Wood floors refinished

pcride

12 years ago

We love em!!

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PRO

Select Hardwood Floor Co.

12 years ago

last modified: 12 years ago

@pcride...
re: your statement that: "If you can paint a wall, I am sure you could stain a floor."
You may as well go a step further & say...you can "paint your car"

With all due respect, I'm quite sure you're pleased with the outcome of your efforts.
And perhaps you were fortunate enough to end up with good results... but after MANY years in the wood floor biz, I will be the 1st one to admit that there is a LOT of work, equipment & knowledge that goes into the proper finishing of wood in general, and flooring in particular.

Kudos to you if you pulled it off without leaving (or noticing) the traditional "dark spots" caused by...sander streaks, drum marks, scratches, swirl marks at the walls, gouges from the scrapers (of course you used flat scrapers at the walls, eh?), screen marks, etc., etc.
There's a difference between whether the job looks good to a pro as well as friends & family.
"The devil is in the details", my friend.
I wish I had a nickel for every time I've had someone tell me that they'd "refinished a floor ONCE... and never will again". haha

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Comments (38)

PRO
Lampert Dias Architects, Inc.
12 years ago
nice...what is the type of wood and what is the stain that you used..?
solincia
12 years ago
Beautiful!!
pcride
Original Author
12 years ago
Not really sure of the wood. It's the typical 3/4 wood floor that was used in the 60's stained golden pecan. Maybe it's birtch, but I know it's not oak.

I used 3 coats of Jacobean stain color (minwax) this is one shade lighter than ebony.
3 coats of satin poly. (Parks pro)
We love it!
solincia
12 years ago
Is there a reason you think it's not oak? I'm staring at my 1970's oak floors and they look just like yours.
PRO
Oak & Broad
12 years ago
Looks like Red Oak to me....
sarabeth2
12 years ago
Is your 'before' photo after the sanding was done? I see around the edges what must have been your original color of the flooring? Same size planks as my oak flooring in my house built in mid '60's. We are going to take up carpeting that has covered these solid oak floors for 40 some years, and have them sanded, stained, finished. I'm hoping that the nail holes from the carpeting strips used along the edges can be sanded out!
User
12 years ago
I'm always amazed at how beautiful old wood floors are after a ding and refinishing. Yours is just awesome!
PRO
Lampert Dias Architects, Inc.
12 years ago
Yes, the floor just may be red oak......birch usually is less grainy......Red oak is has a lot of interesting colors.......
solincia
12 years ago
I'm sharing to help you compare, these are what we had when we ripped up the carpet, I'm guessing yours looked identical :
VLee
12 years ago
Hey Solincia, great job on the floors. I'm getting some done soon on a rental I own, by a company though as I'm not up for that job at all. I am going to do the uplifting of carpet and removing nails etc. Any tips for that and is it a big job as now I'm wondering if I'm going to be biting off more than I can chew so to speak. They're thin old carpets and if the pic has come out right, they're throughout the house. The floorboards are a native timber from New Zealand and will come up as lovely as yours.
Marilyn Wilkie
12 years ago
last modified: 12 years ago
Looking great. I just arranged to have the red oak floors refinished in our "up north" house project next Tuesday. We tore up thick old sculpted carpet and pad, probably from the 1960's. I know they will look great, like yours. The company I chose uses a dustless system. I chose a natural finish and they will use a Bona satin product. It's exciting! Here is our before...
PRO
Select Hardwood Floor Co.
12 years ago
Sure looks like good old fashioned #1 com Southern Red Oak... which is why all the dark streaks are there... mineral.
pcride
Original Author
12 years ago
I guess it's oak! Here are some more pictures.
PRO
LB Interiors
12 years ago
Beautiful rich color choice.
solincia
12 years ago
Vicki, we sliced the carpet into strips ( take care to lift it while cutting so you don't get the floor) then rolled it up, duct taped it, and then rolled up the adding and bagged that. I carefully used a cats claw for the tack strips around the edges with a hammer, then used needle nose to pull up the staples. Don't break the staples, they are a pain!! We did not refinish the floors, that's how they looked. Just a good sweeping and light cleaning! It's labor intensive, but do one room at a time and wear gloves and safety glasses!!
sarabeth2
12 years ago
What influenced you as to what shade of stain you used when these lovely floors were done? Our 1960's oak flooring (covered with carpeting) is going to come out into the light of day once again -- but after it is sanded and ready for stain I am at a loss as to how I go about selecting the final color and sheen. We also have on order all new kitchen cabinetry. So should the cabinetry have a role in this floor stain decision? (The kitchen flooring will not be wood flooring). Another question: What sheen is the best/popular for flooring? What is most classic, a high sheen or low to flat sheen? I have very dark furniture now (Ethan Allen dark pine) and don't want to go too dark on the flooring, but don't want a blonde/natural look either. It is a big decision!
Marilyn Wilkie
12 years ago
@solincia, that is exactly how we removed our old carpeting.
@sarabeth2, here is a site that talks about floor refinishing. I liked the photo showing what the different products would look like on the same species of wood (this one shows white oak). We went with a natural, satin finish to minimize the possibility of scratches showing. I also feel a lighter color reflects more light and makes the room look larger. It also won't fight with other room elements. We have 3 dogs. :)

