This video was very helpful for me. I led a group of 10 high school students on a mission trip and we refinished a 50 year old gym floor. Here are a few more tips I would add for drum sander users: 1) When using the drum sander and lowering the drum as you are moving to start a pass, be sure to think of lowering in a controlled smooth motion rather than dropping or releasing the drum down. If the drum plops down, it will leave the same marks as if you started from a still position. 2) Try to rent the EZ-8 style drum sander with the round sleeves instead of the clamping style drum sander with flat sheets. We had one of each initially, but quickly returned the clamping one and went out to find another EZ-8 type. The style with the screw down clamp and flat sheets is much more difficult to set up correctly. One of the students didn't properly tighten one of the screws and it came loose and put a huge gouge in the floor. The EZ-8 sleeves are much more error-proof in terms of setting them up.
@@mrsmjporter it depends on how many working sanders you have. If we had started out with 3 EZ-8 sanders and all the right sandpaper, we could have done it in about 15-20 hours. We started with only one good machine and 60 grit paper. We needed to have started with 24-grit because the floor was in such bad condition. It had probably been laid 50 years ago, never maintained, and used as a cafeteria sometimes with tables and chairs being moved around.
My husband and I are sanding & restaining our floors. This man got me doing the grunt work (sanding the corners)🙄🙄🙄🙄 working with him is worse than holding the flashlight for my dad😂😂 anyway great video
I'm one day into using the EZ-8 on my floor sanding project. Rented it from Home Depot. The handle had 500 hours on it. This thing is difficult to use. I think this thing would be a lot better if it had proper maintenance. My machine had a loose handle, and left chatter marks on the first cut. I'm hoping these will be less obvious after running an orbital over the floors. I'm refinishing a 60 year old floor and the fresh wood under this old lacquer looks really nice. Can't wait to refinish it. Running the EZ-8 is hard labor. It wants to run away from you and puts constant pressure on your hands and forearms to maintain a straight cut. Be prepared to regret your decision to do this project. The end result will be worth it. I'll be finishing up my cuts this week with the EZ-8. Good luck to my fellow homeowners out there.
WOW! This is the best instructional video I have ever seen on TH-cam!!!! thank you so much I have learned a ton. The presenter did an excellent job of explaining everything.
Amazing. I just fired a guy for screwing up my floors. He used the drum sander and went against the grain but never went with. I questioned him and he told me dont worry the floors are going to look great. They look like crap. This video has given me the confidence to do the work myself. I plan on using the orbital sander and will be applying a golden mahogany stain and a gloss polyurethane to finish it off. Great video.
Weird that this video comes my way and I see this comment. Same shit happened to me. Big talker but absolute clown show of work. Trying to the same thing and finish the job myself.
Very informative. Also the music makes me feel like I’m watching a police drama and a cop just said something that points out a clue to the murder they’re investigating and they realize their victim was actually lying for the insurance money. Great work on the floors and solving the case.
Love the presentation - very professional, to the point, easy to listen to. Would have loved to see some of the equipment in action a bit longer, e.g. the rotary sander with its high torque. The presenter does a great job at explaining the differences and cautionary measures - more visuals of that in action is also greatly helpful.
How many floor men watched this just to see if he did it the way pro's do? 1 right here. (me) and i say yes, he is doing it correctly. This is a good video. Could explain in more detail about the handle on the drum sander. you want to ease it down and back up softly.
He did a decent job! But I prefer Lagler machinery and I have my own little methods, techniques and details that my father has been perfecting for 40 years. I guarantee our quality is unrivaled.
@@amagic6962 : Right on. Have you ever used the taurus 8'' belt? i liked it a lot for the small jobs. nice cutter. I never had a chance to use Lagler. are they belt or drum? i prefer drum
I tore up old carpet in my house about 15 years go, that had covered the original oak plank flooring, which had reverse cupped due to the carpet not allowing the oak to breathe for many years. The easiest access to a machine was Home Depot rentals (I didn't feel like running all over town to rental stores, only to find something held together with duct tape), and at first, I rented the rectangular orbital sander. But due to the cupping, it would have taken a year of sanding to get the planks flat, so I rented the drum sander. It is a nightmare to operate if you are inexperienced (which I was), but eventually I managed to do the job. This video (which is great) makes it look simple...IT AIN'T! It requires a substantial learning curve to operate the machines properly. On top of it all, I used a roller for the finish, and messed it all up, leaving a terrible finish. I got down on my hands and knees, using my own handheld belt sander and removed the polyurethane, then painted on the new finish with a foam brush, which was controllable and went well. In the end, it all looks good...but refinishing a wood floor is far from simple.
Using the drum sander can be fairly easy as long as you never start or stop with the drum down. You must be moving and ease the drum down so it doesn't just plop down and cause a dip.
@@vonbach1530 good luck, please post update when you're finished, i'm working on mine now, I have little to no experience but the floor is a wreck so anything I do will be an improvement😔
I feel much more confident in doing my bedroom now, as I followed this gentleman's instructions to the T for the living room two years ago and it came out absolutely gorgeous! I had ripped up some shabby carpet in my 100+ year old home and underneath was the most gorgeous solid Oak flooring that was begging to be refinished. But yes, even if you are VERY careful, you are going to make mistakes and create some dips in the wood. Just correct them as he demonstrated and you'll be fine. He is 100% right, once you apply your finish at the end, you WILL see all the little errors you made in the sanding process..hehehe. That is why it is SO important that you sand correctly, methodically and NOT be in a hurry! Take your time, do it properly and you will be so pleased with your hard work! I LOVE my living room floor how it turned out.
Awesome video, I was completely lost when looking through the offerings of my local hire center, thanks so much for the description of each machine and what it's good for, brilliant!
