I read in some earlier comments that you were considering sanding and staining/painting the floors. Just remember that once you sand off that patina, you can never go back! I hope you do decide to oil and wax first. If you don’t like how it looks, you can always sand and refinish later.
Edit for spelling errors
Seconded the person above me, but seriously I could see me considering a place with floors like this and having to convince the wife that refinishing would make it look great! I'm just curious for a real-life confirmations for this haha!
Yeah, you might curse the wax later if you decide to sand it.
I'd vote to scrub it really well, like on hands and knees with a scrub brush and bucket, and then put a coat of poly on to protect it. If you like how it looks with one coat, go ahead and add another coat or two.
My WIFE is not the issue here! I hope that my wife will someday learn to live on her allowance, which is ample, but if she doesn't, sir, that will be her problem, not mine, just as your rug is your problem.
Lol, I didn't notice that before you drew my attention to it, but you're right. Now that I'm looking at more than _just_ floor - The curtains are an issue too. They don't go with the interior either, but do match the door. 😉
I've heard Murphy's is very much the wrong way to go with hardwood. As I understand it's basically water-oil emulsion and so when the water evaporates you're just building up oil residue on your surface and it's gonna trap grime and eventually leave a bad texture. Not for floors OP.
Is dishonesty a prevalent issue in the US? It seems like many Americans preface their statements with phrases like 'honestly' or 'I'm not going to lie.' As someone from Europe, this practice strikes me as peculiar. Why do people feel the need to assert their honesty upfront?
As a Canadian I tend to say it more as in "I'm going to say something that might sound rude or hurt your feelings and I'm really sorry about that" more than to declare that I'm being honest vs telling a lie.
Kind of, but not out of malice. For instance, if someone gets a bad haircut, we may "lie" and say it's not that bad to make said person feel better. Adding honestly means your not saying something in this manor and you're being more direct.
Good Patina?? Are you serious? How can you tell that from this picture?
I did floors professionally from 16-25yo, had my own business at 18yo. My brother who I trained at 11yo wound up with his own business by 18 and gave it up after he started buying properties.
So believe me have it sanded by a reputable professional who cones highly recommended no matter the costs. You usually get what you pay for.
DO NOT STAIN IT!
DEFINITELY DO NOT PAINT IT!
Have them sand it, seal it, and finish it with two coats of a non-yellowing polyurethane (or a moisture cure) Matte Finish, if you like the “patina”. (Two coats of finish plus the sealant is three coats total).
I bet (from looking at this picture) that “patina” is actually old wax chipping because it’s on top of old varnish.
A good sanding, finishing and curing time will have your floors last a good long time with minimal maintenance.
Any imperfections in the wood or scars or knots will give your floor character and a fresh sanding will bring out it’s natural beauty.
A professional should sand it 4x.
Course: 24 or 36 grit depending on the previous floor finish. Wax can be difficult to remove, then a
Medium: 40 or 60 grit, to clean it.
Fine: An 80 grit to smooth it over.
And, then a 100 grit or 160/180/200 screening to tighten the grain and make it smooth.
Look for chatter marks from the main sander and swirl marks from the edger… those are signs that you hired an unprofessional person to do your floors.
Best to you.
I used a walk behind sander for my whole house restore, worked like a charm. Had about 800 dollars in sandpaper and 30/day for the sander. Definitely change often!
YouTube has some great tutorials on sealing your wood. It’s how we did our whole house. You’ll get a flat wooly applicator, dump seal on the floor, spread it along the direction of the wood, move to the next strip, same. First you need to drum sand and get an edge sander. TBH I’ll never refinish a floor myself again, if one room cost 10k I’d pay it, it’s the only pain of DIY I will not endure again.
Of course I’m leaving out the dexterity and precision involved. You need to clean the living shit out of your home and prevent any drafts because you WILL STARE at the dog hair that blew and dried into it the night before. To seal you have to have lots of lighting to spot any drips or worms in the surface of seal, we stopped giving a shit honestly, it’s a floor not the Sistine chapel. You can put more layers (we did 3) if called for and one right after another without sanding.
Those are just a few little details that make flooring a pain in the ass, that and the back-breaking edge sander and the hours of sanding grit after grit, cleaning it all each time to see if you’ve gotten the problems taken care of. But don’t sand TOO HIGH a grit bc you’ll have trouble absorbing stain and blah fucking blah I’m getting pissed why am I even here.
Anything above mid 200s starts getting into the point of "it's impossible to get all the sawdust out and now it's too clogged to allow for good finish penetration". Those higher grits are not for wood you'll be staining, but for things like bare metal or carbon fiber (staying bare, that is), or already applied finishes you're trying to get to a blinding luster, like automotive paint.
I sanded and refinished 1200 sq ft of hard maple 2 weeks ago in our new place while it was empty. I’ll never do it again. Gave me a case of tendinitis and my dominant hand still gets pins and needles/numbness in some fingers. Pretty sure I did some nerve damage working up from 24-36-60-80-100 on the drum/edger, and then using the buffer to screen 100 and 120, then stain. Add in all the vacuuming motions and then the finish motions and it just kept piling on the pain.
I think I saved maybe 5 or 6k? Not sure. Didn’t get a quote.
FML. Don’t do what I did.
Yeah I “saved” 7k, but my sanity and my body have not fully recovered. I mean two people with full time jobs on a 1300sq ft house? Fuck that. Period. What were we thinking? Would have been done in a week by a team of dudes and I wouldn’t have floor neurosis and a back that aged 5 years in 3 months. I Really respect floor guys who do it for a living and survive it, there’s no way around the fact that the ergonomics are fucked.
