Hello everyone

I just completed the installation of a walnut floor in my home. I am a finish carpenter, cabinet maker by trade so the install was pretty cut and dry. Its a 5" American Walnut plank that we glued down w/ eco 880 and stapled to 3/4 CDX subfloor. Oh yeah we blew in insulation first to cut down on sound for the downstairs. Everything is flat and tight and I am really happy with it so far.

My questions;
What is the protocall for sanding in preperation Bona Traffic xtra matte. Grits etc.

Do I need something to cut the oils emitted by the walnut at some point?

Best type of sander to use? I assume dustless but cant find one to rent. So I was thinking of using my shop dust collector on a flooring sander if possabile. I know the dust isnt healthy to breathe.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks Alex G

It depends on how well the the floor is milled as to where you need to start. if there is a lot of overwood (high and low boards you probally should start at 36 or 40 if not Id go 50/60. the least course grit that will get it flat is what you want. then progress up thrugh the grits (not skipping more than one) till you get to 100. One thing Traffic is great as a top coat but id recommend an oil sealer especially on walnut. waterborne on walnut will look very washed out and lifeless if you use the waterborne as a sealer.

The milling on the walnut was nothing less then awesome.
All the boards planned out very very well with one another.
So I will try 50/60/80/90/100.
Sounds like alot of sanding.

Need I worry about the oils in the walnut?

We actually chose the Traffic Xtra Matte to keep the natural
brown,dark almond color without making it to dark.
We did do some oil samples, they did look nice.

Thanks

there isnt a 90grit and 50 can be hard to find. If its that nice you could very well get it in two cuts. I know guys who cut every floor two times , three can be overkill on a well milled floor. Dont know of any problems with the oils in American walnut having issues with waterborne finishes.

Like Kevin said, this type of floor can be cut twice with good machines. I use a Lagler Hummel, maintain it properly and use it properly. It can easily get a floor flat wit h40 grit belts.IF the rough cut goes well, I can jump right to 100 grit. On difficult floors, I will start with 36 grit use a middle cut of 60 or 80 and finish with 100 , 120 or 150. It all depends on the floor and the issues it happens to have.

Keep in mind that most rental sanders are not very good.Consider finding a good contractor to at least do the sanding for you. Then you can seal the walnut with a good oil based sealer like Bona Dri-Fast and top coat with traffic.