How to Refinish Wood Floors
Flooring, Painting & Finishing, Video by Danny Lipford
Nowhere is the charm of an older home more apparent than in the rich look of heart pine floors. Cut from the dense heartwood near the center of virgin longleaf pine trees, heart pine is prized for its fine grain, durability, and lasting beauty.
The floor in this century old house had been hidden under a layer of glued down carpet. Since trying to dissolve the adhesive with solvent would only have forced it further into the grain and cracks, it was decided to sand it off instead.
Once the glue had been removed with a floor sander and course grit sandpaper, the floor was sanded again using finer grits of paper.
Sanding dust from the floor was mixed with lacquer sealer and toweled over the entire surface to fill any cracks between the boards.
After it had dried, the floor was sanded again to remove any excess sealer then stained with Early American wood stain to reduce the yellow tones in the wood.
When the stain had dried, a semi gloss finish was applied to the floor with a lamb’s wool applicator.
The beautiful look and durable surface of this heart pine floor is one the homeowners will enjoy for years to come.
28 Comments on “How to Refinish Wood Floors”
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January 27th, 2008 at 09:42
we have pergal wood flooring it says to clean with water damp cloth. Do you know what I need to buy to clean this flooring. I believe water will damage flooring after using several months. thanks debbie
February 27th, 2008 at 17:59
We are currently refinishing heart pine floors in our home, but we have alot of cracks in between boards some as large as 1/4″. Could you specify a little more on instructions for filling them? Thanks
March 23rd, 2008 at 20:43
We have a 200 yr old house, with wide pine tongue & groove flooring. We used clear latex caulk for the cracks, and rubbed off the excess. We did this years ago, and it still is working fine.
April 15th, 2008 at 14:43
Metal wheels on dining room chairs have left grooves in heartpine floors. Any suggestions on how to fix these grooves?
June 4th, 2008 at 12:19
Help Needed ASAP: We have a 1922 bungalow and just got the floors sanded. Against the advice of my spouse! But there were so many gouges and raw chips. Thougt I had got a good contractor, yadda yadda; and now the caramel colored heart pine and yellow pine floors are skinned bald, have one coat of poly and the contractor is on hold until we resolve the issue. Went from caramel and cinnamon color to bright butterscotch like a basketball court. The mixed woods – so nice with patina – look calico and are way too bright. If the contractor had not gone so deep, no problem but there it is. We feel like our puppy has just gotten killed. I need to salvage this mess and want to see if we can add a tint to darken the next coat and try and better match the original color. Or do I hand glaze then then varnish. Or (and I don’t want to go any deeper and do more damage then I have) do we have to re-sand and start over with some sort of tint/stain then finish. The contract refused to stain the pine – which I bought – but his efficient machines took off too much of the old surface. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
September 26th, 2008 at 17:52
We are refinishing heart pine wood floors 100+ yrs. old. Could you please recommend a finish for these beautiful floor? Thank You
October 11th, 2008 at 12:20
we are refinishing our heart pine floors in our late 1890’s kitchen. the floor had a sub-floor stappled on with armstrong flooring attached to it. we have pulled it all off but have a million staples. any suggestions on removing them easily (ha)at least a better way than each one removed by hand? we have refinished three other rooms and they are so worth the trouble….
December 1st, 2008 at 15:26
I just finished pine floors in my log home for 3 or 4th time ( we rent it ) I sanded but did not sand all the sealer off I stain it again . It appears the sanded to wood soaks in but after 2th coat of sealer still appears dryed in . I sealed it with satin but appears glossy in the places old sealer still was on floors !
January 4th, 2009 at 16:35
We are going to refinish our 120 year old Heart Pine floors and I would like more details on the different grits of sandpaper you used and the ratio of pine sanding dust and lacquer sealer you used and how long you let it dry before you resanded it. Thanks in advance
January 25th, 2009 at 15:40
I have the same questions that Eric has regarding sandpaper grit, and the lacquer sealer. I have pine floors that have round circles (plugs of some sort) scattered thoughout the floor. Those circles are darker than the pine. I was thinking that maybe I could use stain as close to the dark color as possible to prevent them from being so obvious. Thanks!
