Refinishing Your Hardwood Floors? Turn to These Eco-Friendly Tips

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Are your wood floors in need of a refresh? With the right refinish, you can transform the look of your floors or fall in love with their original beauty all over again — without the hassle of replacement. Even better, sustainable, high-quality products will make your floors look like new while your home stays healthy, without any harmful toxins in the refinishing process.

It can be overwhelming to know where to start, so we’re here to help with an easy five-step guide. Plus, interior designer Krissy Peterson of K. Peterson Design shares insights from her recent floor refinishing experience so you can feel prepped for the process.

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1. Get Your Game Plan in Place

Have you started noticing a certain dullness to your floors? Do you have a few (or several) scratches? Has high traffic worn down a certain area? Then it’s likely time to restore your floors. “The first time we refinished our floors, we chose a really light color, and just a few short years later, they were looking pretty beat up. Lots of scratches and dents,” Peterson says. “Because they were so light, aesthetically I was also just ready for a color change.”

Whether changing the stain color, amplifying the sheen or bringing back the original look of your wood floor, start your renovation process with a plan. Take the time to research products, specifically those you don’t want in your home. Many flooring companies make this easy by listing full specifications on their websites.

Of course, you also need to consider the style you’re after. Whether you’re inspired by soft and natural or dark and sophisticated tones, the right refinishing company can make your design vision possible. Flooring pros can also give you samples and recommendations based on your needs and location. Still struggling to picture your future floors? A floor visualizer tool can help bring your design ideas to life digitally.

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2. The Finish Makes All the Difference

As long as your wood floor finish has the right color and sheen, you may think one finishing product is much like any other. Unfortunately, some finishes leave behind more than you bargained for. A less expensive option such as acid-cured, conversion varnish or Swedish finish can be highly toxic in the home. Swedish finishes have a high level of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which dramatically affect indoor air quality. Acid-cured finish contains toxic ingredients such as formaldehyde, which can aggravate respiratory illnesses and cause nausea, dizziness, headaches and irritation of the eyes, nose and throat. That means anything living must be removed from the home, including fish or aquarium pets, plants and food.

Now for the good news. Waterborne or water-based finishes are the sustainable and environmentally friendly solution that are healthier for your home. “For me, focusing on eco-friendly products just makes sense from an environmental and health standpoint for myself and my family,” Peterson says. “Knowing I am making a good choice that benefits everyone feels good, especially because the results are just as good, if not better, from floors to paint to furniture.”

Waterborne finishes have one of the fastest dry times in the industry, meaning you can quickly get back to your routine. Within a few hours, the floors can be walked on in socks. In only three days, the floor is fully cured and ready to withstand wear and tear. Plus, the finish dries clear, is colorless and won’t yellow or change color over time, which allows the natural beauty and elegance of your wood to remain for the life of the floor.

“The experience of using eco-friendly products was so much better than the alternative,” Peterson says. “Coming back into the house only 24 hours after the last coat and not getting the ‘fume headache’ that is so common with standard finishes was so nice.”

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3. The Right Contractor Is Key

With a plan in place and a deeper knowledge of the products you want to use, the next step is finding a contractor who will help guide you through the process and deliver your game plan without shortcuts or compromises. By partnering with certified craftsmen, you know you’re getting the industry’s best and can rest easy knowing your floors are in good hands.

“The most important aspects of the refinishing process for me were minimal down time and a quality result and color,” Peterson says. “I have two young kids, so being out of our house was going to be hard. Selecting a company that I knew would do a quality job set us up for success right from the beginning.”

How can you feel confident you’ve found the right contractor? Here’s a quick checklist: They’re insured, trained and trusted; they use a finish that gets you back on your floor quickly; they have a comprehensive dust-containment process, which is safer for the home and makes cleanup a breeze; and they offer support to maintain the beauty of your floors for years to come.

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4. It’s Dustless or Bust

It can be hard to envision your gorgeous refinished floors through a cloud of dust. Even worse, that dusty process isn’t just a nuisance — it’s harmful to your health. Even after sealing each room to contain the dust, particles can find their way into your furniture, electronic devices and, worst of all, your lungs, causing irritation, asthma and allergic reactions.

While some dust is inevitable, how you handle it makes a difference. Insist on a trusted and tested dust-containment system to reduce the spread of dust and make it easy to stay at home while your floors are being refinished. “Bona’s dust-free sanding system kept our house clean, and the low-VOC stains and finishes meant almost no smell or odor,” Peterson says.

Bona’s dust-containment process uses sanding tools directly connected to a vacuum system for immediate dust removal. The system itself is sealed with multi-stage filtration, ultimately removing up to 99.8% of airborne dust to keep the home clean and safe.

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5. Keep an Eye on the Upkeep

Beautiful wood floors are an investment, but maintaining them doesn’t have to feel like a chore. And using water-based products and cleaners will ensure that your routine is safe for families, pets and the planet. “The maintenance of the floors has so far been so easy,” Peterson says. “Bona has a great suite of products that makes cleaning easy and keeps the floors looking just as good as they did the first day we walked in.”

When it comes to cleaning your wood floors, a light touch is best, as vacuums and excess water from a mop can cause damage. Cleaning products tailored to wood floors will gently and easily remove dust, dirt and grime without harming the surface or leaving a dull residue.

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If your floors handle a lot of foot traffic, you’ll probably want to clean more regularly by dusting daily or every other day. For a deeper clean, try a plant-derived, biodegradable waterborne formula specifically made for hardwood (and free of phthalates and parabens). After a deep clean, polishing hardwood floors adds sheen and helps to fill in micro-scratches.

Now that you know the best choices for your home and health, you can fearlessly face the refinishing process and enjoy newly radiant floors.

More: To learn more about a stress-free, environmentally friendly way to refinish your floors, visit Bona’s website.

This story was written by the Houzz Sponsored Content team.