Carpet removal and timber floor painting

Question

Hi,

Just brought 40yr old home. Wanted to remove the carpet from three bedroom, hallway and living room.

I’m totally a noob at DIY but I gone thru this workshop site and different projects and inspired to do this myself rather than hiring someone.

After seeing carpet removal video (https://www.bunnings.com.au/diy-advice/home-improvement/flooring/how-to-sand-timber-floors) I removed the carpet from one of the bedroom. I’ve to admit it was not that easy as it looks in the video. I had to use all my strength in some of the sections while pulling off the carpet and in some sections it has came off easily. To remove the nails I used Stanly plier something like in the link (not exact model) (https://www.bunnings.com.au/stanley-fatmax-200mm-combination-pliers_p6015635) to remove the pins that was holding carpet into timber floor. Again, it was also not easy, it took some effort and time. Due to some of the pins were rusty I was not able to remove them completely and broke half of the part while pulling out, I had to hammer down the remaining part of the pins into floor.

Note: Color of the timber looks different in photos is because I switched on the lights while taking some photos.

Black spots is the dust accumulation which I had to brush off.

The floor seems to be hardwood timber and I think I’ll need to sand it before I paint it.

Closeup of the floor look like below,

I’ve watched the ‘How to sand timber floor video.’  I’m planning to hire drum sander, being complete noob I hope I should be able to use at shown in the video.

Few questions I’ve are as follows

- what extra precaution I’ve to take to not ruin my floor while using drum sander or should I go ahead and use the manual sanding method?

- what grit of papers I should be using to sand the floor while using drum sander

- if I do not use drum sander and do it manually by hand what grit papers I’ve to use and how many times I’ve to sand.

- do I need to fill in the gaps between planks? Suggest some products.

- for paint job I did watched the video on how to paint timber floor but still please suggest some products and tips to achieve best results.

Thanks in advance.

MitchellMc · Answer

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @dkmahajan. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about restoring timber floors.

Hand sanding large timber floor areas is not feasible, as you won't get a consistent finish. That's why floor sanders have such a large surface area.

The grit of sandpaper is determined by how much material you need to take off. In some of your photos, it appears that the floor is only rough sanded, so you'll need something between 80 and 120-grit to cut it back before finishing with a 180 or higher. As the scratches get finer, you'll move up the grades until your floor is smooth and ready to coat. You should never run the floor sander without moving it over the floor, as if you allow it to sit in one position for too long, it will put gouges into the floor.

For the holes and gaps in the boards, you can use paintable timber putty like Earl's MulTfill Ready To Use Filler - 0.140kg White.

For the best results with your painted floor, you need to follow the directions provided on the tin. These will give you the best results for that product. Ensure you follow directions for the type and nap length of the roller suggested by the manufacturers. Also, remember to observe the specification on re-coat time and allow yourself plenty of time for the job. If you rush, you'll get substandard results.

Apart from that, you need to follow those How-to videos.

Please reach out again if you have further questions or get stuck.

Mitchell