Ben Erickson Says:January 26th, 2009 at 09:23
Eric and Mary,
One of the problems with sanding heart pine floors is that the resin in the wood tends to gum up the sandpaper. When I sanded our antebellum floors, I had to start with coarse (36 grit) sandpaper to get them even and down to bare wood, then I switch to 60, 80, and finally 120 grit (though it tended to gum up on a single pass across the floor). Regarding filling the cracks with lacquer sealer and sanding dust, the cracks on our old wide flooring were so big that I didn’t fill them for fear that it would make them standout more and wood movement might cause the filler to come loose. When filling narrow cracks, add enough sanding dust to achieve the right color and consistency and let it dry until it is hard before finishing. For holes and the like, try mixing sanding dust with epoxy glue, which will dry hard in a short time.
January 30th, 2009 at 01:15
We had installed remilled 200 year old heart pine about 10 years ago. It was finished with NO laquer finish, just a Watco stain as we preferred little to no shine. The floor needs refinishing but the wood is in superb condition. Somewhat distressed, but we want it that way. When sanding/buffing, what grit of paper would you use? There are no defects that we need to remove. Again, the wood is in near perfect condition. Thanks for you response!
May 22nd, 2009 at 13:00
WE BOUGHT A 50YR OLD HOUSE WITH WOOD FLOORS. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO PAY A PERSON TO COME IN AND REDO THE FLOORS. WILL IT BE OKAY TO CLEAN THE FLOORS AND PAINT A STAIN ON THEM?
Ben Erickson Says:May 26th, 2009 at 09:53
Hi Linda,
Most stains are made to penetrate into unfinished wood and would not work over an already finished floor. You might be able to apply a tinted polyurethane over your existing finish to hide defects if you clean and lightly sand it first.
August 11th, 2009 at 21:34
I refinished some of the floors in my house w a friend who has done a few and they turned out well but not perfect. I understand the process but im having a hard time figuring out if buffing the floors is necessary and if so when should it be done?? Between coats? Before poly on the last coat?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!
August 20th, 2009 at 05:59
I’m trying to color match new random width red oak flooring to 110 yr. old heart pine which has been refinished in a natural stain. Any suggestions for stain colors? Minwax Gunstock is close but needs slightly more brown/yellow. (maybe add Provencial ?) I read that Antique Maple and a dark mahagony might work but that’s using a Minwax gel stain and it’s a two step process to apply the color. Thanks for your input.
September 3rd, 2009 at 16:35
never have re-covered a wood flooring ,but I am willing to try. Not afraid of failing.It just must be done.I have looked at all the videos. Am ready to try ,do you have any last words of wisdom
Ben Erickson Says:September 4th, 2009 at 08:15
Hi Tom,
If you’re putting down new prefinished wood flooring (especially the thinner engineered flooring) , be sure your subfloor is as flat and level as possible first. See our video on How to Level a Subfloor for more info. If you’re sanding a new or existing floor using a drum sander and edger, keep in mind that it’s easy to gouge the floor and leave sanding marks. Lower the drum sander down lightly while moving the machine forward and pick it up at the other end the same way. Unless you really look hard, you won’t see the sanding marks until the finish goes on, when they stand out like a sore thumb and it’s too late to do anything about it. Good luck with your project, and share what you learned when you’re through.
October 5th, 2009 at 09:27
our carpenter just glued down stair treads in old reclaimed yellow pine – our floors in our 1910 home are original red heart pine. i’ve been mixing and trying stain combos for weeks to get the yellow pine close to the color of the old red pine. anyone know the winning formula?!?!??! thanks
Ben Erickson Says:October 5th, 2009 at 09:41
Hi Lauren,
I’ve used Minwax Early American a lot. It has a nice medium brown color. Minwax mahogany will give a darker brown with some dark red in it, so you might try it as well.
