Have you had the sudden urge to rip up that tired, stained carpet and sand down the wooden floorboards that are hiding underneath? It can be an exciting prospect to take on a home DIY project, and if you have the time, skills and sanding tools, it might even make a small saving in cost –if you know how to sand it properly.
Sanding your floors may seem like an easy task at first (it’s just moving a sander up and down the floor, right?), but mistakes in pressure distribution while DIY sanding can significantly reduce your floor’s lifespan. Even if you call in a professional floor sander in New South Wales to remedy the floor afterwards, they would have to do a lot of extra work to rectify the damaged surface.
Having been asked lots of questions about how to sand wooden floors, and having had to fix many botched DIY jobs, Modern Floor Sanding and Polishing has put together a list of reasons why DIY floor sanding is never a good idea.
Equipment
Many DIY sanding machines, even if they are labelled as high performance, are often not up to standard and can quickly congest the room with dust. Standard floor sanders are not only difficult to use but they are also heavy and have limited mobility.
Professional sanders have all of the sanding equipment needed to efficiently work across the room, ensuring the floor will be smooth and level.
If you do decide to sand your floor yourself you will need a long list of supplies including:
- Dust masks
- Goggles
- Ear protection
- Plastic Sheeting
- Sweeping brush
- Vacuum cleaner
- 2 rental sanders (a drum sander to sand the floor and an edger to sand along the baseboards)
- Multiple sheets of 24 grit sandpaper
- Multiple sheets of 40 grit sandpaper
- Multiple sheets of 80 grit sandpaper
- Multiple sheets of 120 grit sandpaper
- Woodstain (if you plan on staining your floor)
- Varnish
- Brush for varnishing
Dust
Sanding a wooden floor is likely to create a lot of dust in your home, especially if you have gaps between the floorboards to fill. If you fail to move all your furniture, take the curtains down and cover bookshelves and electronics, you will create a lot of stress for yourself later on.
You don’t just have to worry about the room you are sanding, dust can easily escape and cause damage in other rooms of your home and even pollute the air. This can be dangerous if you have any children or pets, especially if there is anyone with breathing issues living in your home.
Fire hazard
While sanding hardwood floors, a little knowledge of proper hazard prevention goes a long way in avoiding potential disasters. As well as being dangerous to our lungs, dust from wood is surprisingly explosive.
Spontaneous combustion can occur when wood dust ignites during the floor sanding process. It’s much more likely to happen when a floor is being re-sanded due to the old finishes on the floor becoming ground into a fine powder.
Professional floor sanders take great pride in their tools and consider a fire extinguisher to be an essential safety device to have on hand for every wood flooring project.
Noise
Having your floor sanded is a noisy process; especially with professional floor sanding machinery and equipment in operation. They are run by powerful electric motors which create more noise than ordinary power tools, sometimes reaching over 85 decibels.
Professional floor sanders always ensure to use ear protection during the restoration process so that they comply with the safety legislation set out by the Work Health and Safety Act of New South Wales.
Modern Floor Sanding and Polishing recommends that you and your family vacate the house while the floor sanding takes place for your own comfort and protection. If you decide to sand your own floor, you may cause short or long term damage to your hearing due to noise exposure levels.
Will you really save money with DIY floor sanding?
When you add up the costs of doing a DIY project on your flooring, you will undoubtedly have saved some money, but at what cost to your floor?
Mistakes are likely to happen with DIY floor sanding and the cost of having to call a professional to fix your wooden floor isn’t going to be cheap. If your floor has been badly damaged then you may even need to lay new flooring.
Modern Floor Sanding and Polishing has been called to fix many floors after homeowners have experimented with sanding their own wooden floors and, unfortunately, made many mistakes along the way.
Have we changed your mind?
A professional floor sanding business will take into consideration all health and safety risks and offer a tailored approach for each project to ensure you get the most out of your floor.
Depending on the amount of foot traffic and wear and tear your floor sees on a daily basis, Modern Floor Sanding and Polishing recommends having a professional come to sand your wooden floors and then refinish them every ten years to keep your floor looking sleek and shiny, especially if your house has many occupants.
Modern Floor Sanding and Polishing provides quality timber floor sanding and polishing in the Hunter, Newcastle and surrounding areas. Give us a call on 0467 029 131 to get your floor looking as good as the day you bought it – without the stress!