I just spent 25 minutes watching a video on how to NOT sand/ finish hardwood floors. I don't even have hardwood floors, nor do i plan on getting hardwood floors. That's how entertaining this was! Thank you! Lol.
Committed DIYer here. After doing about 800 square feet of NEW solid hardwood in 3 separate projects over 10 years, using various time-consuming approaches, I’m convinced floor sanding and refinishing are jobs for a GOOD professional who cares. The trick is finding one in a job landscape where you cannot even find framers who can build a simple wall square. A video showing failed pro selections would be amusing.
I love the irony of the sign in the first guy’s shop.. “work hard, need nothing” and goes on to say “I could have sanded for another 8 hours but I didn’t want to do that” 😂😂
The thing that gave me the most confidence in sanding my own floors is that even these people who have zero idea what they are doing the floor doesn't end up looking THAT bad. I'm taking a lot of care and time with it.
I've done hardwood a few times (incorrectly at that) seeing common mistakes is way more helpful than just the "do it like this" videos. Thank you for sharing your expertise with the plebs!
We bought a house and pulled all the carpet, I've been using a home depot drum sander, the drum is not awesome but using the techniques from your videos the floor is flat and smooth, I'm not Saying that I didn't make mistakes but you've helped me identify them and make corrections, my wallet and I thank you bro , the floors look great, thank you very much , THE BEST FLOOR FINISHING VIDEOS ON RUclips
I installed a hardwood floor in my house and refinished 2 others. Probably did it all wrong but 30 years later they still look nice and have held up well. There was no you tube to watch back then for instructions.
I’ve sanded floors using the larger floor sander I borrowed from a buddy of mine. He upp the horsepower on his machine with a higher HP motor. Starting at 60 grit up to 160 I believe, it’s been a few years so I may be off. After sanding I vacuumed and then edged. Following that I used his large blending sander. There was a learning curve to control the sander but what a difference. This is what I never see in any of these videos. I kept the floors natural with a poly sealer applied with a lambs woolskin applicator. Turned out spectacularly . It’s time consuming but very satisfying.
I wish I would have found this before I sanded the two apts I just did... this format is so much more practical to gaining skill than videos showing success. thank you
Great video Ben! Watched quite a few of your videos. I am a DIY'er and tackled a very challenging job this weekend, but can clearly see how much paying close attention to the details and doing this properly is paying off. I am 1/2 way through the job and it looks like I am going to end up with a beautiful result. (no really :) ). I was an aircraft mechanic when I was younger and a rule you learn is that you MUST use the right tools for the job (always) and there is no substitute for experience. :) Thanks and all the best.
I don't need to sand a floor. I am however completely amazed. This guy has 100k subs and the channel is called "How To Sand A Floor". This is the level of dedication to your craft that I can respect. Hats off to you sir.
From one specialist to another… you rock! I hope you keep up the content! Also, it is refreshing to see someone close in age doing what I do, close to how I do it!
Not easy work guys . . . . just from using the edger on 2 lousy bedrooms my inner thighs felt like I was riding a horse for 18 hours straight. I swear to God! I build chimneys so as close as I have ever come to a sander is my 5" masonry angle grinder. but I feel like the most important thing is a perfect sanding job, bringing the grit up slowly. I do have a question about how the wood should look, it would seem to me the better job would have a floor finish sanded so finely that is almost looks like glass without a coating yet. Like would it be a complete waste to bring the grit all the way to 350?
Yeah I think your critique of their videos help me to understand this so much. I'm not sure if you kept making videos like this over the year but this is a brilliant idea! Thank you so much for helping the world be better!
I had to refinish a floor about as bad as the second one recently as a DIY out of necessity and I thought I did a terrible job until I saw this lol. Thanks for all the videos!
I am so glad you are doing this. I used to paint walls for a living and almost every youtube video I watched had some problem with the guy telling you this is how it should be done but have at least one glaring error. Just because you done something once, or several times without looking at the results, does not mean you know what you are doing. Please if you do not have any kind of training or experience do not post anything that is misleading.
When I was still living with my parents, we moved into a wood-frame house that was built before 1790. The wood floor was... Visibly not maintained for generations. We thought it was unrecoverable and probably full of mold anyway. We called a professional for the wood frames and he told us that he could try to recover the floor, just in case. Well boy, he had to sand a fair depth, but it was worth it. We were a bit concerned that the floor would be weakened by how much he had to take away, but these wood planks are thicker than anything of modern standards, we lived there for almost ten years with heavy furniture and never had an issue. We had another part of the house that we renovated later by ourselves, and we try to do the same treatment to the wood floor. We definitely didn't do as good of a job. And, weirdly enough, the biggest difference wasn't just in the look, but more importantly how the floor physically interacted with people, cloth and furniture moving around. While the professionally restored floors are smooth, and you forget you're on an old wood floor, the one we renovated was a nightmare. Moving furniture dipped inside more, you feel the wobbles just walking on it, chips appeared quickly and would catch on your socks, ....
I Think one thing which is setting expectations is the amount "distressed" finishes there are in furniture and woodwork, particularly reclaimed timber from pallets and the like, the patchiness is has been even added after to give a "rustic" character, you see alot in pub refurbishment, particularly budget ones, reclaimed timber is not re-sawn or milled back to a flat timber surface, even to the extent that new timber is sometimes used given an uneven "stain" to simulate distress or even flamed. Question is what do you want? Chatsworth house or the Dog and Hedgehog post 2015 refurb. Mostly I suspect its the later. in which case a patchy finish is actually OK, particularly the is a mat and some furniture in there after
Honestly this is really helpful lol. Not only do you point out the mistake, you also get to see WHY it’s a mistake. I watched/listened to the whole thing while sanding my project! 😂 thank you, subscribed!
