Refinishing and Restoring Hardwood Floors: What Homeowners Need to Know
Natural wood floors add beauty to a home. If your natural wood flooring looks dull, drab, and kind of dirty, learn what you can do restore and refinish it.
The beauty of your hardwood floors needs to shine through. But your natural wood flooring looks dull, drab and kind of dirty. Even with regular DIY maintenance and cleaning, your floors may need something more.
Before you consider replacing or covering old, worn, stained or lackluster hardwoods, take a look at the professional-level services that can save your floors. Not only can these expertly offered options change the look and feel of your floors, but they can also save you time and money.
Instead of spending your entire weekend or every evening buffing and polishing or investing in a completely new install, these processes provide plenty of opportunities to keep your existing floors and relax as someone else does the work for you.
Sanding and Buffing
Sanding your hardwood floors removes more than just the surface coating. This type of restoration process goes down deeper, stripping the outer polyurethane sealant as well as the top layer of underlying wood.
If your floors only have surface damage, such as scratches in the sealant, buffing (and not sanding) may suffice. Buffing removes the top coat, giving the pros the chance to re-seal it with a shiny, fresh layer of sealant. But if your floors have stains, deep scratches or other damage that extends below the clear surface, sanding may be the way to go.
While it's tempting to rent a sander and try to remove the top layers of your floor yourself, a DIY job might not end up saving you money. Uneven sanding can cause obvious imperfections that may ruin the look of your floors. Unless you have expert knowledge/training and the correct machinery/tools, a professional is the best option for this job.
Staining and Sealing
After sanding your floors you're left with a pristine, smooth surface. But the rich color that you're used to and the high shine that adore are all but gone. What can you do to remedy the situation and get the décor back that you're looking for? A professional staining and sealing process can completely transform your old or sanded floors.
Start by choosing a stain that matches the room's décor or the overall design scheme of your home. Keep in mind, you may decide to paint walls, change out wallpaper or switch up the room's aesthetics later on. A neutral stain may last longer and serve you better if you aren't sure about keeping the décor.
Again, like sanding, staining is a job that's best left to the professionals. An uneven coating can create dark and light patches or a streaky. This means that you may have to re-sand the floor, wasting even more of your time and your money.
After staining the floor, sealing it can add shine and protect it from everyday wear and tear. This doesn't mean that your floor won't scratch again. A clear polyurethane coating will help your floor to resist some stains, moisture and light wear. But it's still possible to get deep scratches with this type of coating.
Whitewashing Wood
Whitewashing isn't for everybody. But it is an option that may fit into some décor schemes. If you want to go lighter or brighter, whitewashing cab achieve that look - without having to cover your floors with a white rug.
Like the name says, this process involved 'washing' (staining) your floor with a white/light color. This isn't the same as painting the floor white. A coating of white paint completely covers the wood grain, creating a solid surface. Whitewashing allows the wood's natural texture and pattern to show through.
Similar to staining and sealing, whitewashing is a job that requires a professional's touch. Even though it's possible to brush on the light stain yourself, the experts know the correct techniques and methods that will give you the look you want.
Do you need help refinishing or restoring your floors? K & Z Hardwood Flooring offers sanding, sealing, staining, whitewashing and other similar services.