http://www.hullforest.com/blog/
VLee
12 years ago
Thanks solincia, I will go about it like that with removing the old carpet. I will have confidence I can do it okay! I can't wait - they're going to look beautiful.
Marilyn Wilkie
12 years ago
Sometimes you may find the carpet padding has "glued" itself to the floor. We were lucky. This didn't happen to our home. It's a dirty job and you may want to consider paper masks. One more thing. We have tiny black holes left in one doorway. The company said that they would not be able to remove those totally. It looks like the tacks may have rusted in place??
PRO
Select Hardwood Floor Co.
12 years ago
Marilyn mentions what a "dirty job" it is...
Many folks are AMAZED at just how much... dirt, grit, grime, & other undesirable "stuff" they find in the carpet they had been vacuuming faithfully for years. And every time they've walked thru the house, they were kicking that dirt, pollen, & carpet fiber up into the air to repeat the cycle.
VLee
12 years ago
Oh I'll be masked and tooled up for sure! I don't want to do it really but it's a few hundred dollars I can save. And I'll have a couple of helper mates lifting and removing carpet. I figured the time consuming part would be the nails and tack part. I shall let you all know and any more tips and advice will be gratefully received.
PRO
Shakuff
12 years ago
love what you did here!
PRO
Paradise Restored Landscaping & Exterior Design
12 years ago
Nice refinish! Thanks for sharing
bschr
12 years ago
Fantastic job! Your hard work paid off. Personally I love the "old fashioned " strip flooring. To me it is so much more interesting than the pre finished floors. However the mess made by the on site refinishing is another story.
User
12 years ago
Are there rules as to which direction the flooring should be laid--in other words, vertically or horizontally as seen when you enter a room? I'm confused about how to use hardwood in a small entryway/ long hall from which a living room and dining room can be seen on either side. Thanks.
PRO
Select Hardwood Floor Co.
12 years ago
Rule of thumb (for us anyway) is to have the grain/direction:
Follow the flow of traffic, such as into the room/entry.
Better wear & gives a more "inviting" feel.
Another idea is to have the direction "lead" toward a focal point in a room... such as fireplace... although the room dimensions or traffic flow may conflict with that idea.
In those cases... it's "viewer discretion" or a coin toss.
solincia
12 years ago
Can I just say bravo to everyone saving their old oak floors! There is just a seriously beautiful quality that these floors have that newly installed pre-finished floors don't have in my opinion!
PRO
S-Squared // Architecture + Interiors + Landscape
12 years ago
Very nice! Most folks don't realize the flexibility in color they have with their original oak floors.
pcride
Original Author
12 years ago
@bschr hardly a mess at all. Its easier than most people might think refinishing floors. $60-80 for the sander rental, then all you need; knee pads, a can of stain and your good to go. If you can paint a wall, I am sure you could stain a floor.
bschr
12 years ago
@pcride, thanks for that information. How much dust landed in the rest of your house? Did you seal the entry to the other rooms?
pcride
Original Author
12 years ago
@bschr I didn't seal off the rest of the house. The sander did a great job collecting most of the dust. The air wasn't 'filled' with dust either.

Yea maybe going to the extent of if you can paint a wall, you can stain a floor might be too bold :) but with a little guidance and knowledge and some experience it can be done!!
VLee
12 years ago
Hmmm, there's some merit to doing the floors myself. I'll look into it more. It would save me a LOT of money. My biggest problem I would see is I have such a little amount of time to get them done (along with other minor redec jobs and it just being me pretty much) so that's why I may have to leave it to the professionals. And as Select Hardwood Floor Co. says, it's a lot of work and the last thing I'd want is for the finished job to not look great. It's an investment property too and I just can't afford to mess it up! So I'll give it some thought.
jpags13
10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago
Hello, I am looking to refinish my carpeted hardwood floors as well. They look very similar to this type of wood. Does anyone know where I can get matching Red Oak to replace/add to my existing flooring?
PRO
Cancork Floor Inc.
10 years ago
@jpags13...2 year old thread...please post your own topic.
VLee
10 years ago
I didn't get around to posting the finished product. Must be because I'm still getting over the job even after 2yrs+. Oh my... It was a nightmare. I stuffed up my arm and had months of physio to mend it. Yeah, a lot tougher than I thought, ended up getting them to finish the prep work - the nails and glued down messy bits were just horrendous. Never again, I'll use the professionals and pay the price as it's totally worth it if they're good at their job. Besides all that complaining though, it was like giving birth - I instantly forgot the pain and I love my baby! They are apparently a native timber to New Zealand, we think Tawa. It's a warm looking wood with beautiful character in the grain. And very hard wearing as these floors have a family of five (3 kids) that thrash it daily and it still looks great. Nothing beats real hardwood floors so if you find em, keep em. Thanks to all that posted etc on here. As above commented, time for a new post to start.
Idicula Samuel
10 years ago
Great job love solid hardwood floors we finished ours in 50/50 Jacobean ebony 2 coats of stain and 3 coats of poly satin finish.

For all the engineered floor lovers out there I truly feel nothing comes close to the feel and look of solid hardwood.
VLee
10 years ago
Ooooh that's so rich and lovely! Great job. Another great thing about natural hardwood floors is how different they are around the world, due to all our native timbers. Like I've never seen a Jacobean ebony for instance. It's really attractive. In fact I don't think we have natural dark timber here or at least I haven't seen it on floors. Ours are generally honey toned but still so much variety. All our Government housing that started back here in 1930's had timber floors. So we still have many homes (if they haven't been ripped up and replaced - arrrrgh, and there's lots that have been) with hidden gold.