I sanded floors for quite a while and was taught by a guy that did it for his entire career. You said that you don't have experience with lambs wool applicators, I can speak a little to that. I found that they work quite well for large floors but I wouldn't use them to put down final coat, I wouldn't even bother breaking them out unless there was an open room that was at least 500 square feet. The guy didn't seem to be feathering with it properly (or at all really). The way that he poured the finish on the floor and was doing wide passes is correct for that application, but without feathering he'll have puddles everywhere he pushed away from himself and throw drips (you have to be very careful about throwing drips even when feathering).
Wow. I've got a 223 yo farmhouse with original yellow pine floors that I'm trying to salvage. This video was VERY informative to learn what mistakes look like. Thank you! Upstate NY in the states, close to the Canadian border.
A latecomer to this video, but anyways: I sanded down a bedroom in our home, approx. 110 sq feet with an orbital sander and a handheld belt sander. "The room is so small, no need to rent a proper sander" was the thinking behind it. Between me and my wife it took about 30-40 hours of sanding to get the job done. It came out great, but we're never sanding floors without a professional machine again. What this guy does isn't even close to a decent standard, barely scratching the surface.
It sound kind of uncool, but it's actually great to learn, you're not going to screw a floor just to teach us, and sometimes even if you show us how to do it properly, it's very evident when you see the mistakes and the consecuences. Great Video Mate !
Thanks Pablo 🍻 Soon I'm going to fit a floor and sand it incorrectly, just to illustrate one of the most common mistakes people make! its gonna cost me a lot of money and time 😂
These failures made me feel good about my amateurish floor exploits! It's too bad I didn't make a video for you to critique. I like natural wood, but I hate dark polished, shiny surfaces. I hand sanded the pine floorboards (yes, it took days and days) so it was nice and evenly flat. Then I took some industrial black Sikaflex (an automotive adhesive and sealant), masked the boards, and filled the gaps (vacuumed first), pulled the masking, Let it set solid. Then used a roller to work in boiled linseed oil. Rubbed away the excess. Let that dry and then rubbed in some more by hand. Let it dry and that was it. The black strips against a dark pine finish actually look really nice. It sets off my shabby chic wood furniture. It has a nice rustic look - better than all of these guys managed.
That's rather interesting since I am debating doing the floor in my bathroom (period property) but need to make sure it's properly sealed. I wouldn't have thought of actually using a sealant to fill the gaps (even though I seem to use CT1 for about everything around the house). What type of Sikaflex did you end up using? There seem to be many types available. I won't be able to use an industrial machine either since the layout of the bathroom is such that you never get a straight run. Orbital sander, B&D mouse sander and elbow grease it will be then. Cheers
8:50 they need to sand the floor diagonally and OVERLAP each sanding pass so the lines in the passes don't show up gosh these guys think they're professionals????
When we moved into our home, we took up all the rugs and found what appeared to maybe be pet urine stains in the wood. We sanded the floors and they looked, spectacular! We loved the new shade that the sanded wood had now. We were so happy. We put the polyurethane on and when we came back in the morning to admire our floors, they looked the exact same way they looked before we sanded them! Pet stains and all! Anyone have any advice on removing dark urine stains and also how to keep the wood the light color they become after the sanding?
Instructions given to DIY'ers say to avoid rollers because there will be bubbles in the finish, and to do many thin coats vs. a few thicker coats. They also say no need to sand between thin coats if you apply the next coat as soon as it is dry to ouch; only if it dries longer do you need to sand between coats.
I occasionally use an orbital sander on floors but I start with 60 grit, or 40 if I can find it, and work up to 120. Also, and most importantly, I know what to expect. It will not make the floors look new, just better if done right. That guy's floor looks terrible. By the way, I watched your video about diagonal sanding and you have enlightened me. I don't sand floors very often, but that will be my method moving forward. Thank you for sharing that.
I love youtube. The amount of business i get from people that watch a video and decide to try refinishing or installing their floor, completely screw it up, and have to call a professional is immense.
The first video.. I just started woodworking and with a 5” sander and 3m cubitron sandpaper.. it takes me an hour to sand like 6sqft of bare wood. 80, 120, 180 grit (only go up by 50% grit)
Brilliant, thank you for your video! So important to pin point cowboys like these! I felt sick to my stomach to see them going across the boards and then convincing you it looks beautiful!😂 Much appreciated! Golden rule: If you don't know how to do it, dont even start!
I did finish carpentry and installation at a 4 mil plus home that had some of the worst flooring installation I’ve ever seen. They didn’t allow the flooring to acclimate and there are 16th” to 1/8” gaps everywhere across the whole house, not to mention they brad nailed a bunch of pieces in. I made my concerns known to the designer so the homeowners could do a walkthrough before final payment. I’m honestly not sure how they’ll fix it other than filling or complete removal and redo but I’m glad I knew enough to let them know the flooring was not done correctly. Love the vids man. I’ve learned a lot. Mostly to not do shit that’s outside my wheelhouse. Granted, I legitimately believe I could’ve done a better job than those guys it was pathetic. Edit: It was a new install not a refinish
I love your videos. I meant to ask.. should you fill in the gaps between floorboards when they're are small gaps.. if so wood putty then sand or ..... Wood filler ?
My dad does flooring and I grew up going with him on my summers (I loved going and learning the trade). The lamb applicator part was wrong, he would have left very visible lines. You need to lift it like an airplane would at take off. The way it was shown you would have very visible lines left on t he floor. Edit: forgot to say that you also start the same way an airplane lands, smooth and moving. The moment you just place and drag/push you get horrible lines left in the finish.
People if want to do your floors yourself, research and learn all you can. Forget about posting it, as long as your satisfied with the end result is all that matters. If not call in professionals but be prepared for the cost.
I think if these people are happy with their floors, then let them be. The problem is when they are claiming that it is how to do the floor. As with my channel, I share my experiences and my projects, and then I ask for advice with what I did wrong and how to do things better. I use it as a learning tool and hopefully make a few people laugh at my inexperience. I think it's important not to mislead people when doing these types of videos.
