Do I Need to Putty Hardwood Floors when Refinishing
No matter how careful we are, nicks, dents, and mistakes happen more than nosotros would like to acknowledge in our industry, and it'due south mutual practice to fill in nail holes and minor gaps with close-matching forest filler.
When extreme repairs are required on severely damaged areas, these situations often require lath replacement. Using wood filler on big jobs is unremarkably not recommended.
To increment your success charge per unit with flooring installation and repair, information technology'southward e'er necessary to research the characteristics of your forest species to make up one's mind stability earlier repair, and more than importantly, before installing wood floor.
When extra time is taken to measure moisture content at the fourth dimension of installation and the expected "in utilise" changes are as well considered, potential issues can be avoided. Flooring tin can be expected to perform well for years to come up without any major repair bug.
The NWFA suggests normal living weather in the home should have relative humidity levels between xxx% and 50%.
Even though it'southward normal for homes to get dry out during the winter months, causing woods flooring to compress, flooring that has been installed and maintained properly should remain stable and showroom normal gaps.
If you find information technology necessary to repair gaps that aren't normal seasonal gaps, the all-time time to initiate repair for the majority of locations would be outside of the extreme common cold and wintertime months; in April or Oct.
During the summer months, normal seasonal gaps will usually close up and not require repair. If wood filler is applied prematurely between the strips on dry floor, the material will be pushed up through the gaps when the floor picks up moisture and expands.
When we met up with Greatcoat Ann's prestigious hardwood flooring refinishing and installation specialist Chris Pester from CFC Hardwood Floors, Inc. (the same guy who was invited to sand the deck of the Boston Tea Political party ship, "The Eleanor"), we asked him: What is the about common trouble that causes gapping in forest flooring? He explained:
"I live in New England where we get very dry out winters. Nosotros do take loftier-end customers who keep their homes humidified in the winter and dehumidified in the summer. They're climate-controlled to exist kept between 30% and l% relative humidity year-circular every bit suggested past the NWFA and the Indoor Air Environmental Clan."
"If you can keep your house between 30% and 50% relative humidity year-round and between threescore to 80 degrees year-round, you can expect to come across minor seasonal motility and your filler to perform well nether those conditions."
"For the rest of u.s.a. who cannot go along our business firm between 30% and fifty% relative humidity, we're going to look our floors to motion a certain corporeality. If they move more than 1/16th of an inch, nosotros tin't await our filler to perform well. We're going to expect to meet minor gapping in the wintertime, and a tight flooring in the summer."
When we asked Chris how he measures the wet content of flooring, and what instrument he would recommend, he responded:
"I take a Wagner forest moisture meter and I love it! I take two wet meters…I have a penetrating meter and I accept a non-penetrating meter. I beloved the non-penetrating meter considering people don't similar it as well much when you lot stick holes in their flooring."
"Every good floor installation guy should take a forest wet meter or 2 in his toolbox and he should know how to use it. He should know that different woods species take a different specific gravity and the wood moisture meter needs to be calibrated correctly to the species."
"Unfortunately, most of my competition doesn't own wood wet meters. There's an absolutely ridiculous guideline where everyone says, 'Simply bring in your wood a week before and it will be fine.'"
"If you bring the forest in the calendar week before and the guy is nevertheless painting or plastering, well, then yous've just captivated a huge amount of wet from the pigment that goes right into the wood. The forest has expanded and then information technology's going to contract. You'll stop up with more gapping than you otherwise should."
"If contractors took the NWFA courses and learned their merchandise improve, we'd accept fewer bug in the manufacture. Nosotros'd have less bug that people think are problems considering there'south and then much misinformation out in that location."
"In my experience, to bring in flooring at the right time, make sure everything is acclimated correctly and keep your eye on it in the hereafter; yous'll never take a problem with a hardwood floor."
When we asked Chris to recommend the best forest filler for hardwood floors, Chris replied:
"Yous'll find one of the problems with wood filler hither in the Northeast is this…nosotros face massive moisture swings throughout the yr, and we run into quite a lot of seasonal movement, so of course when that flooring moves, so does the filler. The filler often gets cracked, chipped, and pops out and you'll end upwardly vacuuming it out for the side by side yr or two."
How to Use Wood Filler and What to Use:
What you want to utilize is something elastomeric, pregnant that information technology tin shift, shrink and expand just a little scrap with seasonal motion. That type of filler will tend to terminal longer.
At that place is a wood flour cement that is more than expensive and time-consuming, but you'll become a improve color match. I example is made by Glitsa.
When asked near matching floor color with wood filler, Chris said:
"There are certain species of woods…for example, fir and pino have a lot of color variation in the boards. If y'all sand the whole floor (simply use fine dust 80 or to a higher place otherwise it's besides fibroid and it doesn't stay in), use the dust gathered from the unabridged flooring. If you put the filler into a light board or a nighttime board, you're crossing the range. With certain species, filling can be more problematic."
Bug That Can Occur When Trying to Match Wood Flooring Color:
The pre-mixed wood fillers that you tin can buy from companies like WOODWISE or Timbermate sell many different colors, including Brazilian cherry filler. When you open a pot of Brazilian crimson filler, the color is pinkish. When information technology darkens over the first year or two and becomes a beautiful, rich, dark, ruddy-dark-brown equally it usually does, you'll find the filler won't match the floor anymore.
