Can you really sand a wood floor effectively using just an orbital sander? Yes and No. Watch this video to see how I refinished my solid oak wood floor.
Dude, thank you so much! You just saved me $2000 and I’m going to prove my father wrong because I’m doing this! This is exactly what I had in mind! You are the absolute best
Thank you so much for this video! I am a single mom without anyone to help me and i was dreading trying to haul big machines up and down my stairs. This is exactly what I am going to do! I don’t care if it takes me longer. I can go at my own pace.
Good luck - I hope it helps. Keep in mind that depending on how bad the floor is, you can clean it with steel wood and paint thinner, then apply a coat of poly. Next time my floor needs a re-coat this is what I'll do. Doesn't always need to be stripped down to the bare wood.
As a pro floor sander, I would call you a psycho for doing this. However, you certainly pointed out the pros and cons. It turned out as good as some people you pay for professional services. Most drum sanders that are hired out leave a floor looking worse as you need to know how to start and stop properly. For diy this works okay, especially small rooms. Good job mate.
Also, I’m a small woman who doesn’t have the muscle power to haul one of those industrial sanders into my house. And I don’t have anyone to help me with that either. So the rotary sander it is.
Also, I’m a small woman who doesn’t have the muscle power to haul one of those industrial sanders into my house. And I don’t have anyone to help me with that either. So the rotary sander it is.
I learned a lot of good techniques from this video. I will be using a drum sander on my next project, but this video contains many good pointers about floor refinishing. Thanks.
Great video! Very informative too! I am going to renovate a bedroom to convert it to an office for my wife! This is exactly what I was thinking about doing to the floor!
Found this very useful for my new house. I live in Ecuador and there is no rent on machines here and was looking for alternative way of doing my floors. Many thanks for this video!
The floor looks great. As a teenager I helped my Dad put in a hardwood floor and we used both the drum sander and the painfully large disc sander. That thing is a real challenge and, having done it once, I think I'll not need to do it again.
I remember refinishing a small bedroom floor, some years ago, and the drum sander we rented was very unwieldy in that small room. I like this idea better, even if I have to spend longer sanding. We're in a different house now, and I think I'll do our hallway and smallest bedroom the way you demonstrate here.
Actually thank you for pointing out the unwieldy issue. I think I'm just going to go with the hand sanders because of the small room issue. Using the word unwieldy was the final Tipping Point for me so I thank you. There's just not the space for them.
Super helpful, I’m helping a loved one who is replacing their carpet due to cat pee. There is hardwood that we want to keep in good condition underneath, but she wants it sanded down and refinished in the spots where the cat urinated in order to ensure the smell does not stay when new carpet is installed. So basically we need to spot sand and finish and I believe this will work perfectly for that. Thanks for posting!
My son and I hand sanded oak floors with a piece of 2 x 4 wood and sandpaper in a rougher grade and then in a finer grade. It did take many, many days, but we were also sanding doors and windows. We filled in nail holes with wood filler. We swept, mopped, and used a "tacky cloth" to get the last bits of dust off the wood floor. Then used a clear, semi-gloss varnish in two coats. The floors were natural color and we wanted to keep the natural color. I did not want to rent a floor sanding machine because it takes off too much wood. We did a 10 x 10 bedroom and two years later, an 11 x 12 bedroom.
You just encouraged me to do my pantry and my dining room. My pantry is a 6x6 room so that is going to be my laboratory for the bigger project. Thank you. Regards from Monroe, NY.
After watching this video I knew I could do my two bedroom floors myself. Your tips are perfect and I am pretty sure I used all of them. I did this 2 years ago and the floors are doing great still looking good. I like that I did them myself...with your help of course. I think the best part is I found you on here and now have the pleasure of watching all of your videos. Take care and thank you.
Thanks for the re-assurance. I've had people tell me this is a horrible idea. It worked great for me. It's not for floors in really bad shape but in many cases, it works fine. Thanks for watching! Tom
i love this!! i just bought my first home and i’m 7m pregnant at 23 and when i pulled the carpet i noticed the hardwood needed a good sand. instantly i thought back to sanding cabinet doors with my mom with the pointed hand held sander and thought, why not? here i go!!!
Thank you so much for this video! It's exactly what I was looking for. I recently moved into a house and removed an old carpet from 2 small bedrooms. The hardwood floors seem to be in similar shape as the one in your video. I'm going to use all your tips!!