I like the scratches tbh. Makes the house look like it has character. The way the pros do it looks too perfect like laminate after. I had a pro do a house once and after it was too perfect no one believed it was hardwood until it got some new scratches and dents.
You're such a huge help mate! I can't even tell you how many videos I have watched (including these) with clearly the wrong process. Also, loved the production value increasing over the years!
"here.. and here... and HERE"😂 Flooring cleats I think they're called? I needed ONE and it was under the radiator at the very edge...so I'm afraid I havent bothered to get the proper type. My advice is change the lighting and look from all angles before moving on to the next stage. The window is your friend giving light from the side, so you should be able to spot big stripes or dipsby standing opposite it and crouching. I've just done my living room so obviously I'm now an expert 😂
How long do you need floor sander for usually? I know staining etc has dry times but switching between grits sanding should be fairly speedy like few hours? Rental place has 1 day $79, days, or week price $316. Thinking about doing few small bedrooms and 12x20 living room.
You’ll need it for the week imo. It all depends on the size the condition the type of wood etc, it’s hard to say but I imagine getting it for the week willl be the best bet
Hey heard you talking about using a roller instead of the lambs wool applicator. Every time I have used a roller it left bubbles. Not super bad but enough to where I didn’t want to use it again. I did use oil base finish. I loved the ease of application using a roller, but have gotten pretty good with just the lambs wool applicator. what would you suggest doing differently?
I’m finishing pine floors. What do you think about doing a light coat of polycrylic for the first coat then skipping sanding before the second coat? (I’d sand in between 2nd and 3rd) My reasoning is that a light coat will mostly be absorbed into the porous pine. (I noticed this after applying one coat of polycrylic to the knotty pine doors I have. Couldn’t even tell I applied a coat of poly at all due to *I’m assuming* it soaking right into the wood.) I fear that any sanding at all after the first coat would strip the poly completely. Thoughts from the master himself would be greatly appreciated.
Anyone can rent some equipment, prop up a camera, and make a video. That is why I am so weary of youtube tutorials. I know that there is different ways to do things and even professionals in my own field disagree on strategies. However, this goes to show that there are definitive "absolutely do not" methods out there. I appreciate the time you put into these videos and educate the masses of us who want to learn properly.
I made the mistake of using a roller with an all in one stain/ poly. It applied unevenly. I ended up resanding it and applying it with a soft bristled brush. Mind you that this was a very small 10 x 10 room. So the brush was no trouble. It could have turned out better, but I learned for next time.
It also could have been the product. I don’t really like those all in ones they can feel kind of cheap. Its better to wait the extra day for stain and poly coats to dry
@@thee8904 I feel the same. I did the stain/ poly separately on the hardwood top of a dresser and it turned out great. I guess I was just rushing this time and didn't think it through.
One more tip, if you are hiring, find one that actually knows something about these sanders, rather than trying to fix it when it breaks! First sander we hire judders and only sands using half the pad, find out the roller is unlevel as there was a screw missing on the wheel! Swapped it with another one - get a low voltage warning and it packs up, so they replace the missing screw and give us the original machine back. Then trying to start it we have to "rapidly push the start" otherwise it wont work. First sanding (even though we followed your video and changed directions, we get lots of judder marks. I ring them up, say I am not happy its giving these marks and that we'd watched you tube videos and even following correctly were still having these problems. Their answer was, oh we hate people watching those videos and that he had no idea what was causing the judder marks and that I should sand the floors more! So I once again do the floors, this time angling each pass. I have it on 3300rpm on a 40 grit and am pretty pleased, even though I am having to go over areas of juddering - which I am still getting - even with all the extra angled sanding. Then, I get 3/4 of the floor done and the rubber drum sheet explodes right through my sand paper and thats the end of that. So, I take the machine back and was really **** when I complain about the unit and he says to me - well this is the third time we changed it... Hello - yes because your machines were broken. I looked up the manual for these machines and it says in there if you arent getting an even sanding the drum could be worn and clearly that was the case because the rubber exploded on me, and if the hire people knew the machines he could have said that it might be the roller and to bring it back before i'd wasted lots of time sadning and making a hash job of it! We ended up getting a refund on the hire unit & buying a second hand serviced model with a new drum rubber and will use it and re-sell it once we are finished.
This video is so useful since youtube removed downvotes for videos. It used to be quite easy to tell if someone knew what they were on about and if their video was worth watching.
Im late to the party, but question. I can use an orbit, if its just for a small area. It's not really hardwood, but just wood put down. just want to return it to the original wood and then stain it. Can I do it with the orbit?
I use to joke and tell my crew I was going to make goof videos on how to refinish floors, watching this it's good I didn't bother. There is already tons of them.
I use a 40 grit. 60 grit. Skip the 80 and go to 100 grit, (lagler machine) but for some reason recently it seems like I haven't even sanded the floor after I use the 100 grit and go to polivac the floor. Any tips or reasons why this could be happening. Other than I'm getting close to quitting.
Any recommendations on the best way to sand a narrow area that is too small for a drum sander. I know you mention being against a random orbital sander for first cut since it doesn't go deep enough does that include the floor random orbital sanders as well? We have floors in our hallway that are in great shape we just want to change the color but plan on using stain so we want to make sure we go deep enough.
I was taught and did this professionally for 15 years. We never would sand a floor on a 90degree angle like that. It puts sanding marks in the wood that cannot be sanded out going with the grain. 😊
For the first video, I commented about the 100-grit paper, and he replied. He said that he did not know how much more the floor could be sanded. I was still like 100-grit will not remove enough of the finish.
I like your choice of Headphones Sony MDR7506's ..unfortunately that's about it.. Ps seen you do plenty of things wrong over the years floor sanding. Plenty..
i am sanding my floorboards atm .i have watched your video's before i am so glad i did tbh .Even though i am not a pro i learned a lot from your video's thank you ,PS i am not uploading my flooring video lol
Is it impossible to run a line of blue tape around the edge if they aren't bothering to at least pop the base trim off? Did that guy think brushing stain and varnish up onto the baseboards is just no big deal?
