The Truth About Sandless Floor Refinishing

When it comes to getting your floors refinished, there are many flooring companies from which you can choose. Each company has their own floor refinishing process, and some even offer options that pride themselves in being dust free. Two common options advertised for floor

refinishing are dustless hardwood floor refinishing and sandless hardwood floor refinishing, but clients should keep in mind that they are not the same thing. Dustless wood floor refinishing is the only option that should be recognized as wood floor restoration. With dustless refinishing, your floors are sanded to bare wood. By removing the old finish, deep scratches, and stains, the old wood gets a second chance to appear as new again with fresh stain and finish. As soon as the new stain color and coat of finish are applied, the result is a gorgeously restored hardwood floor.

Dustless Refinishing Is In The Industry Spotlight In CT!

Dustless floor sanding is now in the industry’s spotlight, and it is separating the professionals from the amateurs. Dustless hardwood floor sanding is accomplished by removing the machine’s dust collection bag and attaching hoses to a vacuum. The concept is simple and tends to exceed the expectations of others. Professionally engineered, truck-mounted equipment is superior to portable vacuums because they are more powerful; more importantly, they are engineered to produce maximum vacuum CFM proportionate to the diameter of the hoses. Make sure the contractor you hire has made the investment in proper equipment before you make an investment in them.

Sandless Refinishing Is A Sham.

In fact, it is not a restoration at all. While researching hardwood floors refinishing, you may come across several new terms and phrases that can make the hiring process confusing for someone outside of the profession. The biggest play on words pertains to dustless hardwood floor refinishing because nobody wants their house to get covered in toxic dust. Since the invention of the floor sanding machine, the norm was to tie a dust collection bag onto the machine’s exhaust pipe; the exhaust blower fan would then blow the dust into the bag. This is not a vacuum like some will tell you, and it is terribly inefficient.

Sandless is exactly what it

sounds like. There is no sanding done to the wood floors, so there is obviously no sanding dust to worry about. However, a sandless floor does not mean your floors have been properly restored. The term, sandless floor refinishing, is incredibly misleading and does not belong categorized as wood floor refinishing. Typically, the sandless method includes a process called wet burnishing. With this process, a flooring professional would place an abrasive disk, like a screen or wet 3M scrubbing pad, under a waxing machine and run it over the surface of the floor from top to bottom. Wet burnishing leaves your floors with what looks like a water-based, wet-shine look. Sometimes, mineral spirit is used to remove wax dirt or residual build up from cleaning products like Murphy’s Oil Soap. Once the surface is prepared, they finish the floor with a protective layer of your choice. On a positive note, sandless floor refinishing is not a bad idea if all you need is a deep buffing of your floors. But, if you really want to refresh not only the look, but also the quality of the wood floors, then you need to go with dustless refinishing.

Simply Put, The Sandless Method Is A Waste of Money. 

The bottom line is that you’re getting a good cleaning and a recoat of tinted finish when you choose sandless floor refinishing. At Patrick Daigle Flooring, we get plenty of customers who come to us after being disappointed with their sandless floor refinishing done by another company. We get the calls, even within 24 hours of completed jobs, from irate people who wasted their money and want to have their floors restored properly. Many people choose sandless refinishing and do not realize that they are treating a major flooring issue with a temporary solution. Sandless refinishing might meet your needs this month, but it won’t have positive lasting effects.

The usual complaints include, but are not limited to:

• “The finish is now peeling.”
• “The floor slats are not flat.”
• “The overall finish is cloudy.”
• “The floors do not look new.”
• “The scratches or stains in the wood itself were not removed.”
• “The oxidation out-lines from where old area rugs were not removed.”

As you can see, there is plenty of room for confusion when it comes to the different phrases and terms used for the floor refinishing process. If you are interested in updating your floors, but you are unsure of which option to take, contact us at Patrick Daigle Flooring to discuss your options. We are just a phone call away and are ready to answer any questions that will get you on the right path to beautiful hardwood floors.