Refinish Hand-scraped Hardwood Floors

[drhuntsman]

I have walnut, hand-scraped hardwood floors.  This is the wood floors that have ripples and waves throughout the floor.  If i get a large sander, and take it to the bare wood, I would take out all of the ripples, etc.  I was wondering if anyone has used a Rotex with the soft pad and the foam interface to keep the contours of the floor.

Help? 

Also, do I really need to take this down to the bare wood, or can I take the top coat to get all of the scratches etc. outing then refinish?

Thanks for any and all help.

 

[rizzoa13]

I don't see how you could possibly refinish those even with the soft interface pad, it's going to knock down the ridges. You could attempt to use stripper on the finish and then lay a new finish on it.

You can't even really screen it and add another coat because of the ridges (I could be wrong but I don't see how). In your shoes Id sand it all flat and be happy to get more life out of the floors.

 

[Walk On Wood]

Welcome to my world!  If you use a traditional floor sander to face wood, you will loose all of the contour. If you try to use a rotex, you will likely lose all of the co tour as well. You could (depending on the floors condition) abrade and apply another coat if finish. I usually abrade the whole floor by hand, using 180/220g. There is a machine that is just for abrading textured floors called a Clarke Fa-8. If you go with abrading and coating, I would highly recommend doing a sample area in an inconspicuous spot to check for proper adhesion.  My scraping mentor is actually located in Utah if you're looking to hire a pro. Shoot me an email if you would like to discuss it further. Tobywalkonwood@gmail.com

 

[roblg3]

Unless you strip these floors chemically, the only option other than hand sanding, would be to get the planer Festool sells with the "handscraped" cutter heads. It would undoubtedly change the look, but you can get a very similar look that way

 

[Holmz]

I have walnut, hand-scraped hardwood floors. 
...

Have you considered scraping them?

Why would you want to plane it or sand it, if you like it how it is?

 

[drhuntsman]

Thanks so much for your expert opinions and the videos. 

I appreciate it.

Darrell

 

[drhuntsman]

I have walnut, hand-scraped hardwood floors. 
...

Have you considered scraping them?

Why would you want to plane it or sand it, if you like it how it is?

In the video it looks like they sanded first, and now are hand scraping.  Are you suggesting  to go straight to a hand scraper to get texture along with the getting to the bare wood?

 

[Holmz]

I am no expert, but I have used scrapers in the past for other things.

If the hand scraped floor has the look, then hand scraping it back maybe preserve the look.
The worst case is that is all goes TU, and one sands it anyhow. But a scraper is cheap and seem like it could be worth a try??

 

[mwahaha]

[eek] Bugger that my knees are aching just looking at that.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Is it really necessary to strip it down to bare wood? Because no matter what you do to it, it will affect the contour of the wood.

Sanders all have a flat surface so if you use one it will flatten the floor. Scraping also.

The thing I can think of that comes closest to keeping the contour is a brush sander with a nylon brush.

Festool version (very expensive of course and NAINA):http://www.festool.com.au/ras-180-rustofix-surface-sander

Makita version:http://www.thetoolstore.ca/viewItem.asp?idProduct=6105

There are also nylon brushes you can put in a drill, it's a cheap way to experiment and see if the method is useful for you:https://www.google.nl/search?q=nylon+brush+for+drill&biw=1806&bih=825&source=lnms&tbm=isch&
sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj8q6vN2-_KAhVEDywKHWUkBcAQ_AUIBigB

 

[mkasdin]

I would think you could simply remove the top coat and then refinish? I assume you have an oil base finish? You can Old Masters a retail store and ask them... They are in the Los Angeles area and a photo emailed would probably get your question answered. As long as you don't have over 1,000 square feet you could probably do it in a few days by hand. By the end of the project you will be ambidextrous. Taking it to bare wood will take you longer. As some previously mentioned test it in an inconspicuous area...

The scratches are from dogs with long toe nails or just abuse over the years? Not sure if you could use the scratches to your asvantage to give the floor a distressed look? I've heard of peopke taking a chain and hitting the wood to further distress the look.  Good luck. Post a photo - before and after.