Hi all,
I'm about to have 875 sq ft of old 3/4" solid red oak flooring refinished. In order to choose the right contractor, I'd like to be knowledgeable about a couple of things, and in particular, how to get the wax out of the grooves. I've read Gary's solution, using the 3 cornered scraper, but he also mentions accidentally damaging the floor with it. I'd like to know if there is a solvent that will remove or at least disolve the wax in those grooves.. my floor is about 40 years old, and is a dark walnut finish, so the grooves don't appear that dark.. whenever I waxed the floor in the past (johnsons paste wax), I always used a credit card to get the extra wax out of the grooves.

Ok, now if scraping is the only way, then what is the the probability that water will seep under the edge of the new "finish" and destroy it if I just clean them as best I can, and leave the grooves in and finish over them? I'm afraid that if I have them refinished with either acid cured, waterborne, or oil, that none will penetrate the grooved area because of the wax in there, and will "crack, peel, or ??" in the future at each of the grooves..

lastly, during a normal sanding of solid oak flooring, how much material is removed from the top of the flooring? 1/32, 1/16, or ?? I'm feeling that if it's not too difficult or labor intensive, just to sand out the (&*%$ grooves and be done with it.

ANY thoughts or suggestioons?

Pogo

There was, at one time, a solvent based product called "Renovator" that was supposed to dissolve dirt and wax and allow one to re-coat a floor without worrying about it. I do not know if it's still available. But I'm pretty sure it was basically a mixture of mineral spirits and denatured alcohol, perhaps a 2 to 1 mix. If you are not trying to change the original color, try mixing that in a spray bottle and spraying on a light coat, allowing it to work a few minutes. Then, using some 3M flexible sanding pads,



sand the grooves to clean out the old wax. You may need to do it twice. Make sure you wear gloves and goggles and have good ventilation.

Typically, about 1/32" from a floor in good condition. Deep dents/gouges will require more sanding.

Renovator is still available. It's made by Duraseal and ive used it by spraying it on the floor then using steel wool to buff it in/clean the floor. It requires about 4 hours of dry time though.