Tips to Finishing a Hardwood Floor

How to finish a hardwood floor is a question asked by do-it-yourself enthusiasts. After the hardwood floor has been installed, the next step would be to sweat out the process of protecting the wood surface. Without a finish, hardwood floors will immediately lose their sheen because it would be susceptible to surface scratches. If floors have unsightly nail holes these will need to be filling up to even out the effect. The next activity will surely require extra effort if you are doing the job yourself.

The hardwood floor would first require sanding. This can be done by hand but it would be more time and cost efficient if an electrically driven sanding machine is used. These kinds of machines are rented out by rental agencies. A hand sander though may be needed for those hard to reach places. If you do not know how to finish a hardwood floor, then you can look for tips over the Internet. You can also ask for assistance from your local wood flooring stores.
Before sanding can take place, the floor must be swept of all dirt and dust. All protruding nails must be “set” to prevent damage to the sander. In sanding and finishing a hardwood floor, care must be exercised that sanding must not cut across the grain of the wood. If this is done the scratch marks would be noticeable. Sanding removes small slivers of wood and smooths the hardwood floor. Depending on the type of floor, steps on how to finish a hardwood floor requires only two sanding cuts. This is particularly true of new floors. A third cut may be done if the floor is uneven or a particular finish is desired. A smoother hardwood finish will be acquired after the final sanding.
Here is a tip on how to finish a hardwood floor: the floor may be buffed on the third sanding or pass. This is done with a steel wool using a special machine. Beware though of using steel wool on oak floors. This may cause iron stains on the finish. Sanding follows a pattern for parquet and similar flooring. Starting to sand with coarse sandpaper removes the outer coarseness of the hardwood floor. This can be later fine-tuned with less coarse sandpaper. Before the sanding is complete, inspect the floors for any missed-out areas.
Finishing floors will require polishing and buffing the floor with steel wool, pumice, and other abrasive compounds. The kind of polisher will be determined by the kind of finish required. A protective coat will be applied to protect floors from scratches, and rapid wear and tear. There will be different tools to finish a hardwood floor. Brushes, rags, spray guns and rubbing pads will be needed in hardwood floor refinishing, and how to apply a finish on a hardwood floor must be followed carefully.
Other than tips on how to finish a hardwood floor, there are also tips on floor refinishing. In refinishing floors, old finishes must be removed with a varnish remover with no water content (non-aqueous). The floor should also be sanded as in new hardwood flooring. Another tip would be to avoid sanding beyond the wood. Do not remove more wood than is necessary.
If you are doing the job yourself, do not hesitate to ask the advice of professionals when you hit a snag in the operations. When you know how to finish a hardwood floor, you will be rewarded with years of satisfaction.