Is sanding and refinishing a hardwood floor a hard job?

Question

I have a 10 x 10 room. The hardwood is in great shape, but it is older. It has been covered by carpet since the house was built.

I want to sand it and refinish it.

I will be doing the work by myself - I am a woman.

I called a professional and he charges $425.00 - TOO much for me.

Is it something I can do?

How do I learn how to do it or what the steps/process is?

Thanks a million!!!!

Answer 1

Well my wood is often-times pretty hard and im sure we could use the floor yet I would love for you to finish me because if u want to use just your hands I promise it wont be a hard job

Answer 2

Ask him if he will sand it for 200 and prep it.......and you finish it from there...........You could just try waxing and buffing it with a floor polisher...........that will do a lot more than you think. Good luck.........jew him down.............you can buy prefinished flooring for what he wants.

Answer 3

You can do it, But it is not a easy job. If you have a shop vac Stanley makes a accessory you can sand with & it sucks in all the dust. Then you would just need your varnish or whatever you are going to use to finish it. The parts you need to complete this are cheap. Varnish = $20.00 or less & whatever you are going to sand with. It should take you 2-3hrs. Buy some pizza & beer & have your friends help you. $450.00 is way to much but you have to understand the guy or girl is just trying to get paid for there labor. Hope this helped!

Answer 4

You being a woman makes no difference to your ability to do the job Penny..

Right, thats that bit done..

First hire a floor sander, also an edging sander..

When you switch on to use it make d**n sure you have a very good grip on the handle, they bite into the wood and can give one huge kick...Be warned about it...The company you hire from should also warn you of this..

The larger sander will not do the edges , hence the hire of the smaller one..

Ensure the room is sealed off as the dust will cover everything in the house if not..

Cover your hair and wear a mask on your face, also goggles for your eyes.

When you are done sanding , sweep the whole lot into a heap and get rid of it..

Wash it over several times until you are happy with it..

If yo are going to varnish it, do not just do one or two coats...Do several, the more you apply the better the depth of colour you will have..

Done this way it will look superb...

My old house had all the floors done by me so I know I have given you the correct information..

Good luck Penny....

Finally...Please do it carefully, I would'nt want you to get an injury from not following safety rules..

Answer 5

You can hire sanders but if too dear read on.

Get very rough sandpaper at first and rub hard all over. Then a smoother grade right down to a fine grade. Sweep up dust as you go along. Clean floor with white spitits or the like and then when dry varnish or lacquer as you wish. Hard work but keep at it. It will be worth it. Luck.

Ps It may help with any diet plan you may be on. Get your mates involved.

Answer 6

Top tip!

If you're going to hire a belt sander......

make sure you punch the nail heads in the floor at least 3-4 mm below the surface. You can buy a cheap nail punch from a hardwear store designed for the job. Couple of dollars.....

The floor will be abraded away, which means your nail heads then rip up your sanding sheets.

If you don't want to hire a belt sander, punch the nail heads down anyway.

Then we stick sandpaper over your knees and elbows and see how many times I can push you around the room from behind.

It works if you're on your back too. ;o)

Answer 7

it is a tough job and you need not only the right equipment but some prior experience as well. a 10x10 =100 sf coes out to 4.25 per which includes everything. That is a very good price.

After yourent everything,,,buy all the sandpaper and floor finish,,,there not much left for the worker.

Hope he was a good floor finisher.

Answer 8

Doing it yourself is tricking, you have to rent a belt sander, the equipment is heavy.  Then you have to maneuver it fast and steady so you do not sand shallow ditches in the wood. Next clean away remaining dust with sticky rags. Stain and varnish is the easy part.  It is worth the money to have a professional.  Our first house we did ourselves and caused the ditches and uneven sanding.  Another way to go is strip the floor by hand since it is small, and just re stain and varnish if the floor is in good shape.

Answer 9

its not hard and yes you can do it yourself believe in yourself