Amazing video presentation! Highly appreciate the time and effort placed by you guys to make such highly detailed and step by step video! Many regards Mike
As a professional flooring installer for 20 years, the most common mistake with sanding are a few mistakes number one not going with the grain. You should never go against the grain you should always go towards the grain to eliminate imperfections . Never sand across or parallel. and the only time you should ever sand at a 45° angle if you’re fixing a floor that is already been messed up by an unprofessional flooring installer. As well as another common mistake is when using a belt sander or drum sander making sure that the sandpaper is properly tight not loose and the machine is not bouncing around or hopping because what you’ll do is skip a beat and then you will end up with the ripple effect.
This is a very detailed and excellent video. It taught me everything I need to know in regards to completing the project on my floors. Especially, that I will be hiring a professional. Good luck to those that do it on their own.
Pampu you made a wise decision to hire a professional. This guy is a salesman for clarke equipment and is here to promote equipment. Never use a roller to apply finish unless one enjoys tiny bubbles in on the floor. The proper thing to use is a lamb's wool pad made for applying floor finishes. another thing I saw was he sanded to the shoe molding. This creates a valley and is a great dirt trap. ALWAYS remove the shoe and sand to the base board so that the floor is flat then replace the shoe after the floor finish has dried. I have been in the business of refinishing and restoring floors for over 50 years and I know what I am talking about. If you will contact the National wood floor association they can direct to too certified and trained professionals in your area. The job will be done right the first time.
That was awesome . My daughter just bought an older home with old oak ( I believe ) floors . The floors are needing a good sanding & refinishing . I'm hoping Home Depot Canada rents your equipment . I rented a orbital sander at one of my houses ; years ago & was not impressed . Water / animal stains did not come out . A drum sander was what I really needed
Great video , I've walked many miles with a " Haywood Heavy Duty Sander " ......people don't realise how difficult it is to sand an old floor . A real back breaking job especially the edges. Well worth it though when you see the new polish bring the colour out of the wood 👍
Talk about a timely video. I’m just starting a project to refinish the floors in my bedroom area. Mahogany that’s been covered by carpet for 40 years. Very clear that every room was visited in the past by an undisciplined pet, so a number of black stains, similar to your “water spot” in the video. I’m not in any hurry, so I can take my time to get this right! I appreciate the thoroughness of your project, including the use of multiple tools to get the job done just right.
I purchased a used one as the piece is a bit pricey, but the machine th-cam.com/users/postUgkxG6fbm3cHBd7CNTjk5D-dwYe9c9tCB9ZN has surpassed my expectations. We sand small parts by hand often, sized around 1"x1/2," and specifically look for a piece that's designed to be vertical. The motor has plenty of torque and great speed settings. The only inconvenience I had is that the disk measures 5" where we trim 6" stick-and-sand disks down easily by mounting it then cutting with a box cutter.
Maybe one of the best "Floor sanding"-Videos i have seen here on TH-cam! The filling of gaps is not explained but no Problem with that Point. To clean the corners, I used a delta sander. It´s easyer and faster. One more Pro-Tip: why sanding your good Sealer or Finish?! Just clean your Floor with water slightly damp after your finish sanding (100 or 120 Sanding Paper). Wait till its dry and than work the last round with the same Sanding Paper (100 or 120). If you clean the Floor with an microfiber Cloth, like in this Video, I bet you have no Problems any more with 3 Coat of Finish
so what would be the proper solution for gaps and dings? planning on refinishing my floor soon and this video was awesome besides the filling part, we got oak floaring and waterbased laquer. i hope you can help
This pro tip is not pro at all. You sand the finish to get as many specs of trash out and the grain raise. Always sand your finish if not inbetween every coat at least do it between the 2nd and final coat
Great video! I would add one thing as a furniture restorer, Most stains can be removed or greatly lessened with oxalic acid. Follow directions and rinse well before finishing with fine grit.
This was great! I feel so confident going into my project. I do wish you had covered stains, like the one shown in the floor. Im worried about my own pet stains and think they won't come out..
You have explained very well all steps. I have been searching to re-do our hardwood floor. I would add when to change sand paper and how do we know when to change. Thank you very much for explaining all steps
This was a very informative video, thanks for showing us how to do a floor properly, I'm going to be doing a complete 4 bedroom house and I'm so glad that I ran across your video, Again I have to say thank you very much for your time in producing this video.
There’s hundreds of videos about refinishing hardwood floors but what about newly installed unfinished floors . Do you still go with aggressive first cuts or do you maybe start with 80 grit baring the floors is pretty flat and evenly milled planks .
Mickey, when sanding a newly installed wood floor you may not need to start with an aggressive grit. If the floor is properly installed and pretty flat it is likely that you could start with 80 grit. As you are probably assuming, the more aggressive grits are primarily for removing old finish coats.
You always start with the sander on the right hand side working your way to the left. The drum is slightly calibrated to sand more on the right side than the left. It's subtle but you will notice it in the finished product wondering why is there lines in the floor. Also these rental 110 machines are very light. If the floor is badly cupped or needs lots of sanding. Start by sanding 45° to all of the board lines. It'll take the material down faster. Then begin with the straight sanding. It'll save you hours of walking back and forth to get to the same point. He demonstrated this when he was taking out the drum stop mark. Do the whole room like that for heavy sanding. Don't rent a machine that requires screwing the papers into place. You definitely want the belt machine. Putting those papers on takes a lot of time, they have to be put on tightly. And they end up popping off or flapping. Add lots of annoying frustrating time to the job. Avoid the drum machine requiring sheet papers. You definitely want the machine with belts! Anyhow. After renting all of this equipment and hating the job and probably creating a job that your wife or the customer will not be satisfied with You would have already paid half of what a floor man would have charged. just saying if you want to save 50% of the money do it yourself. If you want a good job, don't want to break your back, and can afford it. Don't get involved. Take it from a floor man for 30 years. And no I'm not just trying to boost work. Do it yourself if you like
Dr Leo, drum and belt floor sanders, including the American Sanders version that a homeowner or contractor can rent, are designed such that you will get the best results by moving left to right as you work across the room. The reason is because the wheels are all offset to the left to allow for the right side of the sanding drum to get close to the wall. The drum is set to cut flat, and moving left to right all 3 wheels are riding on a level sanded surface, creating a nice flat cut. If you move right to left, the left side wheels ride on the unsanded surface which is higher than the sanded surface, thereby slightly tilting the sander. The result can be what is known as a 'wave'.