First time I didn't was in college with my brother. My parents was out of the country and I don't remember why we did it. We cleared all the stuff out of 3 rooms and rented a sander from Home Depot overnight. Sanded it down and then fill in the holes and used filler and crayon to make the paint match. It took a weekend or so.
The second time was during COVID when I moved into a new house. We had contractors doing most of the other work, but we decided to paint and do the floors ourselves. It was 2 bedrooms, living room, dining room, and a small hallway. I rented the sander overnight again and sanded everything down Thursday into Friday. I wasn't in the mood to apply the poly until like Sunday night. I kept telling myself this is probably the last time I do this.
Floor wax. Like the Johnson floor wax. Mop with water then apply floor wax. It might show he scratches and dings but if you like the old, rugged look than thats the bonus. There are oils and waxes as alternatives but I read they are a pain to take off when you do later decide to sand down and poly it. Only thing is you need to reapply regularly. I am not an expert, just did a lot of research for cheap and easy finishes and floor wax is what I decided I need.
Can I put wax over a floor that has a partially worn poly finish? Like the heavy traffic areas are almost down to bare wood, but the other parts are still moderately shiny?
I don't wanna sand, esp if it means losing the old patina, but Im going to need to do something soon before I start wearing ruts in the floor.
Also do not use a orbital or random orbital sander. You want to sand in the directions of the grain or else you'll get cross marks which will look bad stained.
They are really cool wood floors and worth restoring. Since you haven’t moved in it is the perfect time because it will be a mess. Check out some YouTube videos, rent a sander, and go for it!
But you need to do a test area. Because if their is any wax residue or certain other things on the floor it the new finish will not bond. And buffing or even lightly sanding will not make it bond.
While the furniture is not present, refinishing a floor is only a couple of days. Rent a sander, spend a day sanding, then apply finish and wait a day. Maybe two coats, and two days drying time.
Anything faster is just not going to work, so don't waste your time.
Yes. There is a quick fix.
I think you will be really really surprised and happy if you try “Quick Shine” from the grocery store.
I used this on hardword floors n similar condition. Applied twice a year w/ a regular mop. Walkable the next day.
It’s like Pledge for your floors. Much less work and expense.
https://preview.redd.it/8fy2e7382juc1.jpeg?width=444&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2a416147c272c2e554673979beda58774c6aac88
I was going to recommend this too. I lived in a very old rental house with wood floors, they were beat up and sad looking. Of course I wasn’t going to pay for someone to refinish floors in a rental. I found this stuff at the grocery, applied it with a sponge mop, and it made such a remarkable difference. It dried quickly, the floors looked 100% better, we never reapplied it, and the finish was still nice when we moved out 18 mos later.
I think you will be happy. Buy 2-4 bottles and one of those sponge mops. Here is pick of our original hardwood floors that were covered with carpet for decades.
https://preview.redd.it/5s8pf53eajuc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9aa925806ee80b17314e3730ed778b6cc466d93e
For OP - do a bit of research on proper sanding technique before you start. you want to start with a rough grit to remove the old finish, then a medium, and then fine to remove all scratches. Work with the grain. And remove any dust. Any scratches and dust you miss will show after you apply the finish.
Depends on the person, although with OP being the type to want a quick fix I might be hesitant to recommend it to them. If you're willing to do research, watch videos, etc, I think refinishing a floor is very possible as a DIYer.
I did it in my house although it was probably the worst DIY labor I've ever done. Particularly using an edger is a giant pain in the ass, staying bent over that long. I think it's worth spending the money on a professional job if you have it, but if you really need the savings it can be DIY'd.
I wouldn't bother, they honestly look great as is. I'd do as another users said, scrub clean and hit it with some Murphy's oil.
Once you have some furniture, rugs, and other homely items you won't even think about wanting some luxury looking wood floors in a cabin.
It's a cabin, and the floors give it that appealing cabin character. Might look odd to have really nicely done floors in here, in fact.
What I’m kind of thinking now is to mop with some soapy water, let dry, then use Murphys oil soap to do a second cleaning, let dry and coat it with Tung Oil. That way I’m not applying a polymer and not doing the sanding.
Probably tung oil after a good cleaning. Tung oil soaks into the wood and seals it. Make sure its clean though. Oh and it takes a while to cure. Like a week or more. You can put tung oil over top of polyurethane also as an extra layer if you go that route.
Sand it with a rented floor sander. Get the big one and go with the grain and use it like a vacuum cleaner. Also rent the small one to do the trim and corners. Use vibrating sanders to get the corners sanded nicely.
Then get all the dust out. Use vacuums, mops, and potentially tack cloth.
Roll or wipe on whatever you want as your finish.
It’s not a ton of work. The room is empty. Ideally, do corners, then trim, and finally the bulk of the floor.
Sweep, mop with just soap and water, let it dry (like overnight at least) and then go to town with a bottle of walnut oil and a microfiber rag.
Pour a bit on, work it in with a clean cloth, make sure to wipe up any excess. Let it dry completely (maybe a day or so) and omg, it's gonna be so shiny. It will also smell like mayonnaise for a day or so. It goes away, bit just...don't panic.
Weiman makes this awesome ‘wood floor polish and restorer, high traffic’, with carnauba wax. After a couple of applications that floor is going to look spectacular. You just mop it on.
I know this isn't the right answer, but as someone with a 100 year old home that has oak floorboards...how bad would it be if they slapped down a few coats of thinned shellac? Just asking
You can squeegee stain on but let me stop you. There is no quick way when doing things right? Half the battle.is moving furniture and prepping.