I purchased a used one as the piece is a bit pricey, but the machine ru-vid.comUgkxG6fbm3cHBd7CNTjk5D-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.
Thank you so much. I too thought why can't I use my orbital sander. My room is little, about 8x10 or less. Cat pee and slight water damage. I can't wait to see how it looks finished.
Probably a great idea to get most off, and then use a large industrial orbital for the final sanding just to smooth it out. Or maybe courser discs. Thanks.
1-Use a vacuum on the sander. It will keep the discs cutting way longer. 2-Use the ROS to sand the whole room and find the bad spots. 3-Use an 80 grit 4" belt sander to hit the bad spots and then go over them again with the ROS. Thanks. Great video.
I did small hallway with a orbital sander and it turned out great. I did a larger room with a drum sander and that turned out well except now I've varnished it I can see the "chatter" marks from the drum that I couldn't see before it was bare wood. Like you said, pros and cons. The floor you did looks very good.
I am currently using a belt sander- in a 15x12 room-I think it is going to be interesting to see how the finish applies- I am going to use a pre-strain product to hopefully help with any issues
I have 100 yr old beat up Doug Fir floor - Ive been using the mesh sand "paper" on other projects and love it. Thinking of using tung oil then a finish on top....thoughts?
i had same issue with the same sandpaper then I start using Maxi Abrasive Cleaning Stick they last forever I just bought 2 more because after 15 years my first one is half gone incredible return on your investment $10 this might be a nice little demo video I believe it will cut you sandpaper usage and cost by over 50% I use it on a belt sander, orbital sander, files, homemade sanding sticks as much sanding as I see you do you love these. The only thing it does not work on is sanding fresh paint that gets gummy on the disk.
You can remove the finish with an orbital sander, but it requires two things: a quality sander (Bosch, Festool, etc.) and 24- or 36-grit sandpaper -- 24, 40, 60, 100 or 36, 50, 80, 120 are good sequences. Unless I missed a part, he started with 100-grit, which is a finishing grit. That or 120-grit is the finest you should go when sanding (stain); however, you can stop at 80- or 100-grit, if you are just using polyurethane. The setbacks to using an orbital sander are that it is time-consuming, and it will not flatten a floor, as a drum sander does, when used at a 45-degree angle. But, if your floors are reasonably even, then go for it.
The grit sandpaper depends on the existing condition of your floor. In my case, there wasn't much left of the original finish and it came off with 100 Grit. No sense scratching up the floor with a lower grit if you don't need to. Thanks for your comments.
Yiesh, so much patience. I have to rent a floor sander from Home Depot. I can't even with crawling around like that. I did like the filler idea though.
Just bought an orbital sander and I will eventually have to redo my floors. I guess if your willing to be on your knees for any amount of time then that's a money saver.
I committed before and tried your method! My room is a 9x9 room with 67 year old oak floors! There's NO WAY THIS WORKS! I tried a 5 inch orbital sander and used 60 grit paper and worked for 5 hours, (only to have the brand new sander "die" with only a 2x6 foot area left. So I used my palm sander to finish! There was still alot of scratch marks left so after returning the sander and getting a lot better one, I resanded the entire floor with the new orbital sander using 40 grit paper! This took another 3 hours! Total time was about 8 hours! NEXT TIME I'M RENTING A BIG MACHINE!
As I said in the video..."I tested this on a small area of the floor first..." I was happy with the results. My floor didn't have coats and coats of previous finish. If yours didn't work in a small test area first, I would have concluded that the orbital sander is not aggressive enough. This is the key point. This is not a sure fire method for every floor. It fortunately worked in my case.