13:58 Thank you so much for the tip! And... for the first sanding with 36-60 paper, isn't he suppose to sand diagonal? From my research, it is to avoid waves on the wood floor.
The seckond one would have been a top candidate for a soap fiish. I don't know if you do that in britain like we do here in sweden but it could have made a nice rustic look.
I have not seen the other video but I guessing that you tell everyone to sand at a 45° angle so that you still cross the grain, but you don’t ride the wave of the boards while leveling the floor / stripping. Then sand with a finish sander down the grain
I literally just watched the second video right before finding this one. We have an 1897 farm house that has particle board sun floor over the original board. Going to pull out some of the particle board and see what’s underneath. They were covere up in 1980 before my dad’s purchase of it in 1983. Now that it’s ours, we want to bring it back to period as much as we can. Just trying to figure out how. It’s 55 miles from nearest town with a floor/refinish company
I feel like Ive reached a new low in my RUclips life when I'm watching someone on RUclips react to someone else on RUclips who is sanding their floors lol
Just had to strip and refinish a floor with 30+ years of paint and shellac. We started with some MONSTER edgers and 16 grit and even that took a ton of effort. An orbital palm sander and 100 grit?? Is he sanding a bunny rabbit??
The first sander we rented turned out to have a problem with the way the drum was adjusted, so we spent the entire weekend passing over the same floor again and again with 36 grit to remove the finish. The only good thing about this was that we had a whole weekend with an extremely gentle drum sander to learn how to use the stupid thing correctly.
Been watching RUclips guys using a spp pad then applying 2coats poly. Won’t this cause peeling due to not having enough abrasion for proper bonding? Thanks for any feedback about these preparation pads.
It should be fine. I read a long time ago that the abrasion doesn’t make much of a difference for adhesion, poly doesn’t need a key. I read this on a polyurethane research website.🤷🏼♂️ I don’t like surface preparation pads because it’s not a coarse enough grit to smooth off grain raising or dust/fluff/poly bogeys in the surface. Instead it smooths them but leaves them in place, 150-180 grit will actually cut it back to a smooth surface.
So the one with the floral wallpaper I've used that machine its from menards and that machine leaves so much behind when it hits the wall leaves 4 inches of untouched space and need to rent this giant round edge sander that is horrendous on your back he did a good job but could have been alot better if he got a different sander I will never rent that again
Hi, love the channel always full of great advice. How do you sand out deep drum marks on a 3 1/4 maple in a dance studio of around 150m2. Should I go diagonally or completely cross grain to start with 24 or 36 then cut with the grain at 36 or 60? Cheers
@@HowToSandAFloor cheers. Just watched it! Thanks again. Appreciate the info . Im kind of new to sanding. Been doing it for a couple of years now. But mostly on a ride on with two 12’s at the front in gymnasiums in North America . The company we work for don’t really have any training as such just watch and learn from the older guys (which is still really helpful) but they don’t always have all the answers or may not have come across a particular problem. So I’m great full your hear to help. I believe like a lot of good trades people your as rare as rocking horse shit, or so my old man used to say. Cheers again.
If you Don't sand that floor off 3 1/16 or More, It will Not be level sanded, some stains Penetrate, farther than that, Its not 1-2 and done, Doing a nice Job takes time, and only ,Perfection, comes with Time, Patience is a Virtue. Great video
I just spent 25 minutes watching a video on how to NOT sand/ finish hardwood floors. I don't even have hardwood floors, nor do i plan on getting hardwood floors. That's how entertaining this was! Thank you! Lol.
This made me giggle, loudly.
@@kimfelton4690😂
Committed DIYer here. After doing about 800 square feet of NEW solid hardwood in 3 separate projects over 10 years, using various time-consuming approaches, I’m convinced floor sanding and refinishing are jobs for a GOOD professional who cares. The trick is finding one in a job landscape where you cannot even find framers who can build a simple wall square. A video showing failed pro selections would be amusing.
I love the irony of the sign in the first guy’s shop.. “work hard, need nothing” and goes on to say “I could have sanded for another 8 hours but I didn’t want to do that” 😂😂
The thing that gave me the most confidence in sanding my own floors is that even these people who have zero idea what they are doing the floor doesn't end up looking THAT bad. I'm taking a lot of care and time with it.
So how thing went?
@@MergedElement - why the need to know ??
@@warriormanmaxx8991 curiosity. 😂
I'm also curious 🤔 how your floor turned out
@@uh-64_silentkill371 year later and no answer only leaves 1 logical conclusion: he still trapped under the sander
I've done hardwood a few times (incorrectly at that) seeing common mistakes is way more helpful than just the "do it like this" videos. Thank you for sharing your expertise with the plebs!
We bought a house and pulled all the carpet, I've been using a home depot drum sander, the drum is not awesome but using the techniques from your videos the floor is flat and smooth, I'm not Saying that I didn't make mistakes but you've helped me identify them and make corrections, my wallet and I thank you bro , the floors look great, thank you very much , THE BEST FLOOR FINISHING VIDEOS ON RUclips
I installed a hardwood floor in my house and refinished 2 others. Probably did it all wrong but 30 years later they still look nice and have held up well. There was no you tube to watch back then for instructions.
I’ve sanded floors using the larger floor sander I borrowed from a buddy of mine. He upp the horsepower on his machine with a higher HP motor. Starting at 60 grit up to 160 I believe, it’s been a few years so I may be off. After sanding I vacuumed and then edged. Following that I used his large blending sander. There was a learning curve to control the sander but what a difference. This is what I never see in any of these videos. I kept the floors natural with a poly sealer applied with a lambs woolskin applicator. Turned out spectacularly . It’s time consuming but very satisfying.