My Hummel belt 220v sanding machine is calibrated the opposite way. Good to know. And good to point out to your rental customers. Thank you for the reply. I sometimes rent 110 machines for apartments without 220 electric. So this would be helpful advice for me as well to pay attention how it is calibrated
Dr Leo. Amen. Right to left on my American 8. 17 years doing it that way. Also, it kills me when a DIYer does a job they would fire me over and swear it "looks great!"
@@kalepaul7600 Its all about different standards. I am sure that you or your loved ones cook food at home all the time that a professional chef would never serve in their restaurant but it is still completely edible.
Excellent video. 2 things to add…..the edger is a backbreaking pain in the butt. Very hard on the back on the bigger jobs……you can’t over express the danger of the spontaneous combustion aspect of the dust. I nearly lost my business because of it. The danger is very very real. I refinished floors off and on for 30 years
@@alwaysgosnowboarding take all your dust outside when emptying your bags from your machines. The worst dust comes from mineral base finishes. Sanding between coats. Not sure about the latex based products. Been many years since I’ve done a floor. Retired 10 years now.
A notice to the DIYers, the edger is a very heavy and powerful beast of a tool. It is difficult to control and can very quickly place DEEP gouges in your floor. Proceed with great caution when using the edger and if possible secure other means to sand the edges. I speak from experience.
@@WhatsaMOUN i was just going to say, I bet that ended up being a shit show haha! Took me quite some time b4 I got to this level. People think they are going to be able do it themselves is always a knee slapper ha!
After you mentioned not being able to damage floor with polivac it made me laugh remembering watching a trainee try the polivac first time. It jumped around and left bigger scratches. Was no problem just a laugh
I remember my first rodeo with a floor buffer, those things are unwieldy for first timers. I started in a narrow hallway and ping-ponged off the walls the whole way down the hall.
Hahaha me too!!! The first time I attempted buffing a floor I ended up wrapped up in the cord unable to free myself and the handle was stuck into the drywall of a multi million dollar home😂😂😂
Been sanding floors my whole life if you lower the handle it won't be so hard to control i can run one with one hand and open doors or move cord no reason to be on your hip I've also trained allot of guys in that time
@@dreamingrightnow1174 on the buffer there's a a lever that you pull and the handle swings back you want it around hip level, and push down or pull up depending on what direction you want it to go, if you lose control of it just let it go and try again.
Thank you for making this video. It is very informing. You work very hard and You teach thoroughly. Question: I used the rotary sander to 'screen' my floor for recoat and I have circles throughout my floor. I think to fix it I can use the square orbital sander. Is that correct? Will an orbital sander be too aggressive for a recoat? If not, What grit should we use? Should we use multiple grit levels?
Hi LaShawnda. It's hard to know all the details and how extensive the 'circles' might be. I'm going to guess that maybe a small piece of debris or finish got stuck on the sand paper on the rotary machine, thus creating the circles. However, using the square orbital sander is a good machine to use for screening in preparation for a recoat. You will want to use the finest grit possible that will do the job. The type of finish on the floor can also be a factor. Try a 150 or 120 grit to see if that will take the circle marks out. If not, then try 100 grit. I imagine that would do the job.
Thank you for the thorough walkthrough process, I now feel more confident about carrying out my home project myself. How long does it take for the seal to settle in before you can sand over it? Also, how long does it take for one coat to dry before you can coat over it again?
Drying time and working time for sealers and finish coats can vary depending on the type of product and the ambient conditions. Temperature and humidity affect dying times. You will fine drying times in the directions of the specific brand of product you choose to use. For example, American Sanders TimberSeal sealer has a drying time of 2 to 3 hours. Our TimberGuard Select water-based wood floor coating has a drying time of 2 to 3 hours between coats. These are considered to be fast drying times.
Very informative video I wish you could do this on really old wood floorboards I'm not sure mine are really dark dity looking and gave been hidden under carpet for many many years. I will wash a part of it and see how it looks before I decide what to do in my hallway. 👏👏
Your only real limitation is the thickness of the boards. If they are typical tongue-and-groove floorboards you can only sand them down so far before the top edge that conceals the tongue of the adjacent board is too thin. When you sand to that point that thin strip along the edges of each floorboard can crack or even split off completely. The sanding removes most imperfections (if they are not too deep) and all your dirty gunk from age and old carpet will come off with the surface of the wood. My house was build in 1937 and had the flooring replaced in the 1950s or 1960s. It has been refinished at least once but still has plenty of surface to sand down and clean up. It was covered in a tacky, 1970s deep-pile shag carpet for many years by a previous owner. The family from whom I purchased the house had discovered the beautiful, old hardwood flooring and promptly removed the tatty carpet. They did not refinish the floor, so there are obvious repairs and patches to the wood that were never sealed or finished. The only way for me to make it all look correct is to do this full procedure, one room at a time. I have the issues you have, and I know from past experiences that most of what bugs me will be taken care of. The things that are not will either cease to bother me once the floors are refinished, or I will address them individually before starting a particular room. I would push you to strongly consider doing this to your old floors, but I see that you posted this a year ago. I guess I will still post this comment as it may help or encourage others with like issues. I hope you read this one day and post back to tell me how your project ended up shaking out, or if you decided to no do it. Best of luck, even if I am a year late!
