Floor Sanding & Parquet Restoration Hitchin
Today we are going to showcase a floor we sanded early this week in Hitchin.
The customers had just bought the house and discovered a Herringbone Parquet floor underneath the carpet. The previous owners hadnt mentioned it and they didnt know until they had bought the house. They called us for a quote and we were happy to tell them it was Mahogany! The floor was also in good condition, that is to say, the blocks were almost all glued down firmly and there was no major damage.
The first image shows the floor as it was found, old worn out varnish and surface damage. In the second picture we had started the rough grit floor sanding. We started on a 36 grit, this ensures that all scratches, dents and proud blocks are smoothed out in 1 pass. By sanding straight we are running at a 45 degree angle against every block. When you sand with the grain of the wood it is much less aggressive than when you sand directly against the grain of the wood. So by sanding diagonally the machine will dig into blocks going against the grain more than the ones that go with the grain and creates an uneven surface. By going 45 degrees we are keeping it even and creating the flattest possible finish.
In the picture on the left here we are sanding the floor with 60 grit. We are going perpendicular to the previous grit, this helps to remove any imperfection in the level of the floor not removed by the previous sanding. In the second picture we are mass filling the floor. After sanding with the 80 grit we use the fine dust from that process to mix with a transparent resin binder to create the filler. We then trowel it into the floor much like grouting tiles. Filling the floor like this leads to a very smooth consistant finish and dramatically reduces the appearance of gaps between the blocks.
After the whole floor has been filled and left to dry we then sand the filler off the surface of the floor with 100 grit belts, pictured left. Once this, the edge sanding and the corners have been finished we then lightly sand the floor with a rotary sander, this removes the linear scratches from the belt sander and blends it with the disk scratches round the edge. This leaves a smooth clean surface ready for hoovering and lacquering. In the right picture you can see the start of the first coat. In this case we used Junckers Baseprime which is a solvent primer. This is a great product for sealing the wood and really bringing out the grain for a vibrant colourful finish. Floor sanding Hitchin
The picture on the left shows the second coat of lacquer dry. We used Junckers Strong (matt) which is a water based domestic floor lacquer. Once the second coat is try the floor is buffed with 120 grit screen. This lightly de-nibs and smooths off the surface as well as keying the lacquer for the next coat. The picture on the right shows the 3rd coat as it has just been applied and still wet.
Hi there, thank you for sharing this article. I found parquet flooring through my 1960’s bungalow and have been looking for ways of restoring it. It was originally lasted using thick black bitumen, so I guess I’ve got a bit of prep to do. I’m not your regular diyer, after growing up within my dad’s decorating firm, however anything that will help save energy is a good thing. There have been various opinions offered by friends, most common being chip it up and use it for kindling. That I couldn’t do. I freted over directionality and type of dander to use. Your article has provided me with answers. Now I need to decide over paying professionals with proven years of doing restorative work to do the work or doing it myself. It all comes down to time, and money too I’m afraid. Any other tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again.
As an aside, sorry for typos in my original post, even after I checked it!!!! Now that does bug me. Thanks again.
All of us have come across wooden floor at some place or other and struck by the awesomeness of it. The warmth, luster and texture of wooden flooring give a very classy character to the space. Good quality wooden flooring is timeless and lasts for decades. Wood was always considered only available to the very wealthy.