Q: My floor is in a terrible condition. I think it may be too bad to sand.
A: The majority of floors we see have been hidden under carpets for years. They have never seen the light of day and look like they have been painted with black bitumen. With a bit of time, effort and elbow grease you can strip 2-3mm off the surface to reveal beautifully clean wood.
Q: Dust-free? Really
A: A Hummel belt sander is 95-98% dust-free. About a teaspoonful of dust from a 40sqm floor escapes into the environment. The Trio finishing machine when used to polish the floor is practically dust free. Taping doorways, cupboards etc can be done as a precaution if you wish to do so.
Q: What benefits do sanded floors have?
A: Finished Floors are hygienic, practical and very stylish. They do not harbour parasites like carpets and are virtually maintenance free. Very easy to clean, they do not hold smelly odours from the previous occupants pets or tobacco. Wood is also a great heat conductor, cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
Q: Filling gaps between the boards, good idea?
A: Filling gaps is an effective way of eliminating draughts. 98% of houses have airbricks at ground level. There will be a continuous amount of air passing under the house when you take up the carpet. That air will create a vacuum and suck warm air from your room and pass it out of the house through the airbricks. Filling gaps stops the warm air leaving the room, maintaining the temperature of the room as you remember it was with carpet. Above ground level rooms; this stream of air is not present so it would be purely a decorative reason. Gap filling actually look great on most floors.
Q: How do you fill gaps?
A: This is probably the most asked question we’re hit with - we fill gaps with a mixture of two methods, strips of wood that are glued in to position. This method is without doubt the best for look and for reliability. We use gap filler for really small gaps where stripes of wood can’t be used and also for fine line repairs in the boards.
Q: What colour will the floor be after sanding?
A: Aged pine floorboards have a nice warmth to them. Its hard to say as every floor is slightly different, golden brown is common, antique honey pine is also common, you can't tell until you start sanding. The colour depends on the age of the wood and its acclimatisation with oxygen. Block or strip floors are usually oak, beech, ash, maple, cedar, or dark hardwoods mixed together and laid in herringbone patterns or basket weave or in the case of strips length ways.
Q: How long will it take to sand my floor?
A: A trained professional floor sander can sand up to 50sqm a day, if the floor is prepared and doesn't require repairs.
Q: How long does the seal last?
A: It depends on the amount of traffic, the footwear and the quality of the sanding work. A spare bedroom for example, which receives little traffic will obviously last much longer than a floor in a busy kitchen. If the floor is not cleaned or maintained correctly then a floor will not last as long as it should, and deteriorate pretty quickly. As with most things in life prevention is the best cure.
Q: Can we change the colour of our floor?
A: Staining a floor a different colour is a popular choice by many customers. However, it is not as easy to get a good finish as it may sound. When you colour a floor all the surface marks are likely to show up under the seal when the light falls on it. If you are not sure whether this will work for you, please seek our advice.
Q: Can you get rid of the black paint around the edges?
A: Many period properties have a tar-like substance around the edge of the floor. Our floor sanding edgers will remove this with a coarse abrasive. Hand scraping first will reduce the amount of abrasive needed.
Q: When will I be able to use the floor?
A: Our fast drying Waterborne finish takes 1-2hrs to dry per coat. After 24hrs the floor is ready to receive light traffic, ideally wearing just socks. Treatex Hardwax Oil takes a little longer to dry, 3-6hrs depending on wood type and ventilation. For maintenance tips visit http://www.treatex.co.uk/hardwaxoilmaintenance.html. |