Good work David, and thanks for watching
I wish I would have found this before I sanded the two apts I just did... this format is so much more practical to gaining skill than videos showing success. thank you
Great video Ben! Watched quite a few of your videos. I am a DIY'er and tackled a very challenging job this weekend, but can clearly see how much paying close attention to the details and doing this properly is paying off. I am 1/2 way through the job and it looks like I am going to end up with a beautiful result. (no really :) ). I was an aircraft mechanic when I was younger and a rule you learn is that you MUST use the right tools for the job (always) and there is no substitute for experience. :) Thanks and all the best.
I don't need to sand a floor. I am however completely amazed. This guy has 100k subs and the channel is called "How To Sand A Floor". This is the level of dedication to your craft that I can respect. Hats off to you sir.
From one specialist to another… you rock! I hope you keep up the content! Also, it is refreshing to see someone close in age doing what I do, close to how I do it!
Cheers Jacob! 🍻
Not easy work guys . . . .
just from using the edger on 2 lousy bedrooms my inner thighs felt like I was riding a horse for 18 hours straight.
I swear to God!
I build chimneys so as close as I have ever come to a sander is my 5" masonry angle grinder.
but I feel like the most important thing is a perfect sanding job, bringing the grit up slowly.
I do have a question about how the wood should look, it would seem to me the better job would have a floor finish sanded so finely that is almost looks like glass without a coating yet.
Like would it be a complete waste to bring the grit all the way to 350?
I'm about to refinish 50 year old hard wood floors. Will be binge watching your videos. Thank you
I’ll keep you in my prayers 🙏
Hopefully, you follow his principles...He's on point..
Thank you Very entertaining. 1960s white oak floors that are in pretty good shape. I'm just wondering if I should. still use a belt Sander.
Yeah I think your critique of their videos help me to understand this so much. I'm not sure if you kept making videos like this over the year but this is a brilliant idea!
Thank you so much for helping the world be better!
I had to refinish a floor about as bad as the second one recently as a DIY out of necessity and I thought I did a terrible job until I saw this lol. Thanks for all the videos!
I am so glad you are doing this. I used to paint walls for a living and almost every youtube video I watched had some problem with the guy telling you this is how it should be done but have at least one glaring error. Just because you done something once, or several times without looking at the results, does not mean you know what you are doing. Please if you do not have any kind of training or experience do not post anything that is misleading.
When I was still living with my parents, we moved into a wood-frame house that was built before 1790. The wood floor was... Visibly not maintained for generations. We thought it was unrecoverable and probably full of mold anyway. We called a professional for the wood frames and he told us that he could try to recover the floor, just in case. Well boy, he had to sand a fair depth, but it was worth it. We were a bit concerned that the floor would be weakened by how much he had to take away, but these wood planks are thicker than anything of modern standards, we lived there for almost ten years with heavy furniture and never had an issue.
We had another part of the house that we renovated later by ourselves, and we try to do the same treatment to the wood floor. We definitely didn't do as good of a job. And, weirdly enough, the biggest difference wasn't just in the look, but more importantly how the floor physically interacted with people, cloth and furniture moving around. While the professionally restored floors are smooth, and you forget you're on an old wood floor, the one we renovated was a nightmare. Moving furniture dipped inside more, you feel the wobbles just walking on it, chips appeared quickly and would catch on your socks, ....
I Think one thing which is setting expectations is the amount "distressed" finishes there are in furniture and woodwork, particularly reclaimed timber from pallets and the like, the patchiness is has been even added after to give a "rustic" character, you see alot in pub refurbishment, particularly budget ones, reclaimed timber is not re-sawn or milled back to a flat timber surface, even to the extent that new timber is sometimes used given an uneven "stain" to simulate distress or even flamed.
Question is what do you want? Chatsworth house or the Dog and Hedgehog post 2015 refurb. Mostly I suspect its the later. in which case a patchy finish is actually OK, particularly the is a mat and some furniture in there after
This guy is amazing, he is Gordon Ramsay just for floors. Love him
i’ve sanded about 20 floors in my time, and only ever screwed it up once, and that was when i went across the boards. I cried.
Honestly this is really helpful lol. Not only do you point out the mistake, you also get to see WHY it’s a mistake. I watched/listened to the whole thing while sanding my project! 😂 thank you, subscribed!
I sanded floors for quite a while and was taught by a guy that did it for his entire career. You said that you don't have experience with lambs wool applicators, I can speak a little to that. I found that they work quite well for large floors but I wouldn't use them to put down final coat, I wouldn't even bother breaking them out unless there was an open room that was at least 500 square feet. The guy didn't seem to be feathering with it properly (or at all really). The way that he poured the finish on the floor and was doing wide passes is correct for that application, but without feathering he'll have puddles everywhere he pushed away from himself and throw drips (you have to be very careful about throwing drips even when feathering).
That makes sense. It is funny how a lot of professionals are all settling on rollers
Wow. I've got a 223 yo farmhouse with original yellow pine floors that I'm trying to salvage. This video was VERY informative to learn what mistakes look like. Thank you! Upstate NY in the states, close to the Canadian border.
A latecomer to this video, but anyways: I sanded down a bedroom in our home, approx. 110 sq feet with an orbital sander and a handheld belt sander. "The room is so small, no need to rent a proper sander" was the thinking behind it. Between me and my wife it took about 30-40 hours of sanding to get the job done. It came out great, but we're never sanding floors without a professional machine again. What this guy does isn't even close to a decent standard, barely scratching the surface.
It sound kind of uncool, but it's actually great to learn, you're not going to screw a floor just to teach us, and sometimes even if you show us how to do it properly, it's very evident when you see the mistakes and the consecuences. Great Video Mate !
