by Charlene

Created on: November 22, 2008   Last Updated: May 18, 2011

I am sure that you will agree that real hardwood floors are a beautiful asset and sound investment for your home. Sadly, too often their beauty is covered by years of dirt and abuse. Refinishing hardwood floors is one way to restore their beauty. While it is not a task for the faint of heart, you will be rewarded with a beautiful end result.

Before you decide to embark on this project, you must first determine if your hardwood floors can be refinished. The sanding process can remove a lot of surface and the floor must be at least 3/4 " thick. Some newer floors can be as thin as 1/4" and therefore cannot be refinished. It is a good idea to check floor thickness at floor edges or around heat registers to determine how much floor remains.

It is important that you inspect your floors to determine if the floor feels spongy, sags or if the floor boards are buckled or warped. If any of these conditions exist, you should replace the floor rather than refinish it.

Once you determine that your floor is a good candidate for refinishing you can rent the equipment that you need from most hardware or home improvement stores such as Home Depot or Lowe's.

The following is the equipment you will need to refinish your hardwood floors:

• A drum sander

• Floor edger

• Buffer

• Orbital/ palm sander

• Putty knife and scraper

• Shop vacuum

• Lamb's wool and natural bristle brush or foam applicators.

Before beginning, remove everything from the room including furniture, window treatments and wall hangings. Because the sanding process is extremely dusty you should cover all light fixtures and tape electrical outlets, light switches, and vent ducts. To keep the dust confined to one room, seal the door with plastic sheeting securing it with masking tape.

Next, vacuum the floor to remove dirt and debris, and use pliers to remove carpet staples and use a hammer and nail set to sink any exposed nails. Take a moment to check for cracks or gaps and fill them with putty before you sand the floor.

Sanding hardwood floors is a very dusty job, so I suggest that you wear a dust mask and protective eye-wear. Begin use a drum sander with course paper 20 to 36 grit, start in a area that is inconspicious not visible, start the sander with the drum off the floor and slowly lower it unto the wood It takes some time getting used to it. Be careful not to let the sander sit in one spot as it can gouge or swirl mark your floor in just

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