Buffing Hardwood Floors

As floors grow old, they start losing their shine and looks and soon enough, you’ll be feeling the need to freshen them up. 

Changing the hardwood floors completely is not really advisable, because it will be costly and messy and it’s not really worth it for just a couple of scratches and some worn off tint. This is where hardwood floor buffing comes in as part of the refinishing process.

 
Hardwood floor buffing is a newer technique that allows you to get your old hardwood floor’s looks back up again. If the buffing of the floor goes well and you take your time to do it right, you can make your floor look brand new and shiny, greatly increasing the comfort and value of your home.

 
Buffing doesn’t always work, at least not when the floor is damaged harder than the buffer can handle. In this case, a complete refinishing of your floor might be more suitable, but if you only want to remove small scratches, gaps, gouges and light wear of the floor planks, then buffing is the best way to go.

 
Another advantage of buffing hardwood floors is that it allows you to partially refinish them again and again in the future, without the need for a complete workout. 

By buffing the floor, you prepare it for a new finish and in case you skip the buffing step and apply the finish straight to the surface, there’s a good chance that it’s going to peel off shortly after installing it.

Stuff you’ll Need When Buffing Hardwood Floors

The buffer is a piece of machinery that is specifically used for buffing hardwood floors, so it’s unreasonable to ask that you buy it from a hardware shop. You’ll only be using it to buff out your floor every couple of years, or more, so it’s not worth buying it in this case. 

Instead, you could simply rush out to the nearest hardware rental shop and get the buffer for a day or two, it should be more than enough to allow you to get the job done.

 
The buffer will also require a screen and it’s advisable that you use fine screens of around 100 grit. This works for most floors and you should carefully sweep the machine across the floor, covering all areas equally.

How to Buff Hardwood Floors Correctly

Step 1 – If you’ve just sanded the floor, make sure you vacuum it and clean it up thoroughly for dust and small particles.

Step 2 – Place the buffer in the middle of the room and try it out a bit. If it’s your first time buffing hardwood floors, then it will need a little getting used to.

Step 3 – Use fine abrasive screens of around 100-120 grit for best results

Step 4 – If the floor was finished using wax, you can’t screen it until you completely remove the wax coating.

Step 5 - Remove the wax, buff, and then wax again to get the floor looking great.