Thanks Pablo 🍻 Soon I'm going to fit a floor and sand it incorrectly, just to illustrate one of the most common mistakes people make! its gonna cost me a lot of money and time 😂
These failures made me feel good about my amateurish floor exploits! It's too bad I didn't make a video for you to critique. I like natural wood, but I hate dark polished, shiny surfaces. I hand sanded the pine floorboards (yes, it took days and days) so it was nice and evenly flat. Then I took some industrial black Sikaflex (an automotive adhesive and sealant), masked the boards, and filled the gaps (vacuumed first), pulled the masking, Let it set solid. Then used a roller to work in boiled linseed oil. Rubbed away the excess. Let that dry and then rubbed in some more by hand. Let it dry and that was it. The black strips against a dark pine finish actually look really nice. It sets off my shabby chic wood furniture. It has a nice rustic look - better than all of these guys managed.
That's rather interesting since I am debating doing the floor in my bathroom (period property) but need to make sure it's properly sealed. I wouldn't have thought of actually using a sealant to fill the gaps (even though I seem to use CT1 for about everything around the house).
What type of Sikaflex did you end up using? There seem to be many types available.
I won't be able to use an industrial machine either since the layout of the bathroom is such that you never get a straight run. Orbital sander, B&D mouse sander and elbow grease it will be then.
Cheers
8:50 they need to sand the floor diagonally and OVERLAP each sanding pass so the lines in the passes don't show up gosh these guys think they're professionals????
I appreciate you not being so nasty with the DIY floor finishers in this one like you were in the first one. Constructive criticism is always better.
I don't think he gives a fuck what you do or don't appreciate
I am amazed to see someone (PRO) sanding across the grain WHY IN GODS NAME make a bad floor worse - you learn that in primary school word work class
When we moved into our home, we took up all the rugs and found what appeared to maybe be pet urine stains in the wood. We sanded the floors and they looked, spectacular! We loved the new shade that the sanded wood had now. We were so happy. We put the polyurethane on and when we came back in the morning to admire our floors, they looked the exact same way they looked before we sanded them! Pet stains and all! Anyone have any advice on removing dark urine stains and also how to keep the wood the light color they become after the sanding?
Instructions given to DIY'ers say to avoid rollers because there will be bubbles in the finish, and to do many thin coats vs. a few thicker coats. They also say no need to sand between thin coats if you apply the next coat as soon as it is dry to ouch; only if it dries longer do you need to sand between coats.
Awesome Video. You are an excellent Commentator and professional! This was very needed to help me learn to do the very best I can in someones home.
I occasionally use an orbital sander on floors but I start with 60 grit, or 40 if I can find it, and work up to 120. Also, and most importantly, I know what to expect. It will not make the floors look new, just better if done right. That guy's floor looks terrible. By the way, I watched your video about diagonal sanding and you have enlightened me. I don't sand floors very often, but that will be my method moving forward. Thank you for sharing that.
I love youtube. The amount of business i get from people that watch a video and decide to try refinishing or installing their floor, completely screw it up, and have to call a professional is immense.
The first video..
I just started woodworking and with a 5” sander and 3m cubitron sandpaper.. it takes me an hour to sand like 6sqft of bare wood. 80, 120, 180 grit (only go up by 50% grit)
Brilliant, thank you for your video! So important to pin point cowboys like these! I felt sick to my stomach to see them going across the boards and then convincing you it looks beautiful!😂
Much appreciated! Golden rule: If you don't know how to do it, dont even start!
I did finish carpentry and installation at a 4 mil plus home that had some of the worst flooring installation I’ve ever seen. They didn’t allow the flooring to acclimate and there are 16th” to 1/8” gaps everywhere across the whole house, not to mention they brad nailed a bunch of pieces in. I made my concerns known to the designer so the homeowners could do a walkthrough before final payment. I’m honestly not sure how they’ll fix it other than filling or complete removal and redo but I’m glad I knew enough to let them know the flooring was not done correctly. Love the vids man. I’ve learned a lot. Mostly to not do shit that’s outside my wheelhouse. Granted, I legitimately believe I could’ve done a better job than those guys it was pathetic.
Edit: It was a new install not a refinish
I love your videos. I meant to ask.. should you fill in the gaps between floorboards when they're are small gaps.. if so wood putty then sand or ..... Wood filler ?
My dad does flooring and I grew up going with him on my summers (I loved going and learning the trade). The lamb applicator part was wrong, he would have left very visible lines. You need to lift it like an airplane would at take off. The way it was shown you would have very visible lines left on t he floor.
Edit: forgot to say that you also start the same way an airplane lands, smooth and moving. The moment you just place and drag/push you get horrible lines left in the finish.
People if want to do your floors yourself, research and learn all you can. Forget about posting it, as long as your satisfied with the end result is all that matters. If not call in professionals but be prepared for the cost.
I think if these people are happy with their floors, then let them be. The problem is when they are claiming that it is how to do the floor. As with my channel, I share my experiences and my projects, and then I ask for advice with what I did wrong and how to do things better. I use it as a learning tool and hopefully make a few people laugh at my inexperience. I think it's important not to mislead people when doing these types of videos.
I have no plans to sand any floor but here I am watching this for fun.
And I appreciate it 🍻
i was expecting floors that are getting ruined, but actually they got improved of what the floors was. not bad at all
lmao no, the "refinished" floors look just as bad, if not worse!
Comments like yours is our companies money ...I love these do it yourself videos.
I like the scratches tbh. Makes the house look like it has character. The way the pros do it looks too perfect like laminate after. I had a pro do a house once and after it was too perfect no one believed it was hardwood until it got some new scratches and dents.
You're such a huge help mate! I can't even tell you how many videos I have watched (including these) with clearly the wrong process. Also, loved the production value increasing over the years!
now thats a compliment I wanna hear, haha. I have better coming soon
"here.. and here... and HERE"😂
Flooring cleats I think they're called? I needed ONE and it was under the radiator at the very edge...so I'm afraid I havent bothered to get the proper type.
