Sanding a wooden floor.

1. Clear the room and seal it to keep the dust from escaping. The job you are about to do will be a dusty job!
2. If the floorboards are uneven and the gaps prove too wide to close, your only real solution will be to replace them or fit small scetions of timber infills.
3. You can fill minor holes with wooden plugs or wood filler.
4. Hammer in all protruding nails or remove them, if hammering them in please check for any concealed pipes or cables that may be under the floor.
5. To sand your floor, you will need to hire or buy a floor sanding machine and a belt sander, to finish off the corners, buying is probably unwise.
6. Start by sanding the floors with the floor sanding machine, working diagonally and using the coarsest grade of sandpaper. Move the machine at a slow walking pace, sanding at a 45 degree angle to the floorboard.
7. Replace the sanding belts when needed and empty the dust bag regularly.
8. Stop sanding when you feel bare wood, this is more likely to be a visual check.
9. When you're finished sanding the floor diagonally, change to a medium grade sandpaper, and sand the floor parallel to the floorboard, again check visually and physically to guage if the flooring is sanded properly.
10. Lastly, use a belt sander to sand corners. Again start with the coarsest grade to medium, and finish off with the finest grade of sandpaper.
11. Hand-sand any inaccessible areas.
12. Remember not to concentrate on any one spot for too long as it will unevenly dent or damage the floorboard.
13. When you are finished sanding, vacuum or sweep the floor.
14. Wipe the floor with white spirit, wear gloves and be careful of splashes especially in relation to your eyes.
15. Apply at least one coat of floor sealer.

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