Do It Yourself Wood Floor Staining

Staining wood is an easy enough diy task but it s definitely a process that requires attention to detail.

Do it yourself wood floor staining. Even though refinishing a wood floor may not evoke a sense of imminent danger safety is still job one for any household handyman. Pry up the moulding with a pry bar using a piece of scrap wood to protect the baseboard. This is a very coarse paper that will do the heavy duty work of removing scratches dings and the old finish but will leave a rough surface. Here are four big reasons why.

There are 2 ways to do this one way is with a colored finish such as browned lacquer a floor paint or white oil for example. Otherwise you can end up with an awfully big mess. Stained hands and clothing uneven coloring and a rough wood surface are just a few of the things that can go awry if you re not particularly careful. That s why we do our utmost to talk you out of staining your wood floors.

Use a method called water popping in which you run a wet mop or cloth over the newly sanded floor to raise the grain. As this project will require you to work with polyurethane you will need to take certain measures to protect yourself. In this case the color stays in the finish on top of the wood. Before floor refinishing with a sander you should pull up the shoe base moulding along where the floor meets the wall.

When trying out your test area use either an inconspicuous area of the floor or a sample piece of the wood if available. Stopping can create permanent marks in your floors. Moving with the grain of the wood work in 3 to 4 foot sections. Keep moving across the floor at a slow steady pace.

This will allow you to adjust the color or even change it before you finish the entire project. Overlap rows by one board. Stain adds beautiful color. Step 3 protect yourself.

Use the same method and material you will use to do the actual staining. Adding stain to bare or stripped wood can both change the color and highlight the grain pattern of any interior wood. This will cause the wood to better accept the stain. And when it does go wrong the only solution is to re sand the floor and start all over from the beginning.

Staining floors especially for first time do it yourselfers is a tricky business. Number or otherwise label each piece as you remove it to make it easier to put it back after refinishing the floor. While wood in its natural state can provide breathtaking beauty it doesn t always match the other colors or wood tones in our home. The other way is to use a stain or wood dye which is a liquid usually water or solvent based that contains a pigment which soaks into the wood.

Stain makes sander scratch shockingly visible. The average do it yourself homeowner can burn stain her wood floors in one to two days depending on the size and scope of the project.