture. They are given a thick coat of varnish that allows them to keep their luster, which is what gives your hardwood flooring its unique finish. You can maintain this elegant and spotless look of your floor by waxing on a regular basis, and minimizing friction on the floor as much as possible.

When moving furniture, you should use rags to keep friction down, and you should never mop across your hardwood floors. Still, even with a great amount of care, the color of your hardwood flooring can fade, and you can also experience dents and scratches over time that will ruin the beautiful glossy surface of the wood over a period of time. If the problem is kept to a minimum, such as a few stains or faded spot, or a scratch or dent or two, then you can simply deal with it by adding another layer of the finish to your floor, as simply as that. You can refinish hardwood floors at all once, or just refinish some areas as needed, depending on what damage has been done.

Refinishing hardwood floors can be a little expensive to contend with, so it is important that you be a little bit practical, making sure that you absolutely need to do it before you tackle this extensive project. What you can try, which comes highly recommended, is to conduct a simple test to figure out if the original floor finish is still working its magic in terms of protection. You can do this by pouring a tablespoon of water on the floor. What happens to the water? If the drops of water bead up and you can easily wipe them up, then the finish is still doing what it was intended to do. On the other hand, if the water does not bead up, the test has failed and you should refinish that spot.

If you do not believe that you will have time to spot refinish your hardwood floors for a while, then it would be safer to refinish the entire floor rather than just the spots that need it. You can't necessarily over-refinish a hardwood floor, but you can certainly under-refinish one, which could cause serious damage to your flooring over time.

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Originally posted 2009-01-08 05:48:59. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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First, it’s important to determine whether or not you’ll be staying in your home or selling it, before you think about switching the flooring. This will have a lot of bearing on your choices. If you like wood – perfect – you’ll be able to use it whether or not you want to sell your home. However, if you plan to stay, it’s important to focus on what you really like, not so much what is current.

As we mentioned previously, buyers today are looking for clean wood floors in medium shades that aren’t visually offensive. Patterned wood or parquet is usually frowned upon, unless it is in an entry. Dark floors are dramatic when paired with ultra white walls, but this can really close in a room. By far, if you’re going to pick wood floors, go with a light or medium finish that brightens up the room.

Another flooring that has become more popular, especially in warm climates, is the use of ceramic tile. This is however very expensive and may not be long wearing. If you’ve got a lot of kids, or are particularly hard on floors, we don’t recommend ceramic tile, simply because it can easily crack. An extreme version of the sleek look is a poured concrete floor, but this is expensive and harder to maintain.

If you’re thinking about adding carpet, you will have a lot of options. Plush carpet is definitely a thing of the past and since it is so hard to maintain, this is a good thing. Plush carpet wears easily and your rooms end up looking like they have trails blazed through them thanks to foot traffic. If you’re going to install new carpet, go for neutral colors that are stain resistant. Dark colors are dramatic when it comes to wood flooring, but with carpet, it’s definitely overbearing and not a good thing.

Berber carpet wears the best and is easier to maintain but may be a little harsh if you’ve got kids that will be crawling (and falling) on it. Look for a softer material that is still long lasting and stain resistant but not so hard to the touch.

By far, the best compromise when it comes to flooring is to go with wood, and dress it up with some very nice rugs. This gives you the best of both worlds and you’ll have a lot more options. You can still get the benefit of carpet, while staying very current and yet timeless with your home. At the end of the day, your choices are up to you, but if you need to update your home, the above tips will keep you right on the edge of what’s hot.

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Originally posted 2008-11-26 06:34:06. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Not only is it much more difficult to sand a floor by hand, it's much more difficult to get a good finish. Electric floor sanders are designed specifically for that job and do a very even job, while sanding by hand varies depending on the pressure and the speed with which you do it.

There are several different types of floor sanders that you might use in the course of sanding your hardwood floor. The type of floor sander that you need the most and should probably not do without is a drum sander. This is a large, heavy piece of equipment that uses a drum that's covered in sand paper. You'll typically need to buy the sanding paper at the place where you rent or purchase the equipment because it's a special type of sand paper.

A drum floor sander works fast and can remove a lot of wood. You'll need to be very careful when you're using a drum sander because not only will it smooth the floor and remove things like stain or paint, it can also make your floor thinner if you overuse it. Used incorrectly, this floor sander can actually scar your floor.

Some people opt to use an orbital floor sander instead of a drum sander. An orbital sander is easier to control and is less likely to damage your floor. But it also takes longer to use, so companies who do this often choose a drum sander because they can get through more floors, more quickly.

