Reconditoning 3/4" solid oak flooring

[gowest]

I have about 600 sf of 12 year old oak flooring that is still in pretty good shape but showing a few thin spots or urathane wear. My hope is to clean and reapply a few coats of urathane rathering than having to sand down the floors.
Question:Advice on sanding or not. Can I just clean and apply a top coat or two of urathane. Or do I need to sand first. If I need to sand, can I use a light grit like 120 or higher and just scuff it or lightly sand and avoid a machine sander and the extra time and mess? Thanks for any advice you can provide.

 

[tall_tone]

Hi There
In theory yes you can just clean, key and overcoat a lacquered floor.
First you need to find out if the floor finish is compatible with extra coats. If you have used lots of polish over the years, or you have an Aluminium Oxide or Ceramic pre-finish, water based products will have difficulty sticking. Speak to a manufacturer to get a sample, and do a small test. In the UK I use mainly Bona products, and they seem to have a US office.

I would clean the floor using Prep first, then key the floor with a 120 grit sanding screen, remove the dust and overcoat with a few coats of lacquer.

If the lacquer has worn through and the wood is now contaminated with general dirt, you may have difficulty getting the finished appearance even.
If this is the case you would need to sand the floor. The minimum I would ever consider is an 80 grit followed by a 120 grit. Just tickling the surface with a 120 grit is unlikely to remove all the previous finish and could leave you with a very patchy appearance.

Hope this helps.

TT