In terms of choosing the best floor refinishing methods, there are many different considerations. Should you do it yourself? Should you hire someone else to complete the project? There are also issues of cost, effort involved, time to complete, the length of time the floor refinishing will last, and the methods used for the type of area you plan to finish.
Floor refinishing can be used to repair the surface of hardwood flooring, to improve the appearance, or to update the look to better complement décor. Your choices in floor refinishing will often involve color as well. Would you prefer a deep, dark, rich finish, a nearly clear, more natural one, or something in between? You may wish to redo your floors along with other remodeling projects. If you plan to put off major renovations until a later date, you may want to consider a less extensive floor refinishing project until that time.
When it comes to floor refinishing methods, there are two main choices, which are recoating and complete refinishing. Recoating is used for hardwood floors with mild damage or scratches, such as minimum daily wear and tear. Rather than going through the process of sanding the entire floor down to the bare wood, the flooring is scuffed with some type of mild abrasive. Only one coat of finish is generally used, which is applied after the floor has been scuffed and cleaned of residue.
A complete floor refinishing job requires the entire floor to be sanded down until the entire surface is bare wood. Try to hire a company that provides excellent dust control during this step of the project. The finish will then be applied; often more than one coat, and then perhaps followed by some type of top coat to protect the finish. A high traffic area will obviously require a more durable finish while with areas that don’t get much wear and tear, recoating may be a sufficient floor refinishing method.
Allowing the floor to cure to a hard finish before use is important. Find out how long the project will take, but also learn how long it will be before people can safely walk on the newly refinished floor. This is very important, especially in a commercial setting, as minimal downtime will likely be advantageous. Yet, it is also important in a residential setting as a family’s entire routine can be disrupted by such a renovation project.