Very informative video. We just bought our first house and with zero experience I feel more comfortable taking on this project after watching this. My only question would be if we want to stain the floors as well. Would we want to stain the floors after all the sanding has been done and is it the same process to finish after staining?
Austin, yes you want to stain the floors after the sanding process and a thorough vacuuming. Once you have the stain down, the finish process is the same as what is described in the video. You will want to make sure that you choose a stain type and finish type that are compatible and then follow the stain manufacturers recommendation on applying the finish. Good luck with your project and have fun!
Very good instructions. After you rolled on the sealer, you sanded it with the rotary before putting on the finisher. Is this sanding optional? What sand grit did you use? Thanks
We recommend hot coat between 1st and 2nd coats. Follow the finish instructions/recommendations. For the best results Buff/abrade 1st coat and 2nd coat to eliminate grain raise.
Engineered flooring has advanced in recent years they are no longer a rotary peeled. They are dry dawn typically good engineered flooring has a 4mm wear. You can this as the same amount as a solid wood floor, solid wood is a 5mm surface from the t&g and where nails are. Prefinished floors 95% have a microbevel this is due to subfloor conditions and this bevel is to reduce the amount of over wood that could potentially occur due to subfloor heights.
IMPORTANT BUFFER TIPS: 1. Always keep cord behind you, 2. LOOK to the left and right to see if hitting something HARD will break, even low glass windows and doors!! 3. MOST IMPORTANT: Set handles 3 to 5 inches below your waist because the machine needs to be raised a few inches (before turning on) to level it off or it will SHOOT TO THE RIGHT! 4. Like he said to use the handles, they need very little movement up and down to change directions, REMEMBER: It goes the direction like your car's directional arm......(if you use your turn signals, lol) These will help the beginner!!!!
Hi. thanks for the video. So if i want the natural color of whatever wood floor i have, i don't stain the floor just like you didn't stain the floor in this video. I should only stain it if i want different color rather than the natural wood color of the wood i have? Thank you in advance for answering my question.
Yes. If you want to retain the natural color of your wood floors do not stain them. You can apply a sealer and then top coat with a clear finish like TimberGuard Select.
![[MV] A leap of faith...ความเชื่อใจครั้งสุดท้าย (From "Petrichor the series")](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/U1piZH2CNXA/mqdefault.jpg)
*Works really **MyBest.Tools** well, and fits hand perfectly.*
This video was very helpful for me. I led a group of 10 high school students on a mission trip and we refinished a 50 year old gym floor. Here are a few more tips I would add for drum sander users: 1) When using the drum sander and lowering the drum as you are moving to start a pass, be sure to think of lowering in a controlled smooth motion rather than dropping or releasing the drum down. If the drum plops down, it will leave the same marks as if you started from a still position. 2) Try to rent the EZ-8 style drum sander with the round sleeves instead of the clamping style drum sander with flat sheets. We had one of each initially, but quickly returned the clamping one and went out to find another EZ-8 type. The style with the screw down clamp and flat sheets is much more difficult to set up correctly. One of the students didn't properly tighten one of the screws and it came loose and put a huge gouge in the floor. The EZ-8 sleeves are much more error-proof in terms of setting them up.
How long did the sanding take for the gym floor?
@@mrsmjporter it depends on how many working sanders you have. If we had started out with 3 EZ-8 sanders and all the right sandpaper, we could have done it in about 15-20 hours. We started with only one good machine and 60 grit paper. We needed to have started with 24-grit because the floor was in such bad condition. It had probably been laid 50 years ago, never maintained, and used as a cafeteria sometimes with tables and chairs being moved around.
Thanks for the tip. I'm on a similar mission.
This really helps. I appreciate the professionalism of the presenter. I like his tone, his manner, his thoroughness. Thank you!
My husband and I are sanding & restaining our floors. This man got me doing the grunt work (sanding the corners)🙄🙄🙄🙄 working with him is worse than holding the flashlight for my dad😂😂 anyway great video
I'm one day into using the EZ-8 on my floor sanding project. Rented it from Home Depot. The handle had 500 hours on it. This thing is difficult to use. I think this thing would be a lot better if it had proper maintenance. My machine had a loose handle, and left chatter marks on the first cut. I'm hoping these will be less obvious after running an orbital over the floors. I'm refinishing a 60 year old floor and the fresh wood under this old lacquer looks really nice. Can't wait to refinish it.
Running the EZ-8 is hard labor. It wants to run away from you and puts constant pressure on your hands and forearms to maintain a straight cut. Be prepared to regret your decision to do this project. The end result will be worth it.
I'll be finishing up my cuts this week with the EZ-8. Good luck to my fellow homeowners out there.
WOW! This is the best instructional video I have ever seen on TH-cam!!!! thank you so much I have learned a ton. The presenter did an excellent job of explaining everything.
Amazing. I just fired a guy for screwing up my floors. He used the drum sander and went against the grain but never went with. I questioned him and he told me dont worry the floors are going to look great. They look like crap. This video has given me the confidence to do the work myself.
I plan on using the orbital sander and will be applying a golden mahogany stain and a gloss polyurethane to finish it off.
Great video.
Insane A Sock that sucks, but good luck on the job. I’m gonna be tackling my hard wood floor sometime this week.
Weird that this video comes my way and I see this comment. Same shit happened to me. Big talker but absolute clown show of work. Trying to the same thing and finish the job myself.
