Parquet sanding – what does it consist in?

Parquet sanding is a popular method of renovating wooden floors. It makes them look like new, despite many years of use. Such procedure is a much cheaper solution in comparison with replacing the whole floor. Be sure to check what scraping is and whether it works in your case.

Parquet sanding step by step

This method of renovation of wood flooring involves scraping off the top layer of old varnish and laying a new product, which will protect the wood against external factors. It works well for natural wood planks, which are covered with wax or varnish. During the sanding process, defects in the floor are also filled in so that the floor has a uniform surface.

Floor sanding is performed in the following steps:

1. The process of renovating a wooden parquet floor is done with a special device called a cyclinator. Sometimes a second scraping is needed if the varnish did not come off the first time. Sandpaper of appropriate gradation, from the thickest to the thinnest, is also used for sanding, thanks to which the surface of the boards becomes smooth. The weight of the paper is chosen according to the type of wood – finer textured papers are used for pine.
2. Edges and hard-to-reach places are leveled with an edge scraper. For large surfaces, belt screeders and hand screeders are used more often.
3. Sanding allows to remove dirt and level the surface. If there are defects in the parquet, they are filled with a special wood-like repair compound. It is applied with a small spatula, matching the shade to the color of the wood. To make the shade as close as possible to the color of the parquet, the compound is mixed with sanding dust. After it dries, the surface of the patched hole is smoothed with sandpaper.
4. In case of scratches and gaps the parquet is polished with a 120-grit sanding mesh.
5. Before applying the varnish, it is very important to clean the parquet floor from the rest of the wood and the previous varnish. After the parquet has been dusted off, we apply protective preparations, including wood varnish which protects the freshly scraped parquet. Sometimes it is necessary to apply the varnish again to maintain the effect for a longer period of time.

Advantages and disadvantages of sanding

Sanding has its advantages but also disadvantages.

The advantages of sanding a wood floor are:

• possibility to keep the previous floor,
• lower renovation costs compared to tearing up the parquet and buying new parquet planks,
• protection of the floor against external factors, including UV radiation,
• the effect of new parquet,
• eliminating scratches and discolorations.

Sanding also has its drawbacks:

• it cannot be used on thin planks and some types of parquet staves,
• does not work well on wood-like parquet,
• sanding can be repeated only 5-6 times,
• to maintain the effect of an even and refreshed parquet floor scraping must be repeated
• during the scraping process dust is produced which can be harmful for allergy sufferers.

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Screeding – on your own or with the help of a company?

If we are experienced in sanding parquet boards, we can undertake this task on our own. If we are not sure to what thickness we should scrape the surface of the boards, it is a better idea to hire a specialist who will do the renovation work for us. Help will be especially necessary if the parquet has many scratches and dirt and we are dealing with mosaic parquet, which requires more attention.

When is sanding not worth it?

If our floor is very damp or we are concerned about its durability, a better solution is to lay new boards. You shouldn’t sand a board which has been worn out many times and has numerous cavities which can’t be repaired with the use of preparations. The situation is similar when some elements are missing in the parquet mosaic. Choosing the right shade of staves can be costly and problematic, so in this case it will be quicker to replace the entire floor with a soundproofing underlay.