My advice is change the lighting and look from all angles before moving on to the next stage. The window is your friend giving light from the side, so you should be able to spot big stripes or dipsby standing opposite it and crouching. I've just done my living room so obviously I'm now an expert 😂
How long do you need floor sander for usually? I know staining etc has dry times but switching between grits sanding should be fairly speedy like few hours? Rental place has 1 day $79, days, or week price $316. Thinking about doing few small bedrooms and 12x20 living room.
You’ll need it for the week imo. It all depends on the size the condition the type of wood etc, it’s hard to say but I imagine getting it for the week willl be the best bet
I’m still in absolute shock of the rental prices in the US
Hey heard you talking about using a roller instead of the lambs wool applicator. Every time I have used a roller it left bubbles. Not super bad but enough to where I didn’t want to use it again. I did use oil base finish. I loved the ease of application using a roller, but have gotten pretty good with just the lambs wool applicator. what would you suggest doing differently?
I’m finishing pine floors. What do you think about doing a light coat of polycrylic for the first coat then skipping sanding before the second coat?
(I’d sand in between 2nd and 3rd)
My reasoning is that a light coat will mostly be absorbed into the porous pine. (I noticed this after applying one coat of polycrylic to the knotty pine doors I have. Couldn’t even tell I applied a coat of poly at all due to *I’m assuming* it soaking right into the wood.)
I fear that any sanding at all after the first coat would strip the poly completely.
Thoughts from the master himself would be greatly appreciated.
Anyone can rent some equipment, prop up a camera, and make a video. That is why I am so weary of youtube tutorials. I know that there is different ways to do things and even professionals in my own field disagree on strategies. However, this goes to show that there are definitive "absolutely do not" methods out there. I appreciate the time you put into these videos and educate the masses of us who want to learn properly.
For a newb would you recommend an orbital floor sander over the drum ?
I made the mistake of using a roller with an all in one stain/ poly. It applied unevenly. I ended up resanding it and applying it with a soft bristled brush. Mind you that this was a very small 10 x 10 room. So the brush was no trouble. It could have turned out better, but I learned for next time.
It also could have been the product. I don’t really like those all in ones they can feel kind of cheap. Its better to wait the extra day for stain and poly coats to dry
@@thee8904 I feel the same. I did the stain/ poly separately on the hardwood top of a dresser and it turned out great. I guess I was just rushing this time and didn't think it through.
I'm a floor sander in Ireland. That's made my day 😅
Haha. I only watched the second guy’s video yesterday and thought, this is great 😂. Glad I watched this, thanks.
One more tip, if you are hiring, find one that actually knows something about these sanders, rather than trying to fix it when it breaks! First sander we hire judders and only sands using half the pad, find out the roller is unlevel as there was a screw missing on the wheel! Swapped it with another one - get a low voltage warning and it packs up, so they replace the missing screw and give us the original machine back. Then trying to start it we have to "rapidly push the start" otherwise it wont work. First sanding (even though we followed your video and changed directions, we get lots of judder marks.
I ring them up, say I am not happy its giving these marks and that we'd watched you tube videos and even following correctly were still having these problems. Their answer was, oh we hate people watching those videos and that he had no idea what was causing the judder marks and that I should sand the floors more! So I once again do the floors, this time angling each pass. I have it on 3300rpm on a 40 grit and am pretty pleased, even though I am having to go over areas of juddering - which I am still getting - even with all the extra angled sanding. Then, I get 3/4 of the floor done and the rubber drum sheet explodes right through my sand paper and thats the end of that.
So, I take the machine back and was really **** when I complain about the unit and he says to me - well this is the third time we changed it... Hello - yes because your machines were broken. I looked up the manual for these machines and it says in there if you arent getting an even sanding the drum could be worn and clearly that was the case because the rubber exploded on me, and if the hire people knew the machines he could have said that it might be the roller and to bring it back before i'd wasted lots of time sadning and making a hash job of it!
We ended up getting a refund on the hire unit & buying a second hand serviced model with a new drum rubber and will use it and re-sell it once we are finished.
This video is so useful since youtube removed downvotes for videos.
It used to be quite easy to tell if someone knew what they were on about and if their video was worth watching.
Im late to the party, but question. I can use an orbit, if its just for a small area. It's not really hardwood, but just wood put down. just want to return it to the original wood and then stain it. Can I do it with the orbit?
Thamks so much mate. Very helpful and constructive. I can honestly say ive learned so much. Cheers from New Jersey USA
your comments had me laughing out loud🤣 very entertaining way of getting knowledge👍🏻
Do you need to start at a low grit if the floor is unfinished
this is exactly how to sand your floor by yourself, right before you have to call a professional to come redo it all.
Lol 😂 omg that was good
@@SunriseLAW any type of finish coat you have nowadays are, for the most part just the same
As a second generation hardwood floor specialist… you are correct lol😬😭😂👌
Whoa, you burst my bubble 😂
Really well put together video. Professional touch. Make mine look like a five year old did them whilst wearing roller skates.
I use to joke and tell my crew I was going to make goof videos on how to refinish floors, watching this it's good I didn't bother. There is already tons of them.
Refreshing not watching a DIY video w a person looking spotless who explains how SIMPLE, FAST & EASY it is to do! 😂
Should I clean/remove dust on my floors using a wet/damp microfibre mop prior to applying the sealer?
I use a 40 grit. 60 grit. Skip the 80 and go to 100 grit, (lagler machine) but for some reason recently it seems like I haven't even sanded the floor after I use the 100 grit and go to polivac the floor. Any tips or reasons why this could be happening. Other than I'm getting close to quitting.
Do you use the hummel too?
Any recommendations on the best way to sand a narrow area that is too small for a drum sander. I know you mention being against a random orbital sander for first cut since it doesn't go deep enough does that include the floor random orbital sanders as well? We have floors in our hallway that are in great shape we just want to change the color but plan on using stain so we want to make sure we go deep enough.