How did they turn out? After you worked on it? I may do my own sanding job as well.
Greetings from Sydney, Australia. Sander/finisher for 30 years. Appreciate what you’re trying to do in the video. Sage advice!
Very informative. Also the music makes me feel like I’m watching a police drama and a cop just said something that points out a clue to the murder they’re investigating and they realize their victim was actually lying for the insurance money. Great work on the floors and solving the case.
This guy needs a school to teach at. Very thorough and simplistic
Be interesting to see how he goes with 24 ratbags instead of a gopro on a tripod👍
Love the presentation - very professional, to the point, easy to listen to. Would have loved to see some of the equipment in action a bit longer, e.g. the rotary sander with its high torque. The presenter does a great job at explaining the differences and cautionary measures - more visuals of that in action is also greatly helpful.
I like the drum sander
How many floor men watched this just to see if he did it the way pro's do? 1 right here. (me) and i say yes, he is doing it correctly. This is a good video. Could explain in more detail about the handle on the drum sander. you want to ease it down and back up softly.
He did a decent job! But I prefer Lagler machinery and I have my own little methods, techniques and details that my father has been perfecting for 40 years. I guarantee our quality is unrivaled.
@@amagic6962 : Right on. Have you ever used the taurus 8'' belt? i liked it a lot for the small jobs. nice cutter. I never had a chance to use Lagler. are they belt or drum? i prefer drum
I tore up old carpet in my house about 15 years go, that had covered the original oak plank flooring, which had reverse cupped due to the carpet not allowing the oak to breathe for many years. The easiest access to a machine was Home Depot rentals (I didn't feel like running all over town to rental stores, only to find something held together with duct tape), and at first, I rented the rectangular orbital sander. But due to the cupping, it would have taken a year of sanding to get the planks flat, so I rented the drum sander. It is a nightmare to operate if you are inexperienced (which I was), but eventually I managed to do the job. This video (which is great) makes it look simple...IT AIN'T! It requires a substantial learning curve to operate the machines properly. On top of it all, I used a roller for the finish, and messed it all up, leaving a terrible finish. I got down on my hands and knees, using my own handheld belt sander and removed the polyurethane, then painted on the new finish with a foam brush, which was controllable and went well. In the end, it all looks good...but refinishing a wood floor is far from simple.
Using the drum sander can be fairly easy as long as you never start or stop with the drum down. You must be moving and ease the drum down so it doesn't just plop down and cause a dip.
I just found this….I am going to attempt the same project. I have no idea what I am doing either. Thanks you so much for this info.
@@vonbach1530 good luck, please post update when you're finished, i'm working on mine now, I have little to no experience but the floor is a wreck so anything I do will be an improvement😔
@@Tanksnurse any updates? I’m starting Friday
I feel much more confident in doing my bedroom now, as I followed this gentleman's instructions to the T for the living room two years ago and it came out absolutely gorgeous! I had ripped up some shabby carpet in my 100+ year old home and underneath was the most gorgeous solid Oak flooring that was begging to be refinished. But yes, even if you are VERY careful, you are going to make mistakes and create some dips in the wood. Just correct them as he demonstrated and you'll be fine. He is 100% right, once you apply your finish at the end, you WILL see all the little errors you made in the sanding process..hehehe. That is why it is SO important that you sand correctly, methodically and NOT be in a hurry! Take your time, do it properly and you will be so pleased with your hard work! I LOVE my living room floor how it turned out.
Awesome video, I was completely lost when looking through the offerings of my local hire center, thanks so much for the description of each machine and what it's good for, brilliant!
I've always found it beneficial to place the cord over my shoulder.
Amazing video presentation! Highly appreciate the time and effort placed by you guys to make such highly detailed and step by step video!
Many regards
Mike
As a professional flooring installer for 20 years, the most common mistake with sanding are a few mistakes number one not going with the grain. You should never go against the grain you should always go towards the grain to eliminate imperfections . Never sand across or parallel. and the only time you should ever sand at a 45° angle if you’re fixing a floor that is already been messed up by an unprofessional flooring installer. As well as another common mistake is when using a belt sander or drum sander making sure that the sandpaper is properly tight not loose and the machine is not bouncing around or hopping because what you’ll do is skip a beat and then you will end up with the ripple effect.
This is a very good Youtue of the How To Sand and Finish Wood Floors and thank you very much!❤👍👍👍
This is a very detailed and excellent video. It taught me everything I need to know in regards to completing the project on my floors. Especially, that I will be hiring a professional. Good luck to those that do it on their own.
Pampu you made a wise decision to hire a professional. This guy is a salesman for clarke equipment and is here to promote equipment. Never use a roller to apply finish unless one enjoys tiny bubbles in on the floor. The proper thing to use is a lamb's wool pad made for applying floor finishes. another thing I saw was he sanded to the shoe molding. This creates a valley and is a great dirt trap. ALWAYS remove the shoe and sand to the base board so that the floor is flat then replace the shoe after the floor finish has dried. I have been in the business of refinishing and restoring floors for over 50 years and I know what I am talking about. If you will contact the National wood floor association they can direct to too certified and trained professionals in your area. The job will be done right the first time.
@@captain757747 Thank you!
What a great tutorial video.. My 8 year can probably sand a floor now with the way this was taught. Thanks for the great breakdown, extremely helpful.
That was awesome . My daughter just bought an older home with old oak ( I believe ) floors . The floors are needing a good sanding & refinishing . I'm hoping Home Depot Canada rents your equipment . I rented a orbital sander at one of my houses ; years ago & was not impressed . Water / animal stains did not come out . A drum sander was what I really needed
Great video - complete and answers almost all of the questions one may have to start a sanding project. NICE to take the time and make the video.
