Soiled hardwood floor requires sanding

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/05/2003 (8200 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

QUESTION. Linda asks: “My husband and I installed a pre-finished Bruce hardwood floor in our new home two years ago. We were told the finish was baked-on urethane. When construction of our house was complete we could not get all the construction dirt off the floor.

“We returned to the dealer who sold us the floor and he recommended a Minwax product called, Duraluster. The floor was beautiful, but eventually got very dirty-looking. Dust mop and vacuum did not remove the dirt from the finish.”

A. First, and most important, when hardwood is the flooring of choice it should be the last construction item to be installed. All hardwood flooring, regardless of brand or type, is highly susceptible to damage. If a hardwood floor must be installed before construction is completed, it should be covered with a thin layer of plywood to prevent damage.

Bruce and Hartco are two large manufacturers of pre-finished hardwood flooring. They both offer stain, finish coat, cleaners and wax that are compatible with their factory-finished products.

Hardwood floors are beautiful, but require a high degree of maintenance and they do get scratched — waxed or not. High-heel shoes can do irreparable damage to the surface of a hardwood floor — even hard-rock maple will dent.

Another concern is finish. When two different urethane finishes are used on the same floor, chemical incompatibility can prevent the second finish from curing properly. Also, when wax is applied to a urethane finish, it must be removed and reapplied every year or so. This is true even in the case of a good product like Minwax.

This brief bit of hindsight is offered for next time.

For this time, wash off all the wax, give the floor a thorough sanding with 220-grit nylon sanding pads — you’ll need several — and refinish with a Bruce urethane.

— Associated Press