How to Figure Out if a Hardwood Floor Needs Refinishing

Hardwood floors are beautiful, but they require regular maintenance. To make things more challenging, finding out if a hardwood floor needs to be sanded and refinished can often prove quite difficult because it can appear smooth and uniform at first glance.

Fortunately, there are simple and effective ways to check the condition of your hardwood floors. Handyman Connection® of Boise explains more:

Prepare What You Need

You don’t need any special tools or equipment to determine which areas of your hardwood floor need refinishing. You just need a business card, a paper towel, a tablespoon, a ruler and a pencil. We’ll explain how to use these common objects to check the condition of your hardwood floor in the following paragraphs.

Start Where There’s Plenty of Foot Traffic

This is the area that most likely needs refinishing and standing. Get a tablespoon of water, pour it on the floor, and see what happens. If the water forms droplets, then the hardwood floor finish is still in good shape. If the water sinks, then you might need to refinish the floor. The faster the water sinks, the more refinishing the floor will need. Use this simple test on other areas of the floor, moving from the most used to the least used areas, to see if those areas need maintenance.

Find Out if You Should Hire a Professional

Look for two floor boards with a deep groove between them and which don’t meet perfectly. Get your business card, shove it as far as it will go in the groove, and then mark the spot on the card where it meets the top of the floor using a pencil. Take the card, and use the mark to measure the depth of the crack with a ruler. If the mark on the card is less than 3/4  of an inch from the edge, then we suggest calling a professional. Sanding and refinishing your floor will require experience and tools.

These tips can help you keep your hardwood floors well-maintained. While planning this home maintenance project, why not start other projects as well? Handyman Connection of Boise can help you with a wide range of home improvement and maintenance tasks. Contact us here, or call us at (208) 268-0088 to learn more about hardwood floors. You can also ask for an estimate.