Do you love the hardwood flooring in your home, but wish you could get rid of some its imperfections? Believe it or not, but you most certainly can. There are some relatively simple repairs you can make to your hardwood flooring to make it look and feel like new again. Here are a few flooring issues that have simple fixes:
1- Stains: Do the stains on your hardwood flooring just drive you crazy? As hardwood flooring installation experts we understand how important the appearance of hardwood flooring is to homeowners. Proper hardwood flooring installation and hardwood flooring maintenance truly does go a long way as far as how aesthetically appealing hardwood flooring remains over the years and let's face it, hardwood flooring tends to take a lot of abuse over the years. If moisture has gotten into your hardwood flooring and stained it then sand off the finish and consider scrubbing with a wood bleach. Rinse it a few times with water. Once the stain is gone, which could take a couple of treatments so don't get discouraged, apply a new finish. Just make sure that the wood is completely dry.
2- Scratches: Scratches on hardwood floors are unfortunately quite common and have a simple solution. If the scratches are light, touch up any scratches on your hardwood flooring using a stain-filled marker. Stain-filled markers are sold at most hardware stores and hide scratches quite well. Some scratches, if they are more extensive, could require sanding. It depends on the severity. Scratches can be avoided by placing felt on the bottom of heavy furniture to avoid scratches if the furniture needs to be moved.
3- Spots: Spots on hardwood flooring can be fixed rather easily as well by the process of refinishing. Tape around the damaged board and sand with 80-grit paper until the imperfections disappear. Sand again with 120-grit paper and then brush on polyurethane. Allow drying time and say goodbye to the spots.
4- Open joints: If you have big gaps that open up between planks, they can be stuffed with manila rope or no-tar oakum, which is a jute fiber that is commonly used by plumbers.
5- Squeaks: We mentioned squeaking and sounds in a previous post. Taking the sounds out of your hardwood flooring can be a simple fix. Figure out first which board is causing the squeaking, drill at an angle through its face until you reach the subfloor. You must avoid splitting so be sure to position the bit at the center of the board at least 3 inches from either end. Hold the board as you hammer a nail into the hole. Recess the head with a nailset. Lastly, fill the divot with wood putty.
Looking more tips and tricks on doable hardwood flooring fixes? Leave us a comment or contact us.