Hi there. I want to thank you for making this video. It was extremely easy to follow and understand. I do have a question though, can you share with me what the name of that pick you used to clean out the crevices, of the old wood filler? Thank you
The pick was one of a set of 4 that I bought at harbor freight. Its just a cheap pick set. www.harborfreight.com/mini-pick-and-hook-set-63697.html?ccdenc=eyJjb2RlIjoiMjEyNzkyNzQiLCJza3UiOiI2MzY5NyIsImlzIjoiMS4wMCJ9&campaignid=20921724679&adsetid=156118926366&product=63697&store=&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAqY6tBhAtEiwAHeRopaUuXT9N6PTCq0p6WvE87yOPENoF3_4naVp2NiCdPCk33T1t0jSVnBoCy0gQAvD_BwE
I rented just the edger from home depot to do a small bedroom years ago. You can make your own discs because they go on with a bolt and washer. The machine has wheels and moves freely. I also had rolls of paper. I highly recommend that
Hi, I like your videos a lot, because they are well explicated and easy to understand. I have a tiny beach house and even 20 scare meters to sand. The floor is a bit uneven, it's just oiled but dark stains on the most frequented parts. I would like to sand it as you described in your video or would you recommend an other procedure? Could you please give me an advice. Thank you... greetings from Austria ♥
If the floor currently has a lot of oil on it that doesn't sound like it's very well protected. Before you can apply a finish to it, the floor would need to be cleaned and sanded pretty well. A wood finish doesn't stick to a floor very well if there is oil or wax on it. Depending on how bad the floor is and how even you want to get it will determine the method you use to sand it. My floor was not bad so I was able to use a hand sander. If you for is beat up or requires leveling, a more aggressive sander will be necessary.
Thanks for the video and the tip on the pick tool. Took me about 4 hours to do a 4 x 4.5m room. Moving down to 60 grit made all the difference. I used up a disc every board and a half or thereabouts. The boards were covered in plaster and residue from old underlay. I still need to go over with 80 and 120 grit, hopefully should be quicker now
Update, haven't found the enthusiasm to do the other two grits yet. Also a warning as to the level of vibration that gets passed through doing it this way
Great video! If I may: I installed 2 rooms of reclaimed red oak. Some pieces are more worn than others, so I was thinking of using a belt sander to knock down the taller pieces (I'm talking 1/32" to 1/16"), then going back over with either a rental machine or an orbital. Would that work? I'm worried about over sanding some areas. Thank You!
@@AlleyPicked Sorry, I just didn't see the skull & cross-bones on the can. I do hear you say oil base now. I'm looking at all their products.... I guess the States has different WIMIS rules. All of our oil-based product in Canada has the skull & cross-bones on the can.
I rented the “proper” sander plus edge sander and boy was it heavy to lug it up to the first floor. Now 6 years older I’m not keen to get a slipped disc. So this option is safer for me.
I've never sanded a floor but I suppose a handheld belt sander would be pretty good option too. And I imagine one can be bought as cheaply as the price of renting one of those indoor lawn mowers. Good one as always Tom, the floor looks super.
thanks for this video, exactly what i was looking for. Is there an orbital sander you recommend? Just wondering what amp's will do the job. thanks again for your time!
Not really. Just don't use a battery powered one. I have even had great luck with a fairly inexpensive sander from Harbor Freight. I believe the one in the video was an older Craftsman.
Thank you Alley. So I have a heavy duty Orbital sander. Do you think they have 16 inch or wider sand paper to remove old dried polyurethane that I stepped into and dried with my heal of my shoe into it until I pulled it out. I want to refinish my floor three times the size of your bedroom. What do you think my options are. Do you have any suggestions for me. This room last time I did it was 2014. With the orbital sander using 000 steel wool that was extremely dusty and it took forever for the floor to dry because it was the winter time. I would then just put down clear polyurethane oil base which is o. There now but like I said was like 6 years ago. Thanks
I'm not sure why you need 16" wide sandpaper. I guess my first question is..."Other than the footprint, is the rest of the floor in decent shape?" You don't need to remove all of the finish down to the bare wood unless it's in really bad shape. Otherwise you can clean and scuff of the surface using paint thinner and fine steel wool. Then just recoat with some poly.
I'm going to try this. I have a 70's condo with parquet floor tile. It's generally in ok shape, but dull and devoid of much topcoat. I'd like to darken it, but I'd settle for a natural finish. It's red oak. Part of this issue is it's an open plan space, living, dining, hall, entry. The idea of having to move ALL the furniture and stack it in my kitchen and bedroom is not a good thought. This way, I could just do it in sections. I'll probably try a closet first.
@@ericstockburger It turned out great. I had a flooring guy do it. Living, Dining, entry area in a 950sf 1 BR condo. If there are any deep or notable scratches, have them address those individually. I got a darker walnut finish with a semi-gloss topcoat. I think I paid about $1600. Not cheap, but still cheaper than all new flooring and it gets me the look I was going for while at the same time staying with the period of the original design. If you get down and look close you can see sanding marks, but at standing height no one would know. They also replaced a few water damaged tiles using salvage stock they had, and it all blended perfectly.