I was taught and did this professionally for 15 years. We never would sand a floor on a 90degree angle like that. It puts sanding marks in the wood that cannot be sanded out going with the grain. 😊
Thank you...I've been looking for a video to see if this was a possible DIY and your recommendation of a video helped.
For the first video, I commented about the 100-grit paper, and he replied. He said that he did not know how much more the floor could be sanded. I was still like 100-grit will not remove enough of the finish.
Some of the work that's passed by so called professionals is a disgrace bravo for exposing this.
Cheers bbg 🍻
Quick question for you sanders out there do you guys ever wet your floors before staining I'm in canada so I don't know if you guys do it the same way
I like your choice of Headphones Sony MDR7506's ..unfortunately that's about it..
Ps seen you do plenty of things wrong over the years floor sanding. Plenty..
Yep done lots wrong, learned a lot since I started this channel
Thank you so much for your time 👏👏👏👏👏
Im having a full on laugh watching this constructive criticism and learning at the same time 😂
i am sanding my floorboards atm .i have watched your video's before i am so glad i did tbh .Even though i am not a pro i learned a lot from your video's thank you ,PS i am not uploading my flooring video lol
Don't rollers cause air bubbles in the finish?
They were going for the ranch floor look. Maybe? (Vix Hardwood Flooring, Prescott Az) love your Videos.
Is it impossible to run a line of blue tape around the edge if they aren't bothering to at least pop the base trim off? Did that guy think brushing stain and varnish up onto the baseboards is just no big deal?
13:58 Thank you so much for the tip!
And... for the first sanding with 36-60 paper, isn't he suppose to sand diagonal? From my research, it is to avoid waves on the wood floor.
You can go diagonal or straight on the first. I prefer doing it non the first because it’s easier to see where you’ve been.
The seckond one would have been a top candidate for a soap fiish. I don't know if you do that in britain like we do here in sweden but it could have made a nice rustic look.
Soap and lye is awful lol. Better off using a natural look finish like loba invisible
Cheers for your video course, very helpful in showing people
I have not seen the other video but I guessing that you tell everyone to sand at a 45° angle so that you still cross the grain, but you don’t ride the wave of the boards while leveling the floor / stripping. Then sand with a finish sander down the grain
I literally just watched the second video right before finding this one. We have an 1897 farm house that has particle board sun floor over the original board. Going to pull out some of the particle board and see what’s underneath. They were covere up in 1980 before my dad’s purchase of it in 1983. Now that it’s ours, we want to bring it back to period as much as we can. Just trying to figure out how. It’s 55 miles from nearest town with a floor/refinish company
Hahaha. Just about to this for the first time. Good thing I didn't find these guys first!
How can I sand floors that are laid in a rectangular pattern if u shouldn't sand across the grain?
Diagonally
I feel like Ive reached a new low in my RUclips life when I'm watching someone on RUclips react to someone else on RUclips who is sanding their floors lol
Brilliant. Thanks for doing this video
Just had to strip and refinish a floor with 30+ years of paint and shellac. We started with some MONSTER edgers and 16 grit and even that took a ton of effort. An orbital palm sander and 100 grit?? Is he sanding a bunny rabbit??
The first sander we rented turned out to have a problem with the way the drum was adjusted, so we spent the entire weekend passing over the same floor again and again with 36 grit to remove the finish. The only good thing about this was that we had a whole weekend with an extremely gentle drum sander to learn how to use the stupid thing correctly.
these videos just get better and better bro😂😂😂
ahh mate, thats exactly what i want to hear 😂
This man knows how to sand a floor.
Been watching RUclips guys using a spp pad then applying 2coats poly. Won’t this cause peeling due to not having enough abrasion for proper bonding? Thanks for any feedback about these preparation pads.
It should be fine. I read a long time ago that the abrasion doesn’t make much of a difference for adhesion, poly doesn’t need a key. I read this on a polyurethane research website.🤷🏼♂️
I don’t like surface preparation pads because it’s not a coarse enough grit to smooth off grain raising or dust/fluff/poly bogeys in the surface. Instead it smooths them but leaves them in place, 150-180 grit will actually cut it back to a smooth surface.
I was gonna use 40 or 60 grit paper to remove my finish......overkill?
So the one with the floral wallpaper I've used that machine its from menards and that machine leaves so much behind when it hits the wall leaves 4 inches of untouched space and need to rent this giant round edge sander that is horrendous on your back he did a good job but could have been alot better if he got a different sander I will never rent that again
Hi, love the channel always full of great advice. How do you sand out deep drum marks on a 3 1/4 maple in a dance studio of around 150m2. Should I go diagonally or completely cross grain to start with 24 or 36 then cut with the grain at 36 or 60? Cheers
Diagonal. You would know not to go completely across the grain if you have watched even the first half of this video 😂
@@HowToSandAFloor cheers. Just watched it! Thanks again. Appreciate the info . Im kind of new to sanding. Been doing it for a couple of years now. But mostly on a ride on with two 12’s at the front in gymnasiums in North America . The company we work for don’t really have any training as such just watch and learn from the older guys (which is still really helpful) but they don’t always have all the answers or may not have come across a particular problem. So I’m great full your hear to help. I believe like a lot of good trades people your as rare as rocking horse shit, or so my old man used to say. Cheers again.
@@HowToSandAFloor yeah I cut floors at a 45° angle on my first cut to get them level then vacuum and trowel fill the entire floor
11:35 "yeah that's stunning mate"
🤣
Teehee! 😁
Bruh you crack me up! As soon as im thinking something while watching along you end up saying it hahaha. Cheers
" i know there are people who disagree with me, but they are wrong" great comment and yes they are.
Haha cheers Greg 🍻
If you Don't sand that floor off 3 1/16 or More, It will Not be level sanded, some stains Penetrate, farther than that, Its not 1-2 and done, Doing a nice Job takes time, and only ,Perfection, comes with Time, Patience is a Virtue. Great video