Refinishing red oak hardwood flooring

[Brandon Whitmore]

I'm in the process of refinishing a 100 sq. ft. hardwood floor, and will be using Bona Mega as the finish. I haven't decided on a sealer yet; Bona Seal is sold in gallon sized containers only, and all I need is a quart. Are any of you aware of a good alternative?

I've read that a sealer isn't absolutely required-- any thoughts on skipping the sealer altogether and just sanding the lifted wood grains after the first coat of Mega?

[kurt]

I've never used sealer. Ever. Always just went right in with the poly or whatever finish I was applying. I've got tens of thousands of square feet of flooring to attest to it working just fine.

[Brandon Whitmore]

Excellent-- thanks Kurt.

[Chad Fabry]

I use sealer on furniture and cabinets. Sealer sands beautifully and quickly. On difficult-to-sand projects like a chair or an entire kitchen it's worth its weight in gold.

For floors though, I just sand between coats of finish. On floors where the wood is in good or better condition, I skip sanding between coats 1 and 2 and just sand between 2 and 3.

[Jim Katen]

I've used Bona products with & without the sealer. It doesn't seem to make any difference. Use a fine screen between coats. Do not use pads of steel wool with the Bona stuff. Any particles that remain will rust.

If you're only doing 100 sq ft, you can practically sand it by hand.

[Brandon Whitmore]

Is using a random orbital sander with say 220 grit for the final screening OK?

I appreciate all of the information. After spending a couple of hours digging on-line and getting opinions across the "board", I figured I'd stop here.

[Chad Fabry]

Is using a random orbital sander with say 220 grit for the final screening OK?

I appreciate all of the information. After spending a couple of hours digging on-line and getting opinions across the "board", I figured I'd stop here.

220 will work. 150 or 180 will work faster and give the same results.

[Brandon Whitmore]

Excellent- thanks all.

[Tom Raymond]

Not to throw a wrench into your plans but, I like softer finishes on floors. Antique oil, Danish oil, or similar. Three coats, buff the last ,then apply Johnson'said paste wax.

It's like an old fashioned gym floor finish. Indestructible. Scratches buff out with a swiffer.

[kurt]

I know a lot of wax proponents. Works like you said, I like it, and then one day it's strip the wax time. I did it once. Never again.

My operating mode is, it's a floor. I conserve energy for things that are not floors.

[Brandon Whitmore]

Tom,

My initial plan was to use Pallmann Magic Oil 2k : http://www.pallmann.us/products/product ... l-2k-2003/

I probably would have tried the stuff if I planned on sticking around.

It's a little too late now, I just put down the first coat.

My wife and dog are mad at me, and my son got shipped off to my parents place. Trying to keep everyone away from the dining room that cuts the house in half isn't easy.

[Tom Raymond]

And that is why prefinished flooring is so popular.

[kurt]

So true. Not much to recommend it except it's so darn easy.

[Garry Sorrells]

So true. Not much to recommend it except it's so darn easy.

And you can take it with you when you move. Just like the European concept with kitchens.