How Floor Sanding Works

Does your wooden floor look grungy and dull? Then maybe it is time for you to hire a sanding company to restore your floorboard's original splendour. They use specialised equipment to remove the damaged top surfaces of your timber, cork, parquet, hardwood, or parquet floor, and smoothen it.

Floor sanding involves three stages. First, the area is prepared by punching down nail heads that stick out of the boards. Staples and tacks that were used to hold carpets are removed. This is a very important stage because materials that are left protruding out of the floor can severely damage the sanding machine. Furthermore, if adhesives were used, the thick residue must be removed by manually scraping it, which is a labour-intensive job. This should be done because the glue's residue can clog the abrasive paper and the running gear of the machine, sometimes making sanding impossible. The accumulated debris is then swept or vacuumed away.

Once the floor is prepared, sanding can start. Coarse-grit sandpaper, usually 40-grit, is used first to make the floor flat and level as well as to remove old coatings and sealants. This first cut also reveals holes on the surface which are then filled. The second cut follows, using 80-grit sandpaper. This stage smoothens out scratches left by the first cut and makes the floor smooth. The final cut is made of 150-grit sandpaper to get rid of minute scratches. One should note though that sanding can sometimes alter the colour and character of the floor.

The sanded area is swept off of sanding dust and inspected thoroughly, and imperfections are fixed. Finally, the floor is coated with oils and polyurethane to seal it, protect it from termites, and make it shine.