Floorboards - to sand or not to sand?

njp28

I've just bought a house built circa 1970. We've taken up the carpets to find decent floorboards in the bedrooms. Initially we planned to sand them, but I'm wondering if this is an unnecessary expense.

They're not too badly stained. There's some paint splodges in occasional places, but most of the bedroom floors are going to be covered by furniture and rugs so only some floorboard space will be showing. I don't mind them not having a pristine new look about them.

Rather than sand them, could I just clean them? They don't seem to have been treated in any way before, so I don't want to chuck hot soapy water on and scrub. I have read that white spirit might do the trick but does anyone else have any better suggestions for sprucing them up before applying some decent floor varnish?

27col

When I was young, the only reason for having bare boards was because you could not afford the cost of anything to cover them. It was a sign of poverty. I have never been able to understand the fascination of bare boards.

phill99

I think they look awful.

Jaynne

With what sounds like only a little work needed hiring a sander would be pretty cheap and quick. A sander for a day with the belts and an edge sander will be under £100.
You know what they say, if a jobs worth doing do it well.

njp28

Considering what it costs to pay someone to properly sand and varnish floorboards and the cost of regular maintenance in the form of retreating them, I don't think it is an option to be sneered at as cheap. I'd certainly prefer warm, real wood that is stained and varnished well as opposed to nasty, cold, cheap looking laminate and we don't fancy carpet.



Jaynne, thanks, we are considering the sander but wondered if it would be easier to give them a scrub over then varnish. I'm not overly confident at using the sander myself, am hoping that OH is better at it! I have visions of me screwing it up completely, and having it scuttling off across the floor, gouging big holes out while dragging me along behind it!

Edwardia

We have old floorboards throughout our house.
Method used was
(a) clean off paint splodges by scraping with old knife/using liquid stripper as appropriate
(b) make sure any nails proud of surface bashed down and staples removed
(c) scrub floors with distilled malt vinegar (5L containers bought from local cash & carry) with dirt wiped away using cheapo kitchen roll
(d) paint on French polish
(e) wax floor

With a 1970s floor when you're not bothered about losing patina but want an even colour I'd suggest sanding is less hassle. As the floorboards likely to be pine I would suggest using wood dye before sealant/varnish to avoid the orange pine look unless of course you like it

Bettie

njp28 wrote: »

I've just bought a house built circa 1970. We've taken up the carpets to find decent floorboards in the bedrooms. Initially we planned to sand them, but I'm wondering if this is an unnecessary expense.

My situation was much the same and I washed the floorboards with wood cleaner using a green scrubby and old rags a few days later painted it with pale pink emulsion and added a few rugs. I didn't think it would last or look good and figured I could always buy a carpet later. Five years on it's as good as new and I still love it. there is however not a lot of traffic in my bedroom so if kids or dogs/heels etc running about maybe it wouldn't look so good as it does now.

Jaynne

njp28 wrote: »

Jaynne, thanks, we are considering the sander but wondered if it would be easier to give them a scrub over then varnish. I'm not overly confident at using the sander myself, am hoping that OH is better at it! I have visions of me screwing it up completely, and having it scuttling off across the floor, gouging big holes out while dragging me along behind it!

Its really quite an easy job to do - you don't need any strength to do it you just let the machine do the work. Since the boards are in good condition you'll only need to use the finer grits of paper meaning it will be hard to gouge. I've done it twice before, once when I was 15 helping my sister restore her floor and a few months ago doing our own and its come out wonderfully both times.

The hardest bit by far will be getting the machine upstairs as they are heavy. A lot of rental places will deliver and unless you have two burly people I'd recommend that.

dbuk44

Did mine this weekend.

If you do opt to hire a sander HSS have a Fri-Mon weekend deal for BOTH the drum and edge sander for £36 http://www.hss.com/index.php?p=05429

I spent another £20-£30 for discs/belts to do my medium sized room.

Lara44

We have done the same in our 1970s house. It looks great, imho well worth the prep and sander sessions. The dust is awful though! Depends on how fussy you are about the finish