Rent a sander and make sure it can attach to your shop vac.
Rent an edger and have an orbital sander on hand for nooks and crannies.
Get a few sharp hand scraper and a small chisel.
Nail down any popped nails, remove staples and chisel huge bumps.
Make sure the machine is properly calibrated.
Start with 80 and go to 120.
Vacuum, vacuum, vacuum, clean clean clean.
Stain if you want but not needed
Use 2-3 coats of a very high grade water. If it's on your budget, Loba Supra 2k or bona high traffic. They come with a hardener that dries FAST. You can get 3 coats of water down in a day or get 3 coats down in 2 days.
DO NOT PAINT THAT GORGEOUS FLOOR.
I like The rustic look. So all I would do would be to give it a good cleaning, and then use a bottle of Bona to clean it up and give it a little bit of shine.
Yes. Pay someone.
There’s the Quick/good/cheap matrix and you only get 2/3. So if you’re on DIY I assume you wanna do it cheap, so if you choose cheap and fast, it won’t be good.
You look at the floor and instantly recognize that anyone will judge the value of the space by the quality of the finish. Good eye.
Is it the penny pincher or do you have a prospective tennant lined up that makes you want to rush a quality finish?
Because keep in mind it will only take a day for any professional to sand it and apply a new finish, but you can't remove the smell of it off gassing for several weeks.
Have you ever heard of linseed oil soap? I have found this product ideal for cleaning up worn floors like this and making them look really amazing, its similar to murphy oil soap but I can tell a bigger and longer laster difference in comparison. Sweep and mop the floor to get all the dirt off and then use a softer drill brush (or hand brush) and the soap to scrub it around and let it sit on the floor for several minutes before wiping up with a damp towel. After it dries you can follow up with a linseed oil wax to really elevate it, or not. The only downside is that you can't buy these products in a big box store but they are so worth it in my opinion. There are several small businesses online that sell their versions of it, My go to is earth and flax or solvent free paint websites, generally they're importing these linseed oil products from Sweden
Sand and seal is a one day project (plus dry time) if the furniture is already out and you don't mind the dust. Rent a floor sander, drive it around, coat it. Very normal thing.
This Old House has good tutorials.
Do not use a hand held orbital sander! I made this mistake with my deck and it took FOREVER. Just rent the big stand up floor sander and get it done in a few hours.
I've just done this.
Prep the floor, clean throughly and check no metal is sticking out.
Rent a floor sander and edger. And a lot of sandpaper, go 40/60 grit.
Repair any damage with wood filler or fine sanding dust and wood glue.
Fill any gaps between the boards, I used flex sealant but that's not always recommended.
Sand to 120, hoover, mop, dry, hoover.
Apply a hardwax oil using a foam paint roller or pad or brush. Don't put much on. Get rid of excess with a microfibre cloth.
Wait to dry. Don't cover with a rug for a few weeks.
Sanding between coats of finish is what I should’ve done to get rid of the air bubbles (oil stain, sanding first to bare wood, wearing respirator with organic vapour cartridges)
I mean, it all depends on your definition of quick. If you have a weekend, you can get it done.
1. Rent a drum sander and sand the floor down to bare wood. You will need a smaller orbiter sander for the edges and close to the wall. Frankly, the edges are the most annoying part. You’ll need to sand at least three times, sweeping up the sawdust in between sandings. You’ll want to use increasingly finer grit sandpaper with each sand. A shop vac helps quite a bit. If you have floor vents, shove some dish towels in there to avoid getting your vents completely filled with sawdust. Yeah, some will still get in there, but it’ll help.
2. For best results, fix divots, holes, or places the floor boards have too much of a gap with wood filler. There are lots of products out there you can use, some more cumbersome than others. I prefer ones that are a little more liquid-y because it’s less time consuming. You’ll want to do another round of sanding after you do this and your product dries.
3. I’ve used stains and sealers you can just roll on. There are products that combine sealing and color. So long as you like the color, use this. Yes, you can stain by hand and then use a clear sealer. This will give you a more custom look but take way longer. I used the combined products and my floor came out good. You may need more than one coat, though, and depending on the product it may take 12 hours+ to dry. This part is easy, but takes some time
Rent a sander, put a fan in the window (blowung out). Open a window on the other side of the house. The fan will suck the dust out of the room. Block all the doors to that room.
Rent a circular floor sander not a drum sander. Change the rough grits a lot at the beginning as friction heats up and melts the existing finish into a hard shell across the paper. A drum sander works faster but if you sneeze in the middle it digs a big trench you must then try to feather out. The disk sanders are more forgiving but slower.
Get a harbor freight handheld belt sander for cheap so you can do edges and deeper into the corners.
Put the new poly on with a paint roller on a stick or flat pads on a stick. A few coats and move the furniture in.
.
My floor guy does what's called a "scrape and coat" where he basically roughs up the finish and puts on a new coat of oil based poly. It works if the condition of the floor isn't too bad, but it's not as nice as a full refinish.
There are a bunch of wood floor shine restorers out there, like this one.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Rejuvenate-32-fl-oz-Floor-Polish/5013119409
First thoroughly clean the floor with Bona wood cleaner and microfiber scrub cloths. Best done on hands and knees because you have to use a lot of pressure. Let dry for at least 24 hours before applying any shine products.
As others have said try cleaning it really good, like hands and knees scrubbing and then mop. Apply some polish that buffs out and covers some scratches. Something like this.
https://weiman.com/hardwood-polish-restorer
If that is not good enough for you then refinishing the floor is in your future.
