Small wooden floor landing

magpies79

So I have a small landing area we have bought some new carpet to put down but now my wife likes the idea of having this sanded down and varnished but a light finish as doesn’t want them dark.

I've been over all nails punch down so aren’t any raised while making sure no pipe underneath no boards seem to be damaged or loose no creaks so going forward would this work?

do I need to fill gaps in or can they just be left as that seems to be the only thing I’m unsure of.

casper_gutman

The only reasons for filling gaps that I can think of would be if you thought it would make it look better. The usual reason in a ground floor room with a suspended floor is to reduce draughts, but this wouldn't really seem to apply on a landing which is presumably open to the hallway below via the staircase.

CliveOfIndia

What are the wet-looking spots?  If they're just water or only surface discolouration then no problem, they'll disappear when they either dry or when you sand it.  But if they're oil/grease of some sort that's soaked into the wood, they'll probably still be there after you've sanded - though they'll probably fade quite a bit.

Might not be an issue - although I'm wondering whether, if they are grease, they would stop the varnish adhering properly?

magpies79

Yeah I’ll be honest not sure what the spots are when I’m home I’ll have another look see what’s what.
on reading up on it just unsure what grit of sand paper to start with as most say 60 but isn’t that for like removing varnish or if it’s been painted 

Eldi_Dos

The traditional way to do that would be to caulk the gaps with natural fibre string,leaving space above.Then fill with plaster of Paris, let that dry then wash off any residue on floorboards. Once dry sand and varnish, the plaster of Paris will take on the stain similar to the wood.

It is worth doing as it can help with creaky floorboards which can be a nuisance on a top landing in the wee small hours.