Great video , I've walked many miles with a " Haywood Heavy Duty Sander " ......people don't realise how difficult it is to sand an old floor . A real back breaking job especially the edges. Well worth it though when you see the new polish bring the colour out of the wood 👍
Nice machine..I use the galaxy
Talk about a timely video. I’m just starting a project to refinish the floors in my bedroom area. Mahogany that’s been covered by carpet for 40 years. Very clear that every room was visited in the past by an undisciplined pet, so a number of black stains, similar to your “water spot” in the video. I’m not in any hurry, so I can take my time to get this right! I appreciate the thoroughness of your project, including the use of multiple tools to get the job done just right.
I purchased a used one as the piece is a bit pricey, but the machine th-cam.com/users/postUgkxG6fbm3cHBd7CNTjk5D-dwYe9c9tCB9ZN has surpassed my expectations. We sand small parts by hand often, sized around 1"x1/2," and specifically look for a piece that's designed to be vertical. The motor has plenty of torque and great speed settings. The only inconvenience I had is that the disk measures 5" where we trim 6" stick-and-sand disks down easily by mounting it then cutting with a box cutter.
This seems well done and informative.Increasing the playback speed to 1.25 gets you through it faster and doesn't affect the presentation.
Maybe one of the best "Floor sanding"-Videos i have seen here on TH-cam!
The filling of gaps is not explained but no Problem with that Point. To clean the corners, I used a delta sander. It´s easyer and faster.
One more Pro-Tip: why sanding your good Sealer or Finish?! Just clean your Floor with water slightly damp after your finish sanding (100 or 120 Sanding Paper). Wait till its dry and than work the last round with the same Sanding Paper (100 or 120). If you clean the Floor with an microfiber Cloth, like in this Video, I bet you have no Problems any more with 3 Coat of Finish
water based sealer, probably raised the grain and needed to be sanded prior to top coat
so what would be the proper solution for gaps and dings? planning on refinishing my floor soon and this video was awesome besides the filling part, we got oak floaring and waterbased laquer. i hope you can help
This pro tip is not pro at all. You sand the finish to get as many specs of trash out and the grain raise. Always sand your finish if not inbetween every coat at least do it between the 2nd and final coat
Great guide, glad I was able to find it amongst the TH-cam junk videos. All info, no story. 👍
Great video! I would add one thing as a furniture restorer, Most stains can be removed or greatly lessened with oxalic acid. Follow directions and rinse well before finishing with fine grit.
I don't even have a floor to sand, but I'm enjoying this video... 😅
Fabulous teaching video. One of the best I've seen in a long time. 👍👍
This video was super helpful! Very professionally done and clear step-by-step instructions.
Love it..Greetings from Ireland ☘️🇷🇺
need a table of contents with timestamps in vid description guys! great video
This was great! I feel so confident going into my project. I do wish you had covered stains, like the one shown in the floor. Im worried about my own pet stains and think they won't come out..
You have explained very well all steps. I have been searching to re-do our hardwood floor. I would add when to change sand paper and how do we know when to change. Thank you very much for explaining all steps
Change when the accumulation in the bag gets slow, if the dust bag is filling it’s cutting.
Great music track. Kudos to the guy who chose great guitarists
Top notch job on explaining and demonstrating the process. A+!!!
Op
Great video. Answered every question I had before starting my project. Thank you for taking the time out for those who want to learn. Cheers! :)
This was a very informative video, thanks for showing us how to do a floor properly, I'm going to be doing a complete 4 bedroom house and I'm so glad that I ran across your video, Again I have to say thank you very much for your time in producing this video.
done floors before but this video was very helpful thank you guys
Who knew there were so many sanders?! I've run the drum before. Love that edger.
great job 👏. watched the entire video I feel very confident that I can try this. I really appreciate this video
Very thorough and clear presentation. Thank you so much ❤
Really the greatest tutorial video I have ever seen thank u very much
An absolutely excellent and helpful video!
There’s hundreds of videos about refinishing hardwood floors but what about newly installed unfinished floors . Do you still go with aggressive first cuts or do you maybe start with 80 grit baring the floors is pretty flat and evenly milled planks .
Mickey, when sanding a newly installed wood floor you may not need to start with an aggressive grit. If the floor is properly installed and pretty flat it is likely that you could start with 80 grit. As you are probably assuming, the more aggressive grits are primarily for removing old finish coats.
That was super helpful. Thank you. So patient you are!!
You always start with the sander on the right hand side working your way to the left. The drum is slightly calibrated to sand more on the right side than the left. It's subtle but you will notice it in the finished product wondering why is there lines in the floor. Also these rental 110 machines are very light. If the floor is badly cupped or needs lots of sanding. Start by sanding 45° to all of the board lines. It'll take the material down faster. Then begin with the straight sanding. It'll save you hours of walking back and forth to get to the same point. He demonstrated this when he was taking out the drum stop mark. Do the whole room like that for heavy sanding. Don't rent a machine that requires screwing the papers into place. You definitely want the belt machine. Putting those papers on takes a lot of time, they have to be put on tightly. And they end up popping off or flapping. Add lots of annoying frustrating time to the job. Avoid the drum machine requiring sheet papers. You definitely want the machine with belts! Anyhow. After renting all of this equipment and hating the job and probably creating a job that your wife or the customer will not be satisfied with You would have already paid half of what a floor man would have charged. just saying if you want to save 50% of the money do it yourself. If you want a good job, don't want to break your back, and can afford it. Don't get involved. Take it from a floor man for 30 years. And no I'm not just trying to boost work. Do it yourself if you like
Dr Leo, drum and belt floor sanders, including the American Sanders version that a homeowner or contractor can rent, are designed such that you will get the best results by moving left to right as you work across the room. The reason is because the wheels are all offset to the left to allow for the right side of the sanding drum to get close to the wall. The drum is set to cut flat, and moving left to right all 3 wheels are riding on a level sanded surface, creating a nice flat cut. If you move right to left, the left side wheels ride on the unsanded surface which is higher than the sanded surface, thereby slightly tilting the sander. The result can be what is known as a 'wave'.