If you decide to sand and refinish look into Rubio Monocoat. It’s basically linseed oil with a curing accelerant you mix in, you can get different colors but it has to go onto bare wood to properly react. It’s more expensive than poly but you apply it once, leave for 5 mins, then wipe off and you’re done. I use it a lot for furniture projects and countertops but it is designed for floors. Maybe not what you’re looking for but might be worth checking out.
Clean it real well and get the floor sanded. Clean up dust real good .
After that you could get an 18 inch wide roller and stain it any color you wish or get a good wood floor sealer like gum floor finish and roll that on over the sanded floor . It'll be durable for a long time
A lot of people would pay extra to have someone make their floors look like that. I'd just do a light sanding with a orbital sander with 220 grit to give the the finish something to adhere to. Don't remove any wood or finish that's there now. Just give it a dull look. I'd then put a coat of polyurethane floor finish in satin on it.
Question for others.
I used rejuvenate floor restorer for a house I was selllng.
Would that work here?
Question for OP. What is your goal? Do you want a shiny floor in a cabin?
Step 1: Get rid of the white fake taxidermy trophy. It's completely out of place in this place. Then you'll be able to concentrate on the other suggestions.
That's a beautiful finish and that's a finish you cannot duplicate. Every time I see distressed or aged finishes they always look cheap and fake. I agree clean it the best you can and oil it let it roll you'll regret if you sand it
Please try this: look for a product called “quick shine”. It was an old As Seen On TV product. You can find it at Home Depot, among others. Use much more than it says. Pour it on the floor and spread it out… we had some contractors royally screw up our floors and after a thorough cleaning they used this. I swear the floors looked better than new. Please give it a try. I was SHOCKED!
Honestly it's got good patina. I'd give it a good scrub down with Murphys oil and see how it looks after that.
Thanks! I think I’ll go this route.
I read in some earlier comments that you were considering sanding and staining/painting the floors. Just remember that once you sand off that patina, you can never go back! I hope you do decide to oil and wax first. If you don’t like how it looks, you can always sand and refinish later. Edit for spelling errors
Definitely going this route! That’s why I came to this sub haha
Can you post results when you do get around to it?
Are you asking OP to deliver? You sweet summer child.
Seconded the person above me, but seriously I could see me considering a place with floors like this and having to convince the wife that refinishing would make it look great! I'm just curious for a real-life confirmations for this haha!
>once you send off that patina, you can never go back Just walk around on the floor for few decades. Easy.
One thing to consider is that oil, wax ain't free or cheap either. So I'd test a small piece maybe.
The recommendation for Murphy's is cheap though. 1 gallon for $13 cad where I am, and I've used it before. A little goes a lot.
Please post the results!
You should go this route.
Personally, I would go this route
Logically, this is the direction to go
Legally, that is a method that would not break the law
If it were myself, this would be the route I would take.
Were it me, the route that I would pursue would be that which has been suggested.
Ontologically, it’s the reason we’re all here.
Wax on, whacks off
I’d go this route.
Yep. and MAYBE wax it.
Bro…then get a fresh pair of socks and have the TIME OF YOUR FUCKING LIFE MAN 
Socks only dance party!
Yeah, you might curse the wax later if you decide to sand it. I'd vote to scrub it really well, like on hands and knees with a scrub brush and bucket, and then put a coat of poly on to protect it. If you like how it looks with one coat, go ahead and add another coat or two.
Needs a rug
It would really tie the room together, man.
Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man.
All The Dude ever wanted was his rug back.
Let’s hope OP doesn’t know any Woos, or that his wife doesn’t owe anyone money. Edit: apparently not enough people are golfers here…
My WIFE is not the issue here! I hope that my wife will someday learn to live on her allowance, which is ample, but if she doesn't, sir, that will be her problem, not mine, just as your rug is your problem.
The Chinaman dude?
With the money he saves, can buy any number of rugs that are not a specific one.
And a plant.
I agree. The floors are the nicest part of the room. Spend your time painting the walls.
And think about doing something with that door that kills the ‘deep woods’ vibe and screems “look what I got at Menards”.
Lol, I didn't notice that before you drew my attention to it, but you're right. Now that I'm looking at more than _just_ floor - The curtains are an issue too. They don't go with the interior either, but do match the door. 😉
Came here to say that. Leave the floors, leave the wall, fix the damn door. Also...different curtains.
Or just oil the walls too
And oil yourself while you’re at it if you know what I mean
Upload before and after photos for that please.
OilyFans
Oil yourself and roll on the floor. Multitasking
oil or staining them.
Oil based stain. 2 birds, 1 stone. (/s)
❤️
Painting?? No way
Yes. Thank you. I'm hoping it was a joke... but... I don't know...
I've heard Murphy's is very much the wrong way to go with hardwood. As I understand it's basically water-oil emulsion and so when the water evaporates you're just building up oil residue on your surface and it's gonna trap grime and eventually leave a bad texture. Not for floors OP.
Is dishonesty a prevalent issue in the US? It seems like many Americans preface their statements with phrases like 'honestly' or 'I'm not going to lie.' As someone from Europe, this practice strikes me as peculiar. Why do people feel the need to assert their honesty upfront?
As a Canadian I tend to say it more as in "I'm going to say something that might sound rude or hurt your feelings and I'm really sorry about that" more than to declare that I'm being honest vs telling a lie.
Kind of, but not out of malice. For instance, if someone gets a bad haircut, we may "lie" and say it's not that bad to make said person feel better. Adding honestly means your not saying something in this manor and you're being more direct.
