our finished floor!
(for general steps, see below)
I was given very specific instructions about how to refinish the floor:
- use a nail set to sink the nails into the floor so it doesn’t catch on the sandpaper
- sand with 100 grit sandpaper
- sand with 180 grit sandpaper
- sand once more, nice and smooth with 320 grit sandpaper
- thoroughly clean up the dust – I used a palm sander that didn’t have one of those bags to collect the sawdust so the room was quite a mess. I was able to contain it though by keeping the bathroom door closed and laying a towel in front of the gap under the door. To clean up first I used a shop vac, then I wiped the whole room down with a slightly damp cloth (ceiling, walls, floor, etc), and I finished up by wiping the floor twice more using mineral oil on a rag.
- treat with pre-stain wood conditioner – I wasn’t sure if this was something we should do, but I figured for the price it’s probably a good idea. We tested it on a board and it really does allow the stain to penetrate more evenly.
- apply two (or more) coats of stain using a rag
- thoroughly wipe down floor again – twice more with mineral oil on a rag
- apply five coats of poly-urethane for floors using an applicator from the hardware store – I love the applicator, it made things happen much faster. I know five coats sounds like a lot but there are some things to keep in mind: 1 – It’s a bathroom so we really want to protect the wood floor from water. 2 – I believe that the more coats I put on the longer the floor will last without needing to be refinished. And besides, I figure we’ve got this big can, might as well use it.
- sand lightly using 320 grit sandpaper
- apply final coat of poly-urethane
still very wet from a fresh coat of poly-urethane
- follow all product labels regarding use, safety, and drying times
You can see more about our bathroom saga here:
https://www.jennifersquires.ca/blog/2009/03/30/our-bathroom-project-part-one/
https://www.jennifersquires.ca/blog/2009/04/06/look-what-i-found-our-bathroom-part-two/
wow that is a show stopper…so much better….looking forward to parts 4, 5, 6…. just finishing a bath remodel too…will share soon (I mentioned it on my own blog today – regarding macrame). Anyway, stopped by after having seen/ read your info on our decor8 blogging class.
not sure if my first comment went through…
love this bathroom…and a great trasformation…looking forward to seeing the future progress. (have a bath remodel of my own in the works — will post about it soon).
Stopped by after reading your post on our decor8 blogging class…
Thanks for stopping by Rochelle! Looking forward to seeing photos of your bathroom remodel on your blog!