October 24th, 2009 at 20:11
I have heart of pine flooring in a sunroom. A small area has some red paint, possibly a paint ball, or red dye from a wet red duffle bag, not sure which – grandson knows but is not telling; this has penetrated through the polyurethane. I have tried hand sanding and unduluted bleach – nothing works; red stain still there. Had my floor refinisher analyze stain; he is not sure he can sand it out – may have to replace wood at a cost of $450. I would like to repair this as economical as possible. This is an investment house that I have sold and am closing on Oct 27th. Any suggestions? Thank you.
January 1st, 2010 at 00:28
I love the look of very light wood floors. My 4″ oak prefinished plank was installed throughout the house, and turned was exactly the look I wanted…. however, the wood is only two years old, and it’s turning a weird yellow/orange color, which really clashes with my current decor. I’ve only tried 3 types of cleaner, Bona = too sticky, no matter how little I used… vinagar & water very sparingly = smells, and eventually dulls the glossy finish, and finally Murphy’s oil soap = cleaned well, but (seemed) to accelerate the yellowing. Two questions, is there any way I can gradually remove the yellow, and what type of cleaner should I use that will not promote this yellowing? Also, this yellowing is happening everywhere, whether there is sunlight or not… (not much direct sunlight comes in)
Thank you for your time, in answering all our questions.
Lisa
Ben Erickson Says:January 1st, 2010 at 12:32
Hi Lisa,
The change in the color of your wood floors could be due to a color change in the wood or finish as they age. Almost all natural wood will change color over time with lighter woods like maple, cherry, and mahogany darkening significantly while some dark woods, like walnut will lighten to a honey color. Finishes, too, can change color with varnishes often taking on yellow hues as they age. In either case, there’s not much you can do about it but learn to live with it.
January 3rd, 2010 at 22:40
I have Long leaf Pine flooring. They were covered with carpeting for many, many years. About 10 years ago I ripped up the carpet and had them sanded then coated with polyurethane. The wood dents very easily. All furniture is on felt and my girlfriends high heals are making the floor look like a woodpecker lives hear. Is there a finish that will harden and protect this flooring? Maybe epoxy. Thanks
Gregg
Ben Erickson Says:January 4th, 2010 at 11:03
Hi Gregg,
If the wood itself is denting, then it won’t matter how hard the finish on top of it is, it will continue to happen. Long leaf pine (if it has a fine, quartersawn grain) and polyurethane (when applied correctly) are both pretty hard, so I’m surprised to hear that you’re having problems with denting.
January 17th, 2010 at 02:30
Ive been wanting to refinish my floors in my 1930’s house – I went and rented a rotory floor sander, not a drum sander – because the flooring is pretty thin. The problem is the sanding pads keep getting gunked up the the varnish or urethan(sp?). Is there a trick or should I get the drum sander? The room is 9′x15′ and Im not quite half done and already went thru 12 of the 36 grit pads.
Thanks for any tips. Kinda thinking about striper to get the top coat off then sanding?
Ben Erickson Says:January 18th, 2010 at 13:40
Hi Randy,
If you’re using an edge sander, like the one in the first photo of this article, you should definitely use drum sander instead to sand the bulk of the floor in your room. Not only is a drum sander much faster than an edger, but it leaves a much smoother finished surface with any scratch marks running with the grain of the wood rather than in circular swirls across it. You’ll still need an edger to do next to the walls and doors, but the drum sander is the tool to use for everything else. Both sanders, however, can be tricky to control to keep from gouging the wood.
March 11th, 2010 at 10:42
Would you please provide more detail about the method of using laquer sealer and dust to seal seams. Is there a preferred sealer? We’re ready to sand, seal and oil-base poly our 1935 Atlanta bungalow kitchen with heart pine. Also, do you have any kitchen specific advice for refinishing?
Thanks!!