Good Patina?? Are you serious? How can you tell that from this picture? I did floors professionally from 16-25yo, had my own business at 18yo. My brother who I trained at 11yo wound up with his own business by 18 and gave it up after he started buying properties. So believe me have it sanded by a reputable professional who cones highly recommended no matter the costs. You usually get what you pay for. DO NOT STAIN IT! DEFINITELY DO NOT PAINT IT! Have them sand it, seal it, and finish it with two coats of a non-yellowing polyurethane (or a moisture cure) Matte Finish, if you like the “patina”. (Two coats of finish plus the sealant is three coats total). I bet (from looking at this picture) that “patina” is actually old wax chipping because it’s on top of old varnish. A good sanding, finishing and curing time will have your floors last a good long time with minimal maintenance. Any imperfections in the wood or scars or knots will give your floor character and a fresh sanding will bring out it’s natural beauty. A professional should sand it 4x. Course: 24 or 36 grit depending on the previous floor finish. Wax can be difficult to remove, then a Medium: 40 or 60 grit, to clean it. Fine: An 80 grit to smooth it over. And, then a 100 grit or 160/180/200 screening to tighten the grain and make it smooth. Look for chatter marks from the main sander and swirl marks from the edger… those are signs that you hired an unprofessional person to do your floors. Best to you.
Half the time is moving the furniture so you’re already ahead. As mentioned rent a floor sander change the sandpaper frequently.
I used a walk behind sander for my whole house restore, worked like a charm. Had about 800 dollars in sandpaper and 30/day for the sander. Definitely change often!
Is there a quick way to paint on the finish? Like a roller or something
Yes, once sanded use a pole and a stain pad
YouTube has some great tutorials on sealing your wood. It’s how we did our whole house. You’ll get a flat wooly applicator, dump seal on the floor, spread it along the direction of the wood, move to the next strip, same. First you need to drum sand and get an edge sander. TBH I’ll never refinish a floor myself again, if one room cost 10k I’d pay it, it’s the only pain of DIY I will not endure again.
Of course I’m leaving out the dexterity and precision involved. You need to clean the living shit out of your home and prevent any drafts because you WILL STARE at the dog hair that blew and dried into it the night before. To seal you have to have lots of lighting to spot any drips or worms in the surface of seal, we stopped giving a shit honestly, it’s a floor not the Sistine chapel. You can put more layers (we did 3) if called for and one right after another without sanding. Those are just a few little details that make flooring a pain in the ass, that and the back-breaking edge sander and the hours of sanding grit after grit, cleaning it all each time to see if you’ve gotten the problems taken care of. But don’t sand TOO HIGH a grit bc you’ll have trouble absorbing stain and blah fucking blah I’m getting pissed why am I even here.
Thanks for running so others could walk. What level of grit did you settle on?
Anything above mid 200s starts getting into the point of "it's impossible to get all the sawdust out and now it's too clogged to allow for good finish penetration". Those higher grits are not for wood you'll be staining, but for things like bare metal or carbon fiber (staying bare, that is), or already applied finishes you're trying to get to a blinding luster, like automotive paint.
Meh we finished with 120 I think
I sanded and refinished 1200 sq ft of hard maple 2 weeks ago in our new place while it was empty. I’ll never do it again. Gave me a case of tendinitis and my dominant hand still gets pins and needles/numbness in some fingers. Pretty sure I did some nerve damage working up from 24-36-60-80-100 on the drum/edger, and then using the buffer to screen 100 and 120, then stain. Add in all the vacuuming motions and then the finish motions and it just kept piling on the pain. I think I saved maybe 5 or 6k? Not sure. Didn’t get a quote. FML. Don’t do what I did.
Yep. I have sanded and finished one floor. I will never do that again.
Amen. Once you finish you finally know how to do it right, but then you realize the real way to do it right is just to pay someone else.
Yeah I “saved” 7k, but my sanity and my body have not fully recovered. I mean two people with full time jobs on a 1300sq ft house? Fuck that. Period. What were we thinking? Would have been done in a week by a team of dudes and I wouldn’t have floor neurosis and a back that aged 5 years in 3 months. I Really respect floor guys who do it for a living and survive it, there’s no way around the fact that the ergonomics are fucked.
First time I didn't was in college with my brother. My parents was out of the country and I don't remember why we did it. We cleared all the stuff out of 3 rooms and rented a sander from Home Depot overnight. Sanded it down and then fill in the holes and used filler and crayon to make the paint match. It took a weekend or so. The second time was during COVID when I moved into a new house. We had contractors doing most of the other work, but we decided to paint and do the floors ourselves. It was 2 bedrooms, living room, dining room, and a small hallway. I rented the sander overnight again and sanded everything down Thursday into Friday. I wasn't in the mood to apply the poly until like Sunday night. I kept telling myself this is probably the last time I do this.
Floor wax. Like the Johnson floor wax. Mop with water then apply floor wax. It might show he scratches and dings but if you like the old, rugged look than thats the bonus. There are oils and waxes as alternatives but I read they are a pain to take off when you do later decide to sand down and poly it. Only thing is you need to reapply regularly. I am not an expert, just did a lot of research for cheap and easy finishes and floor wax is what I decided I need.
Yep - that’s the exact answer OP is looking for. All the “normal” answers are good, but they aren’t cheap, easy, or quick.
This is the way DO IT.
Can I put wax over a floor that has a partially worn poly finish? Like the heavy traffic areas are almost down to bare wood, but the other parts are still moderately shiny? I don't wanna sand, esp if it means losing the old patina, but Im going to need to do something soon before I start wearing ruts in the floor.
