Is it really as complex and time consuming as its made to sound. I dont like all the carpet.

Do you mean you have hardwood underneath your carpet, and you want to pull up the carpet, sand down and stain the existing floors? Or install new hardwood?

Do you mean you have hardwood underneath your carpet, and you want to pull up the carpet, sand down and stain the existing floors? Or install new hardwood?
Hopefully theres wood under it. The hall stairs look odd with damn carpet and probably eventhough they looked clean you can never get rid of their doggy smell and also my cats will have a field day on carpetting.

We bought a house and get the keys today

Hopefully theres wood under it. The hall stairs look odd with damn carpet and probably eventhough they looked clean you can never get rid of their doggy smell and also my cats will have a field day on carpetting.

We bought a house and get the keys todayHow old is the house? Older houses might have hardwood floors under carpet, newer houses wouldn't.

Congrats, btw! Hoping to close on ours next Wed.

How old is the house? Older houses might have hardwood floors under carpet, newer houses wouldn't.

Congrats, btw! Hoping to close on ours next Wed.
1894 and thanks and luck on yours


Any place pre 1900 would at least have a softwood floor but the wood they use in new place is a 12 yr growth what they used back then was often 100 years or more

Our agent had sold the property to the occupants we bought it off and her seller had put the carpet in over the wood floor but it has been a while so not sure what condition the woods in since they had cats and the people we bought off had cats and dogs.

I learnt from the deal that fell through that animal urine soaked through carpet really messes up wood floors

We were supposed to close on a different place and 2hrs before signing the sellers agent calls saying it wasnt happening. I posted several times in finance and on that guys thread asking for buying advice here in lounge with full story.

it depends on the condition of the wood. As you've found, some wood is badly neglected by years of cat piss and such - wood like this may be too stained/too far gone to really refinish. also, there is a limit to the number of times you can refinish wood, PROPERLY. I think the rule of thumb figure is 3-4 times. You remove all floor coverings (*obviously.... carpet, etc), then clean the floor decently (vacuum). Rent a drum sander and go to town, then finish the wood with a polyurethane. IT's pretty straightforward, but very messy (dusty) work, and working a drum sander can be a bear especially since it will have a tendency to sand the floor unevenly. Also, as said, you may run into the situation where you rent the sander, begin to sand, then realize that you are uncovering nails in which case you pretty much have to replace the floor.

1894 and thanks and luck on yours

Wow. ZM would know more about homes from that era.

:hide:

Wow. ZM would know more about homes from that era.

:hide:
She was in new home construction back then?
it depends on the condition of the wood. As you've found, some wood is badly neglected by years of cat piss and such - wood like this may be too stained/too far gone to really refinish. also, there is a limit to the number of times you can refinish wood, PROPERLY. I think the rule of thumb figure is 3-4 times. You remove all floor coverings (*obviously.... carpet, etc), then clean the floor decently (vacuum). Rent a drum sander and go to town, then finish the wood with a polyurethane. IT's pretty straightforward, but very messy (dusty) work, and working a drum sander can be a bear especially since it will have a tendency to sand the floor unevenly. Also, as said, you may run into the situation where you rent the sander, begin to sand, then realize that you are uncovering nails in which case you pretty much have to replace the floor.
Itll be a big gamble then to pull up fairly decent condition carpet- i guess i could closely examine the carpet for anything close to piss marks but if they cleaned it well umm

1894 and thanks and luck on yours


Any place pre 1900 would at least have a softwood floor but the wood they use in new place is a 12 yr growth what they used back then was often 100 years or more

Our agent had sold the property to the occupants we bought it off and her seller had put the carpet in over the wood floor but it has been a while so not sure what condition the woods in since they had cats and the people we bought off had cats and dogs.

I learnt from the deal that fell through that animal urine soaked through carpet really messes up wood floors

We were supposed to close on a different place and 2hrs before signing the sellers agent calls saying it wasnt happening. I posted several times in finance and on that guys thread asking for buying advice here in lounge with full story.

We are currently trying to sell out home that was built in 1918. The previous owners have were in it since the 50s and carpeted the whole thing. The hardwood underneath was beautiful, but there were some urine stains on it. It had also been refinished so many times it couldn't be done again.

If you come across a situation where it can't be redone, there are guys out there who do a great job using wood filler to take care of the really bad spots. It's much cheaper than doing the whole floor and lets you keep that old feel. Good luck with the old house and congratulations. They are great if you can afford the maintenance on them.

Out of curiosity, and if you want to say here, what area did you buy in?

She was in new home construction back then?

You said it, not me.

:popcorn:

its a bitch, pay someone.

Out of curiosity, and if you want to say here, what area did you buy in?
St louis about 2 miles from where were we renting

There some company that throws down some properietory liquid or goo to finish floors instead of sanding not sure how good the stuff is. Or how good it looks after they charge like $500 a room.
its a bitch, pay someone.
Arent bitches supposed to be paid;)
It did kind of look like a PITA and easy to F up

St louis about 2 miles from where were we renting

There some company that throws down some properietory liquid or goo to finish floors instead of sanding not sure how good the stuff is. Or how good it looks after they charge like $500 a room.



Beautiful area. I haven't heard of the stuff they put on it to seal it. Good luck with it.

I did three rooms in an 1894 American Foursquare. I didn't rent a big drum sander. We lived in the middle of nowhere and there wasn't anywhere to rent one; but that aside, I don't think I could have handled one.

I started with a belt sander and used a heavier grit if there was a need but primarily used a medium grit and got all the old varnish off and sanded out the gouges, etc. Then I used an orbital sander with a very fine grit to finish it.

Vacuumed it all. Then washed the whole room -- walls, woodwork, floor, light fixtures -- everything, to get all the dust out of there.

