Sanding and Refinishing Hardwood Floors

Floor sanding machine on wooden floor
Diagram showing a 'Before' and 'After' comparison of wood flooring. The 'Before' section depicts worn wood with a damaged finish, while the 'After' section shows a smooth, restored finish with a blue coating labeled 'Finish.' The term 'Full Sand' is highlighted at the bottom.

REFINISHING YOUR FLOORS
Makeovers are easy with a pro.

When your floors start to look a little dull, a maintenance coat may be the solution. A maintenance coat involves cleaning the existing floor finish, then lightly sanding it, and application of a fresh new coat of wood floor finish. When a new coat of finish doesn’t meet the needs of the floor, a resand may be in order.

It’s easy to transform the look of your wood floors through the process of sanding and refinishing. You’ll want a certified wood flooring professional who has the knowledge and skills to do the job right, though. The NWFA is dedicated to educating wood flooring professionals in the installation, sanding, finishing, inspection, and sales of wood flooring products.

A complete sand and refinish is recommended when there is damage to the wood floor like deep scratches, dents, and other flooring damage. It is also recommended when the finish has worn away, and the bare wood is exposed. Sanding a floor back to raw wood is the perfect opportunity to change the color of the floor.
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The number of times a floor can be sanded varies depending on a variety of factors including the skill of the contractor, the equipment used, the thickness of the wear layer, the flatness of the floor and the condition of the floor.

Recoating Wood Floors - An alternative to Sanding & Refinishing

Close-up of scratched wooden floor with light finish

Before Recoat

Close-up of a polished wooden surface with visible grain patterns and a light brown color.

After Recoat

Illustration showing a "Before" and "After" comparison of a wood floor surface undergoing a screen and recoat process with finish layers.

Recoating is a great way to preserve and often improve your hardwood flooring.  Recoating is a clean procedure with no airborne dust.  The flooring is first chemically cleaned to remove contamination that could inhibit adhesion of the new finish.  This has proven to be a very important step since any contaminants like wax, floor polish, or oil will cause recoat finish failure.  The contaminants usually show up or they are removed during the initial cleaning but not always.  In some cases contaminants cannot be detected or completely removed so the recoat fails.  For this reason the owners should always be prepared for the extra time and extra cost of refinishing as a worst case scenario.   After the chemical cleaning, the flooring is buffed which removes about a half a coat of the existing finish.  Next the floor is cleaned again in preparation for finish.  Finally, one or two coats of finish are applied and allowed to dry.  This takes one or two days and costs roughly 1/3 the cost of sanding and refinishing. 

The recoating schedule depends on wear, and ranges from every year for high use gym floors up to 20 years for gently used bedroom floors.  Recoating is recommended when you start to notice dark scratches, or numerous scratches that show in the right lighting, or when the floor becomes difficult to clean.  Recoating won't fix deep scratches that are down through the finish and into the wood.  But scratches that only show in certain lighting are usually in the finish coats and these are filled in and hidden by the recoating.  It's much cheaper in the long run to periodically coat floors than to sand and refinish them more often.  Sanding too often will result in prematurely depleating the wear layer and this leads to costly replacement.  For residential floors, recoating should be done every 2 to 10 years and sand and refinish every 15 to 20 years.  For sports floors recoating should be done every 1 to 2 years and refinishing every 15 to 20 years.  The correct upkeep allows the flooring to look good, clean easily, and last 50 to 100 years.  Following this schedule makes wood flooring the ultimate flooring choice. 

Stain Colors

A chart displaying the "DuraSeal Color Collections" for wood floor finishes, divided into three categories: Timeless, Inspired, and Legacy. Each category features various wood stain samples with names and numbers, showcasing an array of natural wood tones from light to dark shades.
Color chart displaying various intermixable stain colors for wood.

