5 Reasons: Why Wood Floor Refinishing Is Not A DIY Project?
Across the globe, people praise the hardwood floors because of its sheer elegance and beauty. The durability of the hardwood floors is known to all. The hardwood market has suffered an economic blow in 2020, and the market volume has declined to 3.6 billion USD, but it is expected that by 2027, it will reach 5.2 billion.
Over the period, hardwood loses its shine and gets scratch marks on it. A proper refinishing helps to regain the look and protect the floor from the scratches, water damages, etc. Further, with easy hardwood floor refinishing, you can change the look and color of the wood floor also.
Some owner tries to do the staining and finishing on their own and later realizes that a big mistake has been committed. If you are thinking should I refinish my own hardwood floors, then this article is for you.
The current article is all about the reasons why one should not try wood floor refinishing as a DIY project.
Hardwood Refinishing Requires Heavy Tools
Using the hand-held sander or the belt sander is not that easy to hold and manage as it seems. The truth is that often the equipment is cumbersome, and you need a lot of practice to handle it. No matter how strong you are, but because of not practice the whole thing may go wrong.
Instead of a simple refinish, you may end up breaking the wood floor, which will then require a replacement. Further, you can also end up hurting you. Hiring a professional will save your wood floors along with you from being injured.
Related Article : How To Refinish Hardwood Floors?
Selecting the Right Sandpaper Needs Skills
Refinishing floors require the upper wood layer to get off through sanding. For the sanding, you need sandpapers of various grits. The fine grits remove the light layer. On the other hand, professionals use the heavy grits to strip off the thick layers of paint and another coating. Using the wrong grit can give you the opposite result.
A skilled and experienced contractor doing wood floor refinishing Los Angeles can tell the grit required for the refinishing job after inspecting the current wood floor condition. The right grit removes the required amount of wood from the flooring and prevents your floors from damages.
Improper Sanding can damage the Wall and Baseboard
A novice hand can easily damage the wall and baseboard while sanding the floor. If you do not have control over the hand, you may run the sander tool close to the edges ignoring the potential damage it may cause to the baseboard.
However, in this situation, either the edges may get damaged, or the owner will leave the edges without proper sanding. Hence, for a perfect refinishing, you need an expert pair of hands who will remove the old coating properly without damaging the edged.
Knowing the Right Sanding Technique
It is not about just selecting the right grit of the sanding paper or controlling the tools. Refinishing requires more than it. Improper use of floor sander may leave swirl marks on the floor. Viewing the videos on YouTube can teach you how to use the sander, but it will not be enough to get first-hand experience. Professionals ensure that your wood flooring must not get damage while sanding the floor. Further, they will finish the work as soon as possible.
Residual dust from Sanding may affect Stain
Sanding leaves residual dust and debris on the floor even after using the bagged sander. If you don’t clean these fine specks of dust before applying the stain, the new coat will remain uneven and messy.
It requires the mindful attention of the cleaner to clean the mess. Further, the professionals use a special type of soap or cleaning agents to remove the residual dust. Applying the stain after the cleaning will result in a smooth and even finishing.
Final Words
So, before you set up your mind to take refinishing as a DIY task, consider these cautions. If you need hardwood floors refinished, hiring a professional is a worthwhile investment as it will safeguard your hardwood flooring investment. A wrong step may damage your hardwood flooring permanently.
At Almahdi Hardwood Flooring, we are restoring and refinishing the hardwood floors for more than 25 years. With a single call, you can book an appointment. We assure you of delivering a refinishing of the highest standard.