If your floor has just been installed, it won’t be covered in outside dirt. Instead, you’ll need to mop off leftover sawdust from the installation process.
You can purchase both a putty knife and the hardening putty at a local hardware store. If the store offers different colors of hardening putty, select the color that most closely matches your floor.
If you’re sanding a large area of flooring and prefer not to sand on your hands and knees, you can rent a sanding machine from a local hardware store. To protect your lungs from the sawdust produced by sanding, wear a bandana or protective face mask over your mouth.
Alternately, you could dampen a clean, lint-free rag and use it to clean up the floor.
You can rent a vapor-rated respirator at a local hardware or home supply store. Since you’ll be working with the windows open, it’s advisable to finish the pine flooring on a warm, rain-free day.
Speak with the sales staff to determine which brand and variety of stain is best for your flooring, considering its location in your house and the amount of use it will receive.
Unlike oil, varnish adheres to the top of the wood without soaking deep into the grain. Consequently, you can remove varnish if you decide to. Oil cannot be removed from wood.
Tung oil, which has a relatively low level of sheen. This leaves the pine with a more “natural” appearance. Linseed oil, which is tarry and so brings out the grain of the pine. Lemon or walnut oil, which are considered specialty oils and may be more expensive.
If you like the appearance of the stained sample patch, you can proceed with staining the entire floor. If you don’t like the appearance of the stained wood, select a different colored stain. Or, if you realize that you prefer the natural color of unstained pine, opt for a clear varnish instead.
Ensure that you apply a heavy coat by letting the roller brush absorb a generous amount of stain, varnish, or oil from the paint tray.
If the material absorbs too much stain, press the roller brush lightly against the back of the paint tray to squeeze some stain out of the absorbent material. Wait another 15 minutes after applying this coat. This will give the second coat time to dry. Although the coat is lighter, the wood will already have absorbed the product, and will need time to soak up the second coating.
When you’re finished wiping the floor, it should be completely dry.
If the weather remains pleasant and dry, leave the windows open for the full 24 hours to ensure good ventilation.
As before, you’ll need to sand on your hands and knees. Buff along the wood grain, and apply only a gentle amount of pressure as you make long strokes with the sandpaper. If you rented a sanding machine for the initial sanding, use the machine again at this point.
After you finish wiping the floor, wait 10 minutes for the pine to dry.
At this point, the floor is ready for use.
