Alliance Floor Sanding Offers Professional Floor Sanding, Staining, Coating, And Other Services
Floor Sanding
Sanding a wood floor is a gradual step by step process. The first cut is to clean and level the floor, and all subsequent cuts are to remove the scratches from the previous sanding, until a fine, scratch free surface is acheived. If you try to skip a step and go straight from a coarse to a fine sanding the result will be noticeable scratches left all over the floor.
We always flow four basic sanding steps with our jobs:
- Rough Sanding. The purpose here is to remove dirt, old finish, or marks and damage to the floor surface. Some older or neglected floorboards may be cupped or uneven, so the first rough sanding is always done as a diagonal cut to ensure the surface is level. Commonly we start with a 40 or 36 grit but if the floor is very uneven or covered with Japan Black or old glue remnants we go down to 24 grit.
- Medium Sanding. Now a 60 or 80 grit belt is used straight along the grain to remove traces of the rough sanding.
- Fine Sanding. The fine sanding is usually done with a 100-120 grit paper along the grain.
- Buffing. We finish the sanding and prepare the surface for sealing by buffing the floor with 120 to 150 grit abrasive on a rotary buffing machine.
Staining
We are fortunate in Australia to have a diverse range of colours in our flooring timbers. If a dark floor is desired we can use Jarrah, Sydney Blue Gum or Red Mahogany or for a lighter tone, Tasmainian Oak or Blackbutt through to the amber coloured Pines.
But fashions change and we can change the colour of your timber floor to match a new colour scheme or updated furniture. Sometimes blending new timber in with old, or after repairs, some colour matching is required, and this work is carried out between the final buffing and the applicaton of the first coats of finish.
The Treatex Traditional Hardwax Oil finishes are available in a range of colours that are applied similarly to a traditional stain finish for those who want to enhance or change the toning of their floor.
Coating
We must coat the freshly sanded timber floor as soon as possible so as to:
- Stabilise it
- Keep it clean
- Decorate the wood by enhancing the colour and tone
Stabilisation
Wood is a natural material and hygorscopic - it absorbs and releases moisture depending upon the levels of moisture around it. If you put dry wood in a area of high humidity it will absorb moisture and swell. If you put moist wood into a dry environment it will release moisture and shrink.
In dry summertime heat the cracks between floorboards will widen as the timber gives up moisture to the atmosphere and the boards shrink. In times of high humidity the boards absorb moisture from the atmosphere and swell, the cracks become noticeably smaller. This movement generates stress in the timber which can result in cupping, splitting and warping . One of the main purposes of coating your floor is to attempt to minimise this moisture exchange thus stabilising the wood.
Cleanliness
Wood is a porous material that will accumulate dirt and grime from foot traffic, food, body fats and other contaminants. By sealing the wood we close the pores of the timber preventing penetration of contaminants and making it easier to clean.
Decoration
Coating a floor emphasises the natural figure and grain of the timber giving it a deep, rich lustre that is one of the main reasons timber floors are so popular. The Treatex hardwax oils penetrate deeply into the cells of the wood, which swell with the finish and allow light to penetrate. The warm, glowing patina which results from using these penetrating oils is unsurpassed by any other coating.
The molecules of water-based finishes are larger than the timber cells and therefore can't penetrate deeply into the wood. This, plus the low solvent content of modern water-based coatings give a distinctive lighter, non-yellowing tone to the floor. This compliments many modern decors and colour schemes perfectly.
