Do I Need To Sand My Wood Floor After Staining

Buffing unlike sanding which requires tackling the entire floor you can buff only small areas of your floor if needed.

Do i need to sand my wood floor after staining.

Staining floors especially for first time do it yourselfers is a tricky business. Any scratches will be enhanced by stain. Stain makes sander scratch shockingly visible. Always sand down to clean wood if you have enough meat left of the wood before applying any stain.

Sanding levels the edges of the floorboards which can vary from one another by as much as 1 4 inch. Here are four big reasons why. Lower numbered grades denote. The grade or grit of sandpaper is based on the number of sand granules per square inch of paper.

You need a smooth surface with no blemishes because stain will highlight scratches and dings in the wood. The higher the number the finer the grade. You don t need to sand after staining. Not sanding a freshly laid hardwood floor and finishing it as is makes the installation less messy and time consuming but it would be a mistake.

Removing stain set out a drop cloth or a thick layer of newspapers and place the wood object on top of it. Unlike paint which just sits on top of the wood and can be sanded off wood stain penetrates into the fibers of the wood like a sponge absorbing water. A little basic knowledge of sanding and preparing wood before staining will help your staining project go faster and easier. And when it does go wrong the only solution is to re sand the floor and start all over from the beginning.

Follow the grain of the wood. Select a stain that won t raise the grain of the wood or you ll have to sand the floor after applying the finish. If you worry about the grain raising after staining i would recommend wetting the surface evenly with water after doing initial sanding then finish sand when dry. Sand wood before staining.

Make sure you sand the wood well before applying stain. After the stain has dried the final step is to finish it off with a lacquer polyurethane wood finish or alternative oil or sealer. I ll show you my secrets on how to prep wood for stain right here. Allow to dry for one hour.

Sanding will also help open up the pores of the wood so that they can absorb stain better. When you apply the stain the grain will hardl. After the old stain is gone applying new stain is relatively simple. It all starts with sanding.