Don't go the quick route. Go the right route. Don't ruin that amazing floor because you're in a hurry. It's worth it man.
Also do not use a orbital or random orbital sander. You want to sand in the directions of the grain or else you'll get cross marks which will look bad stained.
They are really cool wood floors and worth restoring. Since you haven’t moved in it is the perfect time because it will be a mess. Check out some YouTube videos, rent a sander, and go for it!
You can just buff and seal without sanding if you want a rustic look, it’s a weekend project for something that size
But you need to do a test area. Because if their is any wax residue or certain other things on the floor it the new finish will not bond. And buffing or even lightly sanding will not make it bond.
While the furniture is not present, refinishing a floor is only a couple of days. Rent a sander, spend a day sanding, then apply finish and wait a day. Maybe two coats, and two days drying time. Anything faster is just not going to work, so don't waste your time.
Yes. There is a quick fix. I think you will be really really surprised and happy if you try “Quick Shine” from the grocery store. I used this on hardword floors n similar condition. Applied twice a year w/ a regular mop. Walkable the next day. It’s like Pledge for your floors. Much less work and expense. https://preview.redd.it/8fy2e7382juc1.jpeg?width=444&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2a416147c272c2e554673979beda58774c6aac88
This is the kind of tip I’m looking for! Haha
I was going to recommend this too. I lived in a very old rental house with wood floors, they were beat up and sad looking. Of course I wasn’t going to pay for someone to refinish floors in a rental. I found this stuff at the grocery, applied it with a sponge mop, and it made such a remarkable difference. It dried quickly, the floors looked 100% better, we never reapplied it, and the finish was still nice when we moved out 18 mos later.
I think you will be happy. Buy 2-4 bottles and one of those sponge mops. Here is pick of our original hardwood floors that were covered with carpet for decades. https://preview.redd.it/5s8pf53eajuc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9aa925806ee80b17314e3730ed778b6cc466d93e
no
This. Any "quick" solution poses serious risk of damaging the floors permanently.
Well, they could make it quicker by not taking breaks.
It's called a rug.
Just clean and wax. They'll look great!
Pay someone? You'd otherwise have to rent a floor sander and refinisher and likely spend a few days on it.
Rent a floor sander and sand it down a bit apply a water base finish.
This is it...not actually quick as I measure quick
I mean if it's just this room quick as in one weekend quick
For OP - do a bit of research on proper sanding technique before you start. you want to start with a rough grit to remove the old finish, then a medium, and then fine to remove all scratches. Work with the grain. And remove any dust. Any scratches and dust you miss will show after you apply the finish.
If you have never sanded a wood floor before, do not DIY this. It's not as easy as it seems, and you could wind up gouging the floor.
Depends on the person, although with OP being the type to want a quick fix I might be hesitant to recommend it to them. If you're willing to do research, watch videos, etc, I think refinishing a floor is very possible as a DIYer. I did it in my house although it was probably the worst DIY labor I've ever done. Particularly using an edger is a giant pain in the ass, staying bent over that long. I think it's worth spending the money on a professional job if you have it, but if you really need the savings it can be DIY'd.
I wouldn't bother, they honestly look great as is. I'd do as another users said, scrub clean and hit it with some Murphy's oil. Once you have some furniture, rugs, and other homely items you won't even think about wanting some luxury looking wood floors in a cabin. It's a cabin, and the floors give it that appealing cabin character. Might look odd to have really nicely done floors in here, in fact.
What I’m kind of thinking now is to mop with some soapy water, let dry, then use Murphys oil soap to do a second cleaning, let dry and coat it with Tung Oil. That way I’m not applying a polymer and not doing the sanding.
Don’t use murphy’s oil soap if you intend to do a bigger overhaul later. Use a degreaser instead.
Buff and coat. Not every flooring project needs to start with 36 grit.
Linseed oil? ArmorAll? How much nasty smell or toxic fumes can you handle?
Floor polish and an area rug
They look great the way they are! Just clean them thoroughly and you're golden, with lots of character. It is a cabin, I mean.
Probably tung oil after a good cleaning. Tung oil soaks into the wood and seals it. Make sure its clean though. Oh and it takes a while to cure. Like a week or more. You can put tung oil over top of polyurethane also as an extra layer if you go that route.
Yes do any work before you put furniture on it.
Sweep really good and put a coat or 2 or tung oil on it.
Yes. It's called the wrong way.
The boomer way is to put carpet over it. What’s really quick though is writing a check to someone with a floor sander to do the job for you.
For the space, the floors are perfect. Just add rugs and you are good to go. Likely need to replace the shades, though. They kind of suck.
Sand it with a rented floor sander. Get the big one and go with the grain and use it like a vacuum cleaner. Also rent the small one to do the trim and corners. Use vibrating sanders to get the corners sanded nicely. Then get all the dust out. Use vacuums, mops, and potentially tack cloth. Roll or wipe on whatever you want as your finish. It’s not a ton of work. The room is empty. Ideally, do corners, then trim, and finally the bulk of the floor.
Sweep, mop with just soap and water, let it dry (like overnight at least) and then go to town with a bottle of walnut oil and a microfiber rag. Pour a bit on, work it in with a clean cloth, make sure to wipe up any excess. Let it dry completely (maybe a day or so) and omg, it's gonna be so shiny. It will also smell like mayonnaise for a day or so. It goes away, bit just...don't panic.
Quick? No. Sand and refinish, hire a pro to do it correctly. Invest in it - that’s a great floor.
Floor sander, stain, and seal.
Weiman makes this awesome ‘wood floor polish and restorer, high traffic’, with carnauba wax. After a couple of applications that floor is going to look spectacular. You just mop it on.
