Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Nov 04, 2009 9:18 am We have just bought a new place that we think is a perfect reno opportunity. The floors are all carpeted or lino'd on top of what looks like pristine condition tas oak! So naturally we want to rip the lot up and sand+polish. My only concern is that if we do the floors now, what happens when we have time/money to do the other reno stages that involve moving walls etc. This will expose areas of the floor that won't have been sanded and polished, and what I heard from someone is that you don't want to have joins like that as it shows badly. So if you can only sand/polish contiguous floor area once, that means we'd have to have the final floor configuration first :/ So, is this necessarily true about joins? Or can I do both sand now + add sections later? Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 2Nov 04, 2009 9:23 am if it were me, i'd sand & polish the floors last.. you dont want tradies walking on a fresh floor (or even dropping a tool on them) Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 4Nov 04, 2009 9:50 am can I ask why you want to have the floors done first? if its aesthetic reasons, I think you need to reassess your priorities for the reno.... even though you'll be doing the work yourseef, you'll still be carting building materials in/out of the house, tools, ladders etc. I think it is just too risky for a fresh floor, you'll end up with some damage - its inevitable. and yes - if you were to polish the floor & later on do other sections, the joins will be noticeable. Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 5Nov 04, 2009 9:57 am Yes it was purely for aesthetics. We are wanting to move in as soon as possible so I thought I could just do some quick jobs to make it nice, and a big one would be to do the floors. If the joins are going to be noticeable then you're right - I need to reassess :/ I have started to rip up carpet and underlay, so I assume I could just go ahead and do that, and leave the bare floors? I'm bound to get the odd stain on the floor during the time between moving in and doing the floors. The other possibility is that I go all out and try and get the whole job done before we move in (lease runs out in Jan ) but there's potentially a lot to do!! Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 6Nov 04, 2009 10:08 am the bare floors should be fine - we had tasie oak bare/uncoated for a month or two while owner building my last project, they looked great after the sand/polish. one thing though, be very careful and avoid any liquid spills on them as the liquid may get absorbed into the bare timber.. Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 7Nov 04, 2009 10:18 am Dad mentioned you can get a liquid treatment that builders use to temporarily protect floors this would enable you to strip the floors in sections. You can lightly sand this back easily before applying the permanent varnish apparently, so that'd help me there. I think I might just hoe into the work Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 8Nov 04, 2009 2:55 pm The worst thing to do is leave them bare. At least put one coat of a finish on whether it be tung oil or a water-based poly that will be easy to take back when its time for the full treatment. Bare floors will absorb dirt, oils and stain if water is dropped on them. Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 9Nov 04, 2009 11:24 pm If there was any way you could move the walls and do the floor before u move in in Jan, id do it that way. Saves the hassel of moving all your stuff out again to do the floors. Its almost worth taking time off work. U experienced at floor sanding? We did ours and it was a hell of a lot of work. That drum sander, u really got to be carefull with. It all turned out ok though, only a few minor divets from stopping the drum sander too soon. Re: Polishing floors. Stages? 10Nov 05, 2009 4:44 pm Mango If there was any way you could move the walls and do the floor before u move in in Jan, id do it that way. Saves the hassel of moving all your stuff out again to do the floors. Its almost worth taking time off work. U experienced at floor sanding? We did ours and it was a hell of a lot of work. That drum sander, u really got to be carefull with. It all turned out ok though, only a few minor divets from stopping the drum sander too soon. My partner has been in the floor sanding business for many years. I totally agree with you 'Mango'. Those machines need strength and experience behind them. He even commented on my father's 'poorly polished DIY' floors when he visited as Dad is no expert and thought he would do it himself. I would suggest to leave the floors to last. We are polishing ours once everything in the house has been completed. I think it will be his most stressful job he has ever done...haha. 2 4657 3 5547 Old Home Restoration / Renovation To reduce noise transfer without compromising the aesthetic of your exposed I beams, consider filling the 100mm gap between the I beams and the floor above with dense,… 6 9099 |