My Hummel belt 220v sanding machine is calibrated the opposite way. Good to know. And good to point out to your rental customers. Thank you for the reply. I sometimes rent 110 machines for apartments without 220 electric. So this would be helpful advice for me as well to pay attention how it is calibrated
Dr Leo.
Amen. Right to left on my American 8. 17 years doing it that way. Also, it kills me when a DIYer does a job they would fire me over and swear it "looks great!"
@@kalepaul7600 Its all about different standards. I am sure that you or your loved ones cook food at home all the time that a professional chef would never serve in their restaurant but it is still completely edible.
Excellent video. 2 things to add…..the edger is a backbreaking pain in the butt. Very hard on the back on the bigger jobs……you can’t over express the danger of the spontaneous combustion aspect of the dust. I nearly lost my business because of it. The danger is very very real. I refinished floors off and on for 30 years
Any tips for spontaneous combustion? Was wondering if I turn off gas lines?
TY
@@alwaysgosnowboarding take all your dust outside when emptying your bags from your machines. The worst dust comes from mineral base finishes. Sanding between coats. Not sure about the latex based products. Been many years since I’ve done a floor. Retired 10 years now.
oxalic acid can mitigate the black water/piss staining pretty well. wont look like new but a quick wash and itll be a couple shades lighter
A notice to the DIYers, the edger is a very heavy and powerful beast of a tool. It is difficult to control and can very quickly place DEEP gouges in your floor. Proceed with great caution when using the edger and if possible secure other means to sand the edges. I speak from experience.
I concur
Also, ensure that the drum of the drum sander is actually parallel to the floor. Now THOSE are grooves lol that one almost wasn't fixable.
Excellent presenter. Very well done
as a Carpenter. i say best video on TH-cam
Very detailed, easy to follow. Thanks now I can prepare my sons room. ✌🏽
Harder then it looks coming from a floor sander
Henry Drummond not lying
@@WhatsaMOUN i was just going to say, I bet that ended up being a shit show haha!
Took me quite some time b4 I got to this level. People think they are going to be able do it themselves is always a knee slapper ha!
Thanks for the information. This was of great help and I cannot wait to begin my project.
After you mentioned not being able to damage floor with polivac it made me laugh remembering watching a trainee try the polivac first time. It jumped around and left bigger scratches. Was no problem just a laugh
Perfect instructions and great to watch, especially for a complete novice.
Seriously. I did my house just following these instructions. Saved over a thousand dollars
Very good video, with lots of great information. Excellent presentation and demonstration.
Thank you! We just put up a video of us exposing our hardwood floor and now we will document how we will finish it thanks to your video.
Looks like the 'uncovering' of the wood floors went pretty well. Those floors have potential! Good luck with your project!
Thank you for such a comprehensive guide, fabulous video. I hope I can hire the same type of sanders in the U.K. 😁👍🇬🇧
Super little video. Thanks.... from England
I remember my first rodeo with a floor buffer, those things are unwieldy for first timers. I started in a narrow hallway and ping-ponged off the walls the whole way down the hall.
Hahaha me too!!! The first time I attempted buffing a floor I ended up wrapped up in the cord unable to free myself and the handle was stuck into the drywall of a multi million dollar home😂😂😂
@@shaun7057 mine was an office in an aircraft hanger while in the Air Force.
Been sanding floors my whole life if you lower the handle it won't be so hard to control i can run one with one hand and open doors or move cord no reason to be on your hip I've also trained allot of guys in that time
@@howmanybudlightsdidthattak4120 Where's your video, lol? I'm a visual learner and have no idea what you mean..
@@dreamingrightnow1174 on the buffer there's a a lever that you pull and the handle swings back you want it around hip level, and push down or pull up depending on what direction you want it to go, if you lose control of it just let it go and try again.
Thanks for taking the time to do this excellent video , precise,
GREAT video!! VERY thorough and informative! 😊
Thank you for making this video. It is very informing. You work very hard and You teach thoroughly.
Question: I used the rotary sander to 'screen' my floor for recoat and I have circles throughout my floor. I think to fix it I can use the square orbital sander. Is that correct? Will an orbital sander be too aggressive for a recoat?
If not, What grit should we use? Should we use multiple grit levels?
Hi LaShawnda. It's hard to know all the details and how extensive the 'circles' might be. I'm going to guess that maybe a small piece of debris or finish got stuck on the sand paper on the rotary machine, thus creating the circles. However, using the square orbital sander is a good machine to use for screening in preparation for a recoat. You will want to use the finest grit possible that will do the job. The type of finish on the floor can also be a factor. Try a 150 or 120 grit to see if that will take the circle marks out. If not, then try 100 grit. I imagine that would do the job.
@@AmericanSanders thank you
I feel much more confortable refinishing my hardwood floor after watching this video.
after sanding floors for 22 years this to me is comedy
@@ezekiel-pj6st what did they get wrong? My boss has me do one pass with 24 grit lol there's another bit of comedy for you
@@ezekiel-pj6st why
Thank you for the thorough walkthrough process, I now feel more confident about carrying out my home project myself. How long does it take for the seal to settle in before you can sand over it? Also, how long does it take for one coat to dry before you can coat over it again?
Drying time and working time for sealers and finish coats can vary depending on the type of product and the ambient conditions. Temperature and humidity affect dying times. You will fine drying times in the directions of the specific brand of product you choose to use. For example, American Sanders TimberSeal sealer has a drying time of 2 to 3 hours. Our TimberGuard Select water-based wood floor coating has a drying time of 2 to 3 hours between coats. These are considered to be fast drying times.
