Top Categories
- Garden / Landscaping / Patio — 237
- Kitchen / Bathrooms — 222
- Appliance / Repair — 177
- Interior Design / Decor — 174
- Real Estate / Finance — 161
- HVAC / Air Conditioning — 135
- Cleaning / Maintenance — 124
- Improvements / Remodeling — 113
- Floors / Tile / Hardwood — 107
- Doors / Garages — 105
- Plumbing / Basements — 102
- Safety / Security — 102
Latest Articles
Fixing a Damaged Home Furnace
Always Check Your Furnace System Properly Take a long look at what your heater is all about and it will only be a matter of time before you find...
on Mar 8, 2021
When to Consider Hiring a Heating and Cooling Company
The weather is not something you can control, and whenever you go outside, you are forced to layer up and adapt to the temperature. In your own...
on Mar 1, 2021
Important Roofing Regulations to Consider
Having a home you can truly enjoy that is not only liveable, but safe, sturdy, and a delight to inhabit requires more than picking out the right...
on Feb 24, 2021
What to Consider When Choosing a Furnace Service Contractor
HVAC systems are among the costliest systems that you can install in your house. Therefore, you would probably want to do all possible things for...
on Feb 19, 2021
Choosing a Reliable Furnace System for Your Home
Either way, it would be great if you can invest in something you will benefit from for a pretty long time. If that is the case, you would know that...
on Feb 19, 2021
Popular Articles
When to Use a Brush, Roller or Sponge Brush
Brushes are a good choice for painting trim and woodwork. They are also useful for cutting in the edges around the top and bottom edges and corners...
61083 Views
Three Places to Spend Money on the Exterior of Your Home
When you have the exterior of your home remodeled, you are investing, time, energy and convenience into the project and you want to make sure that...
58446 Views
Homemade Headboards-Make an Upholstered or Wooden Headboard
Homemade headboards can add a lot of personality to any bedroom. They can be coordinated with existing furniture and room decor or they can be the...
53817 Views
Creating a Cottage Kitchen with Bead Board
Kitchen decor can range from modern and bold to elegant and elaborate by using strategic kitchen pieces. One of the most popular decorating trends...
35574 Views
Gas Fireplace Diagnostics and Troubleshooting
Follow these steps for diagnosing and troubleshooting Gas Fireplaces repairs. For the average DIYer, this may seem intimidating, depending on the...
23234 Views
Sanding Wooden Floors
by Magdalena Ehnes on Nov 30, 2011
One of the messiest jobs in decorating is sanding a wooden floor. The process may be messy, but the end results are worth all the hard work. Follow these steps to transform your wooden floors.
Get prepared
Sanding will create more dust than you can imagine and it will get into every nook and cranny. Clear the room of any items that aren’t nailed down, including pictures, curtains, the sofa, display cabinets and the TV. Protect the rest of the house from dust infiltration by sealing the internal doors with masking tape.
Repair and replace
If any boards are rotten or damaged you should replace them before sanding. Screw down any loose boards. Nail them down along the edges of joists so the board sits flush on the floor. When screwing boards tight to the floor, the screws need to be at least 2mm below the surface.
If there any gaps, this will cause draughts. Either shift boards along to fill gaps, or if this isn’t possible, place slivers of timber in the gaps, gluing both sides and then hammer them into place. Any minor areas of damage can be patched up with wood filler. Use a nail punch to push any raised nails down into the wood.
Sanding
Now the fun starts! Work with the floor sander diagonally across the room. For good condition boards, use medium grade sanding sheets, to begin with, if not, use the coarse grade sheets.
Keep the sander moving to stop any ruts forming. Criss-cross the room in the opposite direction. Switch to a medium grade paper and sand following the direction of the boards. Finish with a fine grade paper.
For the edges, you’ll need around edging sander. Again, start with coarse grade discs and work up to the finer grades. To get the dirt out of the corners, use a chisel.
Cleaning and finishing
Vacuum and wipe the surfaces with cloth made damp with white-spirit. Work in stocking-ed feet to protect the unsealed floor.
To finish you need to seal the freshly sanded wood with a varnish or paint. Choose varnish appropriate for flooring. Apply at least two coats, more for hallways and stairs. Allow a drying time of at least 24 hours before bringing any of your furniture back into the room, particularly heavy items like sofas and chairs.
Most Recent Articles
- Oct 19, 2020 Top 5 Tips for Choosing the Right Vinyl Siding by Guest
- Sep 29, 2020 Vinyl vs. Laminate Flooring: Which Is Right for You? by Nick Marr
- Mar 27, 2020 Regular Vacuuming of Your Rugs by Guest
- Aug 1, 2019 Is Engineered Hardwood Cheaper than Real Hardwood? by Nick Marr
- Jul 2, 2019 Oak Or MDF Skirting for Style and Substance? by Jason Mills
Articles Archive
Featured Articles
What Type of Licensed Contractor Should You Hire?
on Feb 28, 2017
Hire Contractors / Estimates

Looking for a specialty project? There are many types of contractors available for your home improvement needs. Finding the right type of...
Contractor State Licensing Requirements
on Mar 14, 2013
Hire Contractors / Estimates

List of contractor license requirements by state in the US. How do you find out if a contractor is licensed with links to each state's licensing...
Sponsored Articles
Fixing a Damaged Home Furnace
on Mar 8, 2021
HVAC / Air Conditioning
Always Check Your Furnace System Properly Take a long look at what your heater is all about and it will only be a matter of time before you find...
Random Articles
How to Prepare Your Home for the Real Estate Market
Once you decide to put your home up for sale it becomes a product and products have to be appealing to the buyers, otherwise no one is going to...
Glass Tile History
Glass tiles have been present in interior design for centuries, from the second century BC. There was a great demand for mosaic art in this...
Good Home Landscaping: Tool for Attracting Homebuyers
If you are planning to sell your house, you need to consider certain factors. Understand that the real estate market is competitive. There is no...
Cutting the Confusion on Setting Bandsaw Blade Tension
Every woodworker will have their own unique method for determining the correct blade tension on a bandsaw. Some may rely on sight or even sound to...
The Do's and Don't of Garden Décor
Garden décor is usually an area where people take some chances and exercise a very liberal amount of creativity. Whether it’s because the traffic...