They’ve Come a Long Way Since the Pyramids

Posted on: 26 October 2020

Your hardwood floors can last several decades, but you'll probably need to have them refinished a few times. Here are some signs it's time to have your floors refinished and what to expect with the process.

Signs Your Wood Floors Need To Be Refinished

If your floors have a lot of scratches and dents, you may want to consider having them refinished, especially if you can't hide the damage with furniture or area rugs. Your floors may also need to be refinished if a large area has sun damage and no longer matches the rest of the floor. If your floors were under any water due to a flood or plumbing issue, they may need to be refinished.

It's important to consider the thickness of the boards too since refinishing removes the top layer of the flooring. There are only so many times your floors can be refinished before they have to be replaced, so you don't want to do it without a good reason.

If you're not sure if your floors should be refinished, especially if you live in an older home and have no idea how often the floors have been refinished before, call a wood flooring contractor to examine your floors.

What To Expect With Wood Floor Refinishing

Refinishing wood flooring is a hard job that's usually best left to a contractor. The top layer of the flooring has to be sanded away, and that can take a long time and create a lot of dust. A contractor will put up plastic sheeting and takes measures to contain the dust, though some will still settle in the room.

They may even offer dustless sanding that involves using negative pressure to pull the dust into an outdoor containment system so there is only a little dust to clean up in your home. Sanding takes the flooring back to its original raw form so imperfections are removed and so you can choose any color and level of gloss you want for your flooring.

You might also hear about sandless refinishing. This is a type of floor treatment that doesn't involve sanding down the wood. If your flooring has damage or other imperfections, sandless refinishing won't be able to remove them and restore your floor.

You can't change your floor color with the sandless method because the top layer isn't stripped off. However, if your floors are in good shape andy just need a facelift with a new topcoat, then sandless refinishing could be an option.

Wood floor refinishing could take multiple days to complete considering the time it takes to sand the floors, clean up the dust mess, add the coating, and wait for the floors to be ready for foot traffic. However, the wait and disruption are worth it because your floors will look brand new and ready to add beauty to your home for several more years. Contact a wood floor refinishing service for more information.