If you need to, use 000 steel wool on the floor again because sometimes water will raise the grain a little. This doesn't make much mess and I cleaned it with tack cloth.

Then did the first coat of polyurethane and let it dry over night. (I kept a fan going) Early the next morning, I went over it with 000 steel wool, tack cloth, and put on the second coat. By that night it was dry and I could steel wool, wipe, and do coat #3.

I did each room completely and did all the sanding, cleaning, and first coat of poly on day one. Then Coats 2 and 3 on day 2.

I have never liked using a brush for polyurethane. Nylons (as in pantyhose) work well. Foam brushes aren't too bad but have a bunch on hand as the heavy poly tends to pull them off the handle.

It really wasn't too bad and they looked very nice when they were done.

Don't get too worked up if there are some areas that aren't perfect -- especially if it's around the edges from the carpet tack strip. Once you get furniture and stuff in there a lot if covered and the rest just isn't noticeable. And there are always throw rugs!

I did three rooms in an 1894 American Foursquare. I didn't rent a big drum sander. We lived in the middle of nowhere and there wasn't anywhere to rent one; but that aside, I don't think I could have handled one.

I started with a belt sander and used a heavier grit if there was a need but primarily used a medium grit and got all the old varnish off and sanded out the gouges, etc. Then I used an orbital sander with a very fine grit to finish it.

Vacuumed it all. Then washed the whole room -- walls, woodwork, floor, light fixtures -- everything, to get all the dust out of there.

If you need to, use 000 steel wool on the floor again because sometimes water will raise the grain a little. This doesn't make much mess and I cleaned it with tack cloth.

Then did the first coat of polyurethane and let it dry over night. (I kept a fan going) Early the next morning, I went over it with 000 steel wool, tack cloth, and put on the second coat. By that night it was dry and I could steel wool, wipe, and do coat #3.

I did each room completely and did all the sanding, cleaning, and first coat of poly on day one. Then Coats 2 and 3 on day 2.

I have never liked using a brush for polyurethane. Nylons (as in pantyhose) work well. Foam brushes aren't too bad but have a bunch on hand as the heavy poly tends to pull them off the handle.

It really wasn't too bad and they looked very nice when they were done.

Don't get too worked up if there are some areas that aren't perfect -- especially if it's around the edges from the carpet tack strip. Once you get furniture and stuff in there a lot if covered and the rest just isn't noticeable. And there are always throw rugs!


Like you, I didn't use a drum sander but a belt sander that was recommended by a contractor friend. A 17x20' floor took DAYS to sand and I still have the scars on my toe knuckles from all the kneeling. I put down 5+ coats of poly (last & last) with a roller (I just kept putting coats down until I ran out). DO NOT wash the floor with water when you're done sanding though - use mineral spirits. as you said, putting water on the floor will raise the grain and you will wind up sanding again.

I did three rooms in an 1894 American Foursquare. I didn't rent a big drum sander. We lived in the middle of nowhere and there wasn't anywhere to rent one; but that aside, I don't think I could have handled one.

I started with a belt sander and used a heavier grit if there was a need but primarily used a medium grit and got all the old varnish off and sanded out the gouges, etc. Then I used an orbital sander with a very fine grit to finish it.

Vacuumed it all. Then washed the whole room -- walls, woodwork, floor, light fixtures -- everything, to get all the dust out of there.

If you need to, use 000 steel wool on the floor again because sometimes water will raise the grain a little. This doesn't make much mess and I cleaned it with tack cloth.

Then did the first coat of polyurethane and let it dry over night. (I kept a fan going) Early the next morning, I went over it with 000 steel wool, tack cloth, and put on the second coat. By that night it was dry and I could steel wool, wipe, and do coat #3.

I did each room completely and did all the sanding, cleaning, and first coat of poly on day one. Then Coats 2 and 3 on day 2.

I have never liked using a brush for polyurethane. Nylons (as in pantyhose) work well. Foam brushes aren't too bad but have a bunch on hand as the heavy poly tends to pull them off the handle.

It really wasn't too bad and they looked very nice when they were done.

Don't get too worked up if there are some areas that aren't perfect -- especially if it's around the edges from the carpet tack strip. Once you get furniture and stuff in there a lot if covered and the rest just isn't noticeable. And there are always throw rugs!

Sounds like you did a great job! Usually the areas around the edges can be mostly covered by a small wood trim that really makes it nice.

I wouldn't use a belt sander if at all possible...it can leave dents if you don't know how to use it and then it's even more hell to get all of that out with a belt sander, instead of doing it the first time around.

I know belt sanders take longer and are a lil harder but just think of it as a GREAT way to get your ab workout in!

But I would think you could always pull some of the carpet up carefully, and just check the wood and if you don't wanna refinish then just put the carpet back. But I looooooooooove hard wood floors...they're beautiful and gt, you're right about carpets and furniture covering lots of it...it'll feel more homey I think.

Good luck! I still have 2.5 more floors to finish in my house...weeee!

Wow. ZM would know more about homes from that era.

:hide:
She was in new home construction back then?

Itll be a big gamble then to pull up fairly decent condition carpet- i guess i could closely examine the carpet for anything close to piss marks but if they cleaned it well umm :mad::mad::slap::slap:


If you find that a few of the board are too badly damaged there are some options you can try. If the closets (or attic) have the same floor boards, you could swap the boards out. You're going to refinish the floor anyway so even if they're not stained the same, they'll be an exact match or pretty darn close when you're done. Or you could check with a local salvage yard (reclaimed lumber yard) to see if they have boards that would come close to matching the floors you have. There's a big industry of reusing old wood from Victorian houses and barns that have to be demolished.