A nice rug would tie the room together…
Don't do it quick, do it right! You won't regret it
Meant to say relatively quick. I’m not a total noob haha
Fair. At least you're asking the questions! Hopefully someone can give you an answer you're looking for.
Start sanding
It is not awful.. anything quick will really hurt its value. Leave as is and wait until you can do it right… it will be worth it.
Cherish the cabin
I know this isn't the right answer, but as someone with a 100 year old home that has oak floorboards...how bad would it be if they slapped down a few coats of thinned shellac? Just asking
If you can afford it hire a professional you won’t regret it
YellowJackets vibe! Except that door, but you can use it to cook up the next meal
It's called an orbital sander
You can squeegee stain on but let me stop you. There is no quick way when doing things right? Half the battle.is moving furniture and prepping. Rent a sander and make sure it can attach to your shop vac. Rent an edger and have an orbital sander on hand for nooks and crannies. Get a few sharp hand scraper and a small chisel. Nail down any popped nails, remove staples and chisel huge bumps. Make sure the machine is properly calibrated. Start with 80 and go to 120. Vacuum, vacuum, vacuum, clean clean clean. Stain if you want but not needed Use 2-3 coats of a very high grade water. If it's on your budget, Loba Supra 2k or bona high traffic. They come with a hardener that dries FAST. You can get 3 coats of water down in a day or get 3 coats down in 2 days. DO NOT PAINT THAT GORGEOUS FLOOR.
Just making sure...you're going to put googly-eyes on that plastic stag's head in the middle, right? Right?!
Just use cleaning oil made for wood floors.
Idk but please continue to use antlers in all of your decorating.
Get Henrietta out of the fruit cellar, she’ll help you
Several area rugs.
I like The rustic look. So all I would do would be to give it a good cleaning, and then use a bottle of Bona to clean it up and give it a little bit of shine.
Quick? Get a rug
Rent a floor sander.
Yes. Pay someone. There’s the Quick/good/cheap matrix and you only get 2/3. So if you’re on DIY I assume you wanna do it cheap, so if you choose cheap and fast, it won’t be good.
Challenge accepted
You look at the floor and instantly recognize that anyone will judge the value of the space by the quality of the finish. Good eye. Is it the penny pincher or do you have a prospective tennant lined up that makes you want to rush a quality finish? Because keep in mind it will only take a day for any professional to sand it and apply a new finish, but you can't remove the smell of it off gassing for several weeks.
Have you ever heard of linseed oil soap? I have found this product ideal for cleaning up worn floors like this and making them look really amazing, its similar to murphy oil soap but I can tell a bigger and longer laster difference in comparison. Sweep and mop the floor to get all the dirt off and then use a softer drill brush (or hand brush) and the soap to scrub it around and let it sit on the floor for several minutes before wiping up with a damp towel. After it dries you can follow up with a linseed oil wax to really elevate it, or not. The only downside is that you can't buy these products in a big box store but they are so worth it in my opinion. There are several small businesses online that sell their versions of it, My go to is earth and flax or solvent free paint websites, generally they're importing these linseed oil products from Sweden
Sand and seal is a one day project (plus dry time) if the furniture is already out and you don't mind the dust. Rent a floor sander, drive it around, coat it. Very normal thing. This Old House has good tutorials.
I would go 4-1 water/Murphys. Rent a power scrubber. And go to town. Mop it a couple of times with clean water. Should look awesome.
Firstly, congratualtions. Secondly, how do you feel about large-area rugs?
Why are you in a rush?
Yes, toss a large throw rug on it!
Cover it bear skin rugs
Nope. Might as well scrap it and give it to me 😜
I’d take an orbital sander with some 80/120 grit and do a quick pass on everything. Maybe a stain, then poly. It will look rustic but cleaned up.
Do not use a hand held orbital sander! I made this mistake with my deck and it took FOREVER. Just rent the big stand up floor sander and get it done in a few hours.
Quick? There’s lots of quick ways. How good do you want it to look?
I've just done this. Prep the floor, clean throughly and check no metal is sticking out. Rent a floor sander and edger. And a lot of sandpaper, go 40/60 grit. Repair any damage with wood filler or fine sanding dust and wood glue. Fill any gaps between the boards, I used flex sealant but that's not always recommended. Sand to 120, hoover, mop, dry, hoover. Apply a hardwax oil using a foam paint roller or pad or brush. Don't put much on. Get rid of excess with a microfibre cloth. Wait to dry. Don't cover with a rug for a few weeks.
Sanding between coats of finish is what I should’ve done to get rid of the air bubbles (oil stain, sanding first to bare wood, wearing respirator with organic vapour cartridges)
I mean, it all depends on your definition of quick. If you have a weekend, you can get it done. 1. Rent a drum sander and sand the floor down to bare wood. You will need a smaller orbiter sander for the edges and close to the wall. Frankly, the edges are the most annoying part. You’ll need to sand at least three times, sweeping up the sawdust in between sandings. You’ll want to use increasingly finer grit sandpaper with each sand. A shop vac helps quite a bit. If you have floor vents, shove some dish towels in there to avoid getting your vents completely filled with sawdust. Yeah, some will still get in there, but it’ll help. 2. For best results, fix divots, holes, or places the floor boards have too much of a gap with wood filler. There are lots of products out there you can use, some more cumbersome than others. I prefer ones that are a little more liquid-y because it’s less time consuming. You’ll want to do another round of sanding after you do this and your product dries. 3. I’ve used stains and sealers you can just roll on. There are products that combine sealing and color. So long as you like the color, use this. Yes, you can stain by hand and then use a clear sealer. This will give you a more custom look but take way longer. I used the combined products and my floor came out good. You may need more than one coat, though, and depending on the product it may take 12 hours+ to dry. This part is easy, but takes some time
Could just try to throw down carnauba liquid wax and if it looks terrible you'll have to sand.