So I have 1/4 inches thick hardwood flooring and I want to sand but I don't want to carry that heavy machine can I get away with an edger instead the room is not very large 10x11 feet. Floors are not bad but I like to got a little deep to use clear coat finish. Greatly appreciate your feedback thanks.
If you have 1/4" thick floor, it's probably not solid wood which means you cant sand it. It sounds like you have laminate flooring which you most likely are not able to sand and refinish.
First I might try some very fine steel wool. Its called "0000" steel wool. Try rubbing it in the direction of the grain in a small inconspicuous spot and see if that helps.
Hello Alley Picked, I am soon to start this project using all products and details of your approach. One question,if you did not care for the Diablo sanding disks,what do you recommend instead? Thank you for your time.
The diablo worked. I have tried many different sanding disks. Being a cheapskate, I usually but the cheaper disks on Amazon and just use more of them. Some day, I should do a test to find the best but for now, my cheapness wins over.
I had scuffed up and dropped paint on the hardwood floors in my apartment. Mind you, this building was built in 1930 so the floors are already in compromised condition. Would you suggest this method as a good way to address this minor damage?
Another option is to clean the floor using a less aggressive method. If you can use steel wool dipped in paint thinner. Scrub thoroughly in the direction of the grain. Sometimes that will clean up the wood enough where you can then apply a new finish of polyurethane.
I've used sanding discs that look a bit like nets... they literally last 10 times as long and keep working until they disintegrate. They are also made by Diablo so easy to find
You could try hand sanding with a level (not warped) 2x4 piece of wood and sandpaper and catch some of the high spots. Also, this is not a dining room table, it is a floor. Also, you could use a semi-gloss varnish which, I think, is better at hiding imperfections than a high gloss finish or a flat finish.
I was quoted 25 GBP per sq mtr to sand my beaten up wooden floors. For two rooms it would have set me back over 1,000GBP. Never having sanded a thing in my life I bit the bullet and bought a Makita M9400 4inch belt sander and an orbital sander for the edges. Including the sandpaper my total cost was 180GBP. The job took me 5 days of hard graft but it turned out great. Saved a fortune.
Great Job ! Just bought a Makita Rotary Orbital sander ( A real pro monster!) at a flea market for only 5$!! ( Get lucky sometimes! I think the sanding pads will cost much more than the machine!!) You've inspired Me ! gonna go for it! Cheers!
I think I'll go and rent an orbital sander .. I feel like that is way more efficient and less toxic (attachment to suck up particulates)? I feel like it would cost about the same because of the amount of sand paper you would need to replace a buncha times?
Its from a 4 piece pick set I bought from Harbor Freight. www.amazon.com/4-PC-PICK-HOOK-SET/dp/B00AOGGEYG/ref=asc_df_B00AOGGEYG/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=198093961577&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6591214468994634634&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9021766&hvtargid=pla-329811549266&psc=1
I did this up to the finish, I used a oil finish using a brush. The floor essentially looks fine but it has all these micro dots. I know I tacked and cleaned my floor. Do I need to buff it to make it look perfect maybe?
@@friedrichniebergall3133 There are things you can do to prevent them but at this point about all you can do is lightly sand them smooth and apply another coat. Test it in a small area first.
Can i still use a orbital sander if i have a scratches on my wood floors? My townhouse is only a few years old . If so what grit paper should i start off with?
I assume that you floors are not stained dark but rather have a natural finish. The answer depends on the current condition of the floor. If the condition is bad, then you probably need to sand the old finish off. If the condition isn't too bad, you can actually just clean the floor thoroughly, then lightly sand using 220 grit paper just to scuff up the surface, then apply a new polyurethane finish. you can always test a small area first (like a closet) to see how it comes out.
your floor is actually already in pretty good shape hence why it was fast. all the floorboards I've done which have been untreated or not sanded could would take days to do a room with an orbital sander
@@lawrancefung6180 Cool. Depends on how bad the floor is. Mine wasn't too bad which is why I could use an orbital sander. In some cases the floor just may need a new coat of Polyurethane. In which case you can just lightly use steel wool and mineral spirits to clean it up and then apply a new coat of finish. Good Luck!
Paint will usually be more forgiving than a clear finish. But even paint will show some of the unevenness in the floor. It's a good idea to fill any uneven spots so they are not as noticeable.