Beech

Polished hardwood floor with sunlight reflection
Sunlight reflecting on polished hardwood floor with natural grain patterns
Front entrance of a house with a wooden porch, white pillars, and adjacent stone walkway bordered by grass.
Wooden porch with rocking chairs and table next to patterned concrete patio

Before

Decks

Front porch with polished wooden deck and three steps, supported by white columns, adjacent to a house with light siding and green shutters.
Wooden porch with stairs and stone patio

After

Wooden door with three vertical rectangular windows
Wooden deck with steps leading to a white door

Douglas Fir

Wooden hardwood floor with a light finish
Wooden stairs with a smooth, glossy finish.
Empty room with light wood flooring and white walls
Wooden stairs with natural finish
Light-colored hardwood floor in a room with wooden cabinets and stainless steel appliances.
Room with red painted walls and wooden floor, blue painter's tape along edges, electrical outlet on wall.
Living room with hardwood floor, green sofa, TV on stand, and mosaic cabinet doors.
Wooden floor in kitchen with cabinets and dishwasher
Empty room with newly installed wooden floor and white walls.

Maple

Wooden parquet flooring with a geometric pattern in an empty room.
Kitchen interior with wooden cabinets and island, dark countertop, and hardwood flooring.
empty room with wooden floor
Comparison of wooden floor before and after restoration; left side shows worn, scratched hardwood, right side shows refinished, smooth wood floor.
empty room with wooden flooring and yellow walls
Empty room with newly installed light hardwood flooring, exposed brick wall, and large windows.
Light-colored wood floor with narrow planks
Close-up of hardwood flooring with natural wood grain and light finish.
Wooden parquet floor with geometric pattern in an empty room.

Parquet/Pattern

Room with parquet wood flooring and decorative border, yellow walls, and an open doorway.
Luxurious wood floor with intricate inlaid geometric patterns and borders in a room with yellow walls.
Wooden parquet floor with geometric border design
Wooden parquet floor with geometric inlay pattern and decorative borders.
Wooden floor with geometric pattern inlay design
Wooden parquet floor with geometric pattern in an unfinished room with yellow walls.
Fireplace with wood flooring, partially unfinished, inlay pattern visible, and a yellow wall.
Recently refinished hardwood floor with a herringbone pattern in an empty room.
Close-up of brown wooden parquet flooring with a checkered pattern.
Stone fireplace with metal grate and wooden floor

Pine

Wooden dresser and side table on light wood floor
Polished wooden floor with sunlight reflections in an empty room.
Wooden floor in front of stone fireplace with glass doors and built-in niche.
Empty wooden room with high ceiling, recessed lighting, and two windows looking out on a snowy landscape.

Purple Heart

Dark wooden floor with curved wooden counter and glass top
Empty room with dark hardwood floor and white walls

Red Elm

Wood floor with rectangular vent
Newly installed hardwood floor with a natural wood finish next to a fireplace covered in protective plastic.
Empty room with hardwood flooring, a wall vent, electrical outlets, and white walls.

Red Oak

Close-up of a wooden floor with light and dark wood grain patterns.
Empty living room with hardwood floors and a fireplace with a mantel, brick surround, and a nearby window.
Indoor basketball court with polished wooden floor, red boundary lines, and a school logo at the center. Bleachers are visible on the side, and banners hang on the walls. The word "Grovers" is displayed on one wall.

Sports Floors

Wooden gym floor with "Courts Plus Fitness Center" logo and mirrored walls.
Indoor squash court with wooden flooring and red boundary lines at Courts Plus Fitness Center.
Indoor basketball court with wooden flooring and court markings.

Steps

Wooden staircase indoors, viewed from the top looking down.
Wooden staircase with oak finish
A living room with hardwood floors, featuring a white mantel above a brick fireplace. Two windows flank the fireplace, allowing natural light to enter the room.
Wooden parquet flooring with a light finish
Empty room with newly installed hardwood flooring

White Oak

hardwood floor with light and dark wood planks
Empty room with hardwood floor and large windows with curtains.
Wooden floor with natural finish and grain pattern
Empty room with wooden floor and baseboard heater