A vibrating floor sander has a dust bag like a drum sander to catch the sanding dust, but it works more slowly and is used for finishing off the surface after the drum sander. It takes less physical strength to operate, as well. Some people use an orbital sander at this step rather than a vibrating one.

Then an edge floor sander is used to finish off the edges where the other sanders can't quite reach. This is a handheld sander that is actually orbital with its own small dust bag. It's is a good piece of equipment to use if you just have a very small area with a scratch that you want to sand away rather than redoing entire floor because it's small and easy to control. And it is also necessary when you're doing your entire floor to make sure that the edges look the same as the rest. The only exception would be if you use a slower square sander instead of a drum sander because it reaches the edges as it goes.

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Photo Credits: Qole Pejorian

Originally posted 2010-04-10 03:47:15. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Repairing Ceramic Tile

Nothing ruins a kitchen or bathroom floor like a chipped or cracked tile. Luckily, ceramic tile as a floor is awesome in that making a repair does not entail pulling up the entire floor. You can remove just the affected tile and some of the surrounding tile to make the repair and leave the rest intact. All you have to do is grind the grout down and then break out the old tile. Then you can replace it and re grout it and all will be well. Another method of repair is re-grouting, where you remove the old grout and install new grout. Use a handheld saw or a rotary tool for the grout removal, then install the new grout and the sealer and you will have a floor that looks brand new.

Repairing Hardwood Floor

If you have a hardwood floor with a scratch, it may feel like an expensive repair, but it can actually be both inexpensive and quite simple for you to take care of. Depending on the type of hardware floor that you have as well as the color of the wood, there are often filler materials that are similar to caulk but that are designed to repair the scratches. Most hardwood floor manufactures also provide repair kits in all of the color options that they produce, meaning that you can buy a repair kit pretty easily to make sure that you properly match the color of your floor. A more severe scratch or a gouge may require sanding to remove the finish before conducting the repair. You will also have to re-stain the hardwood floor in order to match the rest of the floor's color. It's always a good idea to check out hardwood flooring prices before starting to get a feel of what's an acceptable budget for refinishing your hardwood floor.

Repairing Vinyl Floor Tile

Individual tiles made out of vinyl are more than likely the easiest type of floor repair that you could possibly tackle when it comes to doing the work yourself. This is also probably one of the cheaper types of floor repairs that you could tackle on your own. If you have a tile that is either stained or damaged, you can peel a corner up with a putty knife in order to begin the removal process, and then use a hair dryer to heat the underside up to loosen the adhesive. The hot air is going to moisten up the glue, which will allow you to peel that tile right up. Then you can apply glue and simply lay down the new replacement tile, completing the repair.

Then you can repeat this process as you need to in order to install more tiles as needed. Repair the entire damaged area tile by tile and you are good to go.

Photo Credits: mtneer_man

Originally posted 2009-11-13 03:33:20. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Let's start with revitalizing wood floors.

If you're floor is already dried, cracked and the shine is completely gone, you're going to need to do a major overhaul to bring it back. This means stripping the floor of any remaining varnish and re-staining it. This may take several coats depending on the color you would like. Once you're done staining, you'll need to revarnish the floor. In most cases, and especially with high traffic areas, this requires several coats and plenty of drying time in between. You need to keep the area as dust free as possible during this process so that the varnish stays smooth.

If you're floor has seen better days but it's not quite down for the count, you'll need to add some oil to it to get it back. We recommend Murphy's Wood Soap followed by Olde English Wood Oil. This comes in a few scents, but the lemon oil is probably the best for your floors. Completely wash the floor with Murphy's and then add the oil to it once it is completely dry. You'll really need to work that it and then give it plenty of time to dry since it will be a little slippery. Wood floors should have this done at least once a year to keep them looking fresh.

Moving on, let's talk about the woodwork in your home, such as door frames, window sills and any built-ins you may have.

If the varnish is still in pretty good shape, but they're looking a bit dull, you can try Murphy's and Olde English to bring them back to life. Another great trick involves some olive oil on a soft rag. Gently work the oil into the wood until it has been completely absorbed. If the area is near curtains, take them down before you start to avoid staining them with oil.

If the woodwork is already dry and or damaged, you'll need to strip it completely down and start over. For doors, it's best to take them down to this so you don't end up with drips in your stain or varnish. Otherwise, you'll need to be careful and avoid overloading your brush with stain or varnish. This will help decrease the amount of drips. If you catch some while you're still working, quickly brush them into the finish to disguise them.

The key to keeping your woodwork looking great is constant care and the right kind of cleaning products. Never use any cleaner on your wood that was not specifically made for wood. This will only strip the wood even further and make it harder to maintain.

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Originally posted 2008-12-06 08:45:32. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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