@@AmericanSanders did you sand between coats?
@@Bareness why sanding between coats, wouldn't sanding remove the previous coat ?
Loving the detailed information. Thanks alot
That baby drum sander is adorable! Haha! The 220 is where it's at
Extremely helpful video. Took a ton of notes to help with my upcoming project of my house. Very informative thank you for the info.
Always read comments, too.
Awesome video! Sooo, very detail with the instructions. Thank you so much!!
Thank you very much for this very helpful informational video!!!!
Very helpful this video thanks!!
Thank you - nicely done, full of valuable information.
Very nice, thank you. I feel much more informed even after I have completed projects myself in the past... I wasted a lot of time : )
great video love the penny loafers
Omg this video is life saving!
Simon a tu un numéro de téléphone
Very informative video I wish you could do this on really old wood floorboards I'm not sure mine are really dark dity looking and gave been hidden under carpet for many many years. I will wash a part of it and see how it looks before I decide what to do in my hallway. 👏👏
Your only real limitation is the thickness of the boards. If they are typical tongue-and-groove floorboards you can only sand them down so far before the top edge that conceals the tongue of the adjacent board is too thin. When you sand to that point that thin strip along the edges of each floorboard can crack or even split off completely. The sanding removes most imperfections (if they are not too deep) and all your dirty gunk from age and old carpet will come off with the surface of the wood. My house was build in 1937 and had the flooring replaced in the 1950s or 1960s. It has been refinished at least once but still has plenty of surface to sand down and clean up. It was covered in a tacky, 1970s deep-pile shag carpet for many years by a previous owner. The family from whom I purchased the house had discovered the beautiful, old hardwood flooring and promptly removed the tatty carpet. They did not refinish the floor, so there are obvious repairs and patches to the wood that were never sealed or finished. The only way for me to make it all look correct is to do this full procedure, one room at a time. I have the issues you have, and I know from past experiences that most of what bugs me will be taken care of. The things that are not will either cease to bother me once the floors are refinished, or I will address them individually before starting a particular room. I would push you to strongly consider doing this to your old floors, but I see that you posted this a year ago. I guess I will still post this comment as it may help or encourage others with like issues. I hope you read this one day and post back to tell me how your project ended up shaking out, or if you decided to no do it. Best of luck, even if I am a year late!
Good video for general information. Thanks for posting.
Excellent instruction, build confidence, thanks
Very informative video. We just bought our first house and with zero experience I feel more comfortable taking on this project after watching this. My only question would be if we want to stain the floors as well. Would we want to stain the floors after all the sanding has been done and is it the same process to finish after staining?
Austin, yes you want to stain the floors after the sanding process and a thorough vacuuming. Once you have the stain down, the finish process is the same as what is described in the video. You will want to make sure that you choose a stain type and finish type that are compatible and then follow the stain manufacturers recommendation on applying the finish. Good luck with your project and have fun!
Don't try to do hardwood floors yourself. You'll see.
great instructional video. Love the tricks of the trade, it's a great help.
Good job ...excellent instructor. And A/V
Great video, very informative, I just wish you would have stated if there are any differences if you choose to go with an oil base finish.
best video for the subject, much appreciated
great work Brian SuperStar
Very good instructions. After you rolled on the sealer, you sanded it with the rotary before putting on the finisher. Is this sanding optional? What sand grit did you use? Thanks
We recommend hot coat between 1st and 2nd coats. Follow the finish instructions/recommendations.
For the best results Buff/abrade 1st coat and 2nd coat to eliminate grain raise.
Fantastic video!
Engineered flooring has advanced in recent years they are no longer a rotary peeled. They are dry dawn typically good engineered flooring has a 4mm wear. You can this as the same amount as a solid wood floor, solid wood is a 5mm surface from the t&g and where nails are. Prefinished floors 95% have a microbevel this is due to subfloor conditions and this bevel is to reduce the amount of over wood that could potentially occur due to subfloor heights.
Just Totally Beautiful, And Awesome.
Just The Video I Was Looking For. Thank You So Much.
IMPORTANT BUFFER TIPS: 1. Always keep cord behind you, 2. LOOK to the left and right to see if hitting something HARD will break, even low glass windows and doors!! 3. MOST IMPORTANT: Set handles 3 to 5 inches below your waist because the machine needs to be raised a few inches (before turning on) to level it off or it will SHOOT TO THE RIGHT! 4. Like he said to use the handles, they need very little movement up and down to change directions, REMEMBER: It goes the direction like your car's directional arm......(if you use your turn signals, lol)
These will help the beginner!!!!
Excellent video - Good Job!
great presentation please keep them coming.
Perfect video , thanks a lot for great products & amazing presentation🏁
Very nice, sanding machine,, here in the Philippines i am a sanding man any kind of wood floor i will sand, we used the bona machine sir,
Hi. thanks for the video. So if i want the natural color of whatever wood floor i have, i don't stain the floor just like you didn't stain the floor in this video. I should only stain it if i want different color rather than the natural wood color of the wood i have? Thank you in advance for answering my question.
Yes. If you want to retain the natural color of your wood floors do not stain them. You can apply a sealer and then top coat with a clear finish like TimberGuard Select.
Great video! My favorite part is about 15 minutes in When he goes full-on Ghostbusters With the backpack collector.
OMG no hablo mucho inglés pero viendo he aprendido detalles fáciles que yo no sabía muchas gracias
I love this kind of floor I like it plan with no stan just a mate top coat
yeaop
There should be a drinking game where you take a drink every time you hear the term "Trick of the trade".