Arse! Forced to sand the floor on my own. Please help/advise.

[Spidermama]

We're giving our kitchen a complete overhaul it badly needs on a very tight budget. DH is doing the vast majority of it himself.

He has just laid some reclaimed floorboards in the kitchen/dining room. He said he won't do sanding until 'a later date'. (He's going away for 7 weeks at the end of June)

I'm insisting it needs to be done now because I can't go through this level of disruption again and it looks pretty revolting and grey.

I've told him if he won't do it then I will. He laughed.

How hard can it be?

I think you have to be quite strong with the sanding machine. Are you getting one that looks like a hoover? I will ask DH cos he's a carpenter and has done a lot of floors. He out though till later so you may get replies before I come back.

Thanks FranSan. I'd love the advice of a carpenter.

I will need a big hoover like one and an edging sander.

I seem to remember once reading there are some which catch all of the dust. Could this really be true?

Yes you get a bag on the back - the sawdust can get quite hot. I'll check back later and let you know what DH says. Don't think anyones swooned over him in years

Has anyone else done this?

On the plus side the floorboards are newly laid and in good nick (eg level and with all nails nicely counter sunk.)

I think all the dust may be a bit of an exaggeration. Cover up everything you can, seal cupboards and doors as the dust will get everywhere. We did a small room in our house. It was hot and tedious, but not difficult. (The only "difficult" part was perhaps when DH decided to secure one of the floorboard and punctured a central heating pipe...) Good luck!

Hi, DH returned from golf and had to stem a huge leak in kitchen ceiling as bath mixer tap pipes are broken . Anyway have asked about wooden floors and he says (1) wear a mask over mouth as much dust even with bag and keep room ventilated (2) follow the direction of the floor boards and start each run from the same end of the room. Hope this may help you.

Have done this a couple of times - get a floor sander from a tool hire place plus an edge sander. (barter with em too). Make sure all nails etc are bashed into floor otherwise they make the sanding sheets explode which is scary (not dangerous). The machine is VERY heavy and very loud. YOu need to start with the least fine sandpaper going diagonally across the boards and then go over with a finer sheet to get a decent finish. Use the edger on the erm, edges. Use a mask, goggles and move EVERYTHING out the room, tape up any cupboards etc. It is a filthy, stinking, hot job. But it;s worth it in the end. To finish I would recommend Osmo hard wax oil or Auro varnishes, both long lasting and low VOC.
Have fun!

Very helpful. Thanks.

Eatingswans I did wonder about using oil rather than varnish. I think it looks nicer and it feels less toxic. Do you think it would be OK with reclaimed Victorian pine boards. Also is it OK in high traffic kitchen (there are six of us and we spend lots of time in the kitchen.)

How often would I have to re-oil? Could I re-oil the high traffic bits only?

Some oil is harder some say easier. I'm not sure.

Right. Am having trouble hiring a belt sander which I am told is better than a drum sander (less dust and less gouging hazard). The small belt ones are available for hire but not the big ones it seems.

Is a drum sander really that bad?

Reclaimed boards take lots of work and sandpaper!If you both do it it would be much easier.Oil looks great but you need to give it a good 4-5 coats plus drying time to toughen it up esp in a kitchen.Matt yacht varnish is brilliant not sure about toxicity though but it is indestructible and great for spills.

here expensive but do matt and low VOC which is what you are looking for

Really Noddy? I thought the reclaimed boards would be quick and relatively easy as they have no varnish on them and only need a light sand, they are in good nick and DH has done the counter sinking very well so very little preparation required.

What are the pitfalls I haven't yet thought through?

Also, if I were to oil the floor, how long would I need to leave between coats?

They look great but if they are fairly clean then its not so hard.I would do one lot in teh morning let it dry for about 4 hours and then another layer and leave overnight.A final coat in teh morning is the minimum I would do.They will look great though well worth it.You are lucky they are raw as old varnish/paint is a killer!

It's not too bad a job - we've done several rooms ourselves. You do need strong arms - it'll sort out any bingo wings issues. Even with the bag thingy, dust gets EVERYWHERE - if you can tape up a tarpaulin/bin bags over the door then that helps stop it spreading through the house.

And DO NOT sand through a radiator pipe at 10pm on a Sunday night. It's not good.

Have done similar!The dust is a nightmare I agree a good hoover is essential

Find somewhere that will hire you a belt sander rather than a drum sander.

I have used both, and can testify that the belt sander really isn't that dusty. Drum sander is hideous.

I found the edges to be the killer as you have to really lean over and it knackers your back. But it's not a difficult job IYSWIM.

That's the problem Betty. I can't find a belt sander to hire. They're all drum.

Oh sorry, spidermama, I didn't realise

Osmo hard wax oil is what we used - it will depend on how porous the wood is but we used 3 coats and it was enough, otherwise you get puddles that dry on the surface. Apply thinly with a new brush...PErsonally I like the satin finish as the matt just is tooo matt for me and the gloss tooo glossy but depends what you like...

Belt sander should be fine if the boards are in really good nick. I would recc. buying one, prob not much more than hiring and prob why you can't hire one. You could always flog it on EBay after too!

Good luck comrade!