Other Problems Chris Faces with Wood Filler:
"When nosotros're sanding a flooring that's a couple of hundred square anxiety and we only have one 24-hour interval to get information technology sanded and sealed, I like to get iii coats of filler into some of those areas merely I only don't accept time for information technology to dry. So when the floor is vibrating with the drum-sander, and the filler doesn't have time to properly stick, y'all won't be able to achieve a great result.
"I always enquire the client, what'due south the purpose hither? Should nosotros take our fourth dimension and charge a footling bit more money and get a better outcome? Or are you lot looking for a quick set up? If it's a quick set up, then I'm going to get one or two coats of filler in there and do my best.
"If we've got a large job, what I'll do is this: I'll send my guy into a closet and accept him sand it the whole mode down. Then he'll collect clean, fine sawdust to utilise for the rest of the floor. If nosotros know we're there for a week, nosotros can become several coats on and get proper dry out times in betwixt. That way we'll have more success with the filler."
When asked if Chris had any horror stories of wood filler experiences gone bad, he had this to say:
"I get called in to go and inspect floors all the time. In the old days, guys used to put in all sorts of nasty things. I've seen leveling compound and such atrocities used as filler, I've even seen mastic, I've seen yellow wood gum…I've seen horrible things put in.
"The other day I was called to look at a birch floor. The guy had put yellow woods mucilage in the gaps…I ended up having to chip it all out so I could become filler in over the top of it."
How Long Does Forest Filler Take to Dry?
"Preferably overnight, or at to the lowest degree 6 hours minimum. When I'k in a hurry, I take filled and refilled with water-based filler inside an hour.
"As well, if you take big holes that demand filling, never endeavour to fill all at once. Fill a pocket-size quantity and let it dry. Fill up it again and let information technology dry. Always let a half dozen-hour minimum dry out time in between layers if you tin can."
Types of Wood Filler:
There are two different types of wood filler products: h2o-based and solvent-based. Solvent-based fillers tend to dry out faster than water-based fillers, and h2o-based fillers are easier to clean up on the job site.
How to Set Wood Surfaces for Woods Filler:
If the area you are working on is finished and coated, make sure you sand off and remove all the varnish. When you have removed the varnish, continue to sand the forest in the direction of the grain with 120-dust sandpaper to ensure all of the end is removed and the area is shine.
Vacuum and remove sawdust from the expanse to ensure the wood filler volition attach properly to the work surface.
Free Download – Woods Flooring Installation: What To Expect
How to Fix Cracks in Hardwood Flooring:
One time the damaged area is clean, employ forest filler by pressing firmly with a putty knife. When the expanse is dry, sand the filler until it'southward smoothen and flush with the surface. A sanding block will assist you achieve a practiced consequence with a flat surface.
How to Prepare Holes in Wood Flooring:
Ever employ shallow applications when filling deep holes. This will help prevent peachy and shrinking. Before yous utilise the adjacent layer, ensure the layer is completely dry out. If you attempt to sand the area and the filler clogs your sandpaper, the area is non dry.
Refinishing a Repaired Area on Woods Flooring:
The NWFA suggests using products from the aforementioned manufacturer to help ensure product compatibility and proper adhesion. If you lot are going to apply a stain or finish product from a different manufacturer, y'all are brash to contact your manufacturer to check product compatibility.
Timbermate Water-Based Forest Filler:
Timbermate water-based filler is no stranger to the market. It's a product that many contractors recommend.
Timbermate wood filler tin be used on all types of floor when you find it necessary to fill cracks, gaps, and nail holes. The production is recommended for all species because the company claims information technology doesn't compress, sink, crack, or fall out.
The product volition also take all types of stain and colorants that are water-based, solvent-based, oil-based and acid catalyzed lacquers. Yous tin can apply stain earlier or after applying Timbermate.
When matching colors with Timbermate, it's recommended that you add together floor color to the putty and match the color while information technology's wet. The product will dry lighter, and return dorsum to its original color when coated with a articulate finish.
How to Utilise Timbermate:
Timbermate can be applied into cracks, holes, or blemishes on the woods with a putty pocketknife. Deep holes should be filled in layers of 6mm, allowing each layer to completely dry between applications. When sanding to set up for stain or varnish, it'south best to use a fine sandpaper of 120-150 dust.
The experienced refinisher has to depict from his experience to use the right filler for the correct chore. As Chris Pester advises, "The motto is e'er: Test. Test. Test. If you're not sure, do a test on a lath in your workshop the night before installation."
There are then many variables with wood filler and so much ambiguity…information technology'due south something yous learn over a long time. In that location aren't a lot of hard fast rules.
Shop all Orion forest moisture meters and run into why Chris loves Wagner Meters.
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Larry Loffer is a senior technician at Wagner Meters, where he has over 30 years of experience in wood moisture measurement. With a caste in Calculator Systems, Larry is involved in both hardware and software evolution of wood moisture measurement solutions.
Terminal updated on July 29th, 2021
Source: https://www.wagnermeters.com/moisture-meters/wood-info/how-to-use-wood-filler-wood-floors/
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