Sanding Floorboards

[nordberg73]

Hi,

I'm about to start sanding the floorboards in my newly purchased house and I'm after a bit of advice....

I'm looking at hiring a floor sander for a week and get as much of the house done as possible.

Firstly, is the sander in the link the right one for the job? As far as I can see, this is the recommended solution for virgin (un-sanded, un-stained) floorboards. Has anyone any experience of these machines? How much mess do they make? Does the bag catch most of the dust?

I presume (the guides I've found don't really say one thing or another) that I will need to start with a medium grade paper and then finish with a finer grade?

What about the edge sander? Is this needed or will a normal handheld belt sander do the same job?

Any other advice on this little task would be much appreciated.....

Thanks!

 

[WoodYouLike]

What's the state of your existing floorboards? Pine or Oak, cupped or level, stained, lacquered or oiled etc?

The drum sander is in many cases way to light to tackle a job like this, if you have to remove loads of finish layers and the floor is not really level. Because of the (lack of) weight of the machine it can cause loads of shatter marks on your boards, which definitely will show up when you apply your new finish.

 

[nordberg73]

Hi - they are standard 1930's pine boards. No stain and as far as I can tell they've been covered with carpet pretty much since the house was built.

From what I've seen (carpet is still down), they look to be in pretty good order.

 

[WoodYouLike]

The problem is with these machine they use a metal rod to keep the sanding sheet in place. The rougher the grid you have to use (say 40 to remove the existing varnish layer) the easier this rod will mark the floor because it does not sit tight enough against the drum.

 

[nordberg73]

OK - so what's the alternative?

 

[WoodYouLike]

A continuous belt sander (quite heavy and most times not for hire in the normal diy hire shops).
Try to find out how well or not the existing finish layer can be removed with a hand sander to give you an indication of grid 40 is needed.

 

[nordberg73]

A continuous belt sander (quite heavy and most times not for hire in the normal diy hire shops).
Try to find out how well or not the existing finish layer can be removed with a hand sander to give you an indication of grid 40 is needed.

There is no existing finish layer - they are "virgin" bare wood...

 

[WoodYouLike]

Ah, lucky you then

Then, if the pine boards are also level as you think they are you're better off not using a drum sander at all. A light sanding with a suitable grit (120 for oil finish, 150 for lacquer/varnish finish) is all that's needed then.

Check HSS site for a re-finish sander

 

[nordberg73]

THanks - found that. So there's no need to use a drum sander at all? Wow... I'll be getting the carpets up this weekend and I might even give it a go with my handheld orbital with different grits and see how it looks.....