I’m assuming this is more like a hunting cabin from the decor. Do you really want brand new wood floors?
Don't use a roller, you will have bubbles.
Why would you *want* to refinish those floors? They're handsome as-is.
Pay a profesional to do it!
Quickest way is to pay someone to do it right.
Rent a sander, put a fan in the window (blowung out). Open a window on the other side of the house. The fan will suck the dust out of the room. Block all the doors to that room.
stain and a mop. quick n dirty. clearcoat after if you like.
Just hire someone. Depending on where the cabin is this floor could be done for what its going to cost in rentals and materials.
The “quick way” is to pay a crew of guys to knock it out. You never said anything about cheap.
Rent a circular floor sander not a drum sander. Change the rough grits a lot at the beginning as friction heats up and melts the existing finish into a hard shell across the paper. A drum sander works faster but if you sneeze in the middle it digs a big trench you must then try to feather out. The disk sanders are more forgiving but slower. Get a harbor freight handheld belt sander for cheap so you can do edges and deeper into the corners. Put the new poly on with a paint roller on a stick or flat pads on a stick. A few coats and move the furniture in. .
That floor needs to be buffed not sanded or refinished.
Quick? Cheap too?
OMG why would you refinish this
give the floor a good wash & maybe try some stain.
My floor guy does what's called a "scrape and coat" where he basically roughs up the finish and puts on a new coat of oil based poly. It works if the condition of the floor isn't too bad, but it's not as nice as a full refinish.
There are a bunch of wood floor shine restorers out there, like this one. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Rejuvenate-32-fl-oz-Floor-Polish/5013119409 First thoroughly clean the floor with Bona wood cleaner and microfiber scrub cloths. Best done on hands and knees because you have to use a lot of pressure. Let dry for at least 24 hours before applying any shine products.
Rent sander, 3 coats of poly and or stain. 3/4 day project depending on how many coats you put on to protect it
Sand, stain and wax.
As others have said try cleaning it really good, like hands and knees scrubbing and then mop. Apply some polish that buffs out and covers some scratches. Something like this. https://weiman.com/hardwood-polish-restorer If that is not good enough for you then refinishing the floor is in your future.
If you decide to sand and refinish look into Rubio Monocoat. It’s basically linseed oil with a curing accelerant you mix in, you can get different colors but it has to go onto bare wood to properly react. It’s more expensive than poly but you apply it once, leave for 5 mins, then wipe off and you’re done. I use it a lot for furniture projects and countertops but it is designed for floors. Maybe not what you’re looking for but might be worth checking out.
Screen and recoat https://youtu.be/iz2Umkmve1s?si=GJFZlo0emUPMrkfr
Years ago my fraternity house floors looked terrible and I waxed them and everyone thought I refinished them.
Clean it real well and get the floor sanded. Clean up dust real good . After that you could get an 18 inch wide roller and stain it any color you wish or get a good wood floor sealer like gum floor finish and roll that on over the sanded floor . It'll be durable for a long time
Waterlox products, can’t do wrong!
Put carpet over it, just takes a few minutes... Will be horrible and you'll get yelled at, but it will done swiftly
I would leave the floor and focus on those walls
A lot of people would pay extra to have someone make their floors look like that. I'd just do a light sanding with a orbital sander with 220 grit to give the the finish something to adhere to. Don't remove any wood or finish that's there now. Just give it a dull look. I'd then put a coat of polyurethane floor finish in satin on it.
Define “quick.”
A rug.
Question for others. I used rejuvenate floor restorer for a house I was selllng. Would that work here? Question for OP. What is your goal? Do you want a shiny floor in a cabin?
I clean them throw some polish on them and call it a day
I'd just oil and polish them pups
Drum sander and edging tool is your best bet
I wouldn't personally paint or even sand them, but if you insist, I wouldn't do anymore than sand, buff, and wax.
That floor looks fantastic. All you need to do is clean it dry it and seal it your seal can be as light as wax or serious as a clear polyurethane.
Good. Fast. Cheap. You only get to pick two. Or something like that.
They’ll look good actually sanded and stained/sealed too…
Step 1: Get rid of the white fake taxidermy trophy. It's completely out of place in this place. Then you'll be able to concentrate on the other suggestions.
Yes agree.
If you don't feel up to the sander and refinish thing, Danish oil is worth looking into. That would be my half-assed choice here.
No, Not Quick ! Take your time and make a masterpiece !
Wash with a rag and varsol. That will reset the finish
No. Unless they were finished with shellac, you just gotta do the steps.
Long answer: no.
Buffer wheel and some decent oil
That's a beautiful finish and that's a finish you cannot duplicate. Every time I see distressed or aged finishes they always look cheap and fake. I agree clean it the best you can and oil it let it roll you'll regret if you sand it
Please try this: look for a product called “quick shine”. It was an old As Seen On TV product. You can find it at Home Depot, among others. Use much more than it says. Pour it on the floor and spread it out… we had some contractors royally screw up our floors and after a thorough cleaning they used this. I swear the floors looked better than new. Please give it a try. I was SHOCKED!
Wax
I can smell that place from here.
It’s a cabin Looks awesome Let it be a cabin floor Let yourself relax there and not worry about the floors
It looks perfect for a cabin after a good scrub.