CONSULTING ” PARQUET ” Sanding parquet

Sanding solid wood parquet

Solid wood floorboards can be sanded down very often and are therefore particularly durable. Laminate cannot be sanded and engineered parquet can only be sanded down to the wear layer.

Heels on shoes and dirt carried into the home on the soles of shoes can cause dents and dark stains on a parquet floor. However, these problems can be solved by sanding the parquet floor.

It is important to note that multi-layer parquet cannot be sanded to any depth. The real wood layer is usually between 2.5 and 6 mm thick. Sanding below this is therefore no longer possible.

Solid wood parquet is usually 15 mm thick and can therefore be sanded more often and without hesitation.

How do you proceed?

Often up to one millimeter is removed by sanding to remove defects in the wood and the old varnish layer. Care should be taken with multi-layer parquet.
Disc or roller sanders are useful for large surfaces, while a side sander is suitable for the edges, under heaters and in corners. Both can be borrowed from DIY stores.

Sanding produces fine wood dust. You should always wear a face mask to protect yourself from the fine dust. In most cases, sanders also have a collection system for the wood dust produced.

Two things should be borne in mind during the sanding process: firstly, the device should be guided smoothly and evenly over the parquet to avoid irregularities or hollows in the wood.

Secondly, to create a uniform structure, it is important not to change the sanding direction. When the grinder is in operation, it should never be at a standstill, but should always be guided smoothly. Otherwise, a depression is created at the relevant point.

What to do about cracks?

With older parquet in particular, small cracks may appear or joints may become exposed during sanding. However, these can be repaired. To do this, you can mix a paste from the resulting sanding and wax or varnish and fill the areas. Such a wood paste is color-fast and the spots can usually no longer be detected afterwards or are hardly noticeable.

To ensure that the old layer can be sanded off well, you should first carry out two sanding passes with a coarser grit. For fine sanding, it is best to use a 100 or 120 grit.