How to restore or repair your parquet or wooden flooring

Both wooden and parquet flooring can level up the overall look of a property. Having a floor made from natural material in your home can give it an expensive vibe, without overdoing it. Aesthetics aside, parquet and wooden floors are options that you can rely on if you are looking for a long-term solution for your house. But as with all things, such types of flooring lose their curb and initial good look as time passes and a question arises:

How does one restore a parquet floor or perform a damaged wood floor repair?

Well, it’s not as hard as it sounds and in this article, we are going to prove it to you.

So, if you are someone who:

• wants to know how to complete a parquet floor repair or a damaged wood floor repair;
• wonders why do you need a parquet or wooden floor restoration done in the first place;
• is just into DIY home renovation projects.

The Fantastic Services team is here to help!

Why do parquet and wooden floors need restoration

The answer is pretty simple. It really doesn’t matter how much time and effort you put into cleaning and maintaining your wooden floors when you put them through hell every day. Think about it. You walk on them, your pets can leave scratch marks behind, there are probably parts of the wooden floor that are exposed to the sun, etc. – all of these things can affect your flooring. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you should stop taking care of it, but just to note that sooner or later you’ll need to get your flooring restored.

Needless to say, leaving your floors as they are – damaged, isn’t an option. If you decide to skip restoring them, you’ll create even further issues, which will cost you a lot more money in the future to fix.

Renovating your parquet floor – what you need to do

Now that you know why you should take care of your flooring, it’s time to talk about how to renovate parquet flooring. Of course, before we get to the actual process, there is some prep work that needs to be done. For starters…

• You need to clear out the room that you’ll be working in of all furniture and personal belongings. You can’t start restoring a parquet floor when you have items getting in the way;
• Make sure that you clean the floor thoroughly. It’s best to hoover it and then mop it;
• Inspect your parquet flooring. Note which parts of the surface need repair work.

Replacing or repairing rotten or severely damaged floorboards

Sometimes, no matter how much you want to skip on replacing or repairing a damaged floorboard, you can’t go with a fast solution, especially when it comes to rot or deep scratches. You see, many people decide that just sanding, for example, will cut it, however, the end results are far from desirable. It’s even possible that your floor makes noises when your step on certain areas. If you have this problem, read our post on how to stop floorboards from creaking. With all of this being said, here is how to replace floorboards and how to repair parquet floor tiles step-by-step:

How to repair floorboards

1. Map out the piece of floorboard that you want to repair. With a pencil and ruler, draw a rectangle around the area, making sure to leave enough space between the line and edge of the board.
2. Determine the depth of the board. With a drill, make a hole inside the damaged board, measure the depth, and then set your saw accordingly.
3. Use masking tape to prevent chipping. Mark the rectangle you just drew. Keep the lines as straight as possible.
4. Place a piece of board next to the tape to create a cutting guide. You can set it into place with a nail. Leave the nail loose for easy removal.
5. Start cutting along the guideboard. Once you are done with one side, move the board to the other and continue your work.
6. With a hammer and pry bar, remove the damaged board. Make sure to take care of the exposed nails, as well.
7. Cut a new board the same size as the damaged one. Test-fit the piece.
8. Chisel off the lip of the board and sand down any other areas that will prevent you from placing the board down.
9. Apply adhesive to both the subfloor and piece, then set the new board, hooking the tongue into the groove of the old floor, and use a mallet to tap it into place.
10. Place a piece of wax paper over the area and some weights to set the piece overnight.

How to replace floorboards

1. Start off by drilling holes into each corner of the floorboard that you want to replace.
2. Saw through the centre of the board with the help of a circular saw. Make sure that the saw blade is set to 1/16 inch deeper than the depth of the boards.
3. Position the machine on the floor with the blade between the two holes. Turn on the equipment and start cutting down the board, ending at the other hole. Make a parallel cut, following the same process.
4. Get your hammer and chisel and remove the board. Make sure to remove any nails, too.
5. Chisel off the end tongue of the board that you’ll be attaching the new piece to.
6. Test-fit the new board.
7. Turn the board over and remove the bottom of the groove edge.
8. Apply glue both to the new board and the subfloor. Set the new piece, tap it into place with a mallet, and place a piece of wax paper with some weights to hold it overnight.

As you can see for yourself, both repairing and replacing a floorboard are no easy jobs. It really does take time, certain (expensive) tools, and a lot of know-how to complete such restoration work. That being said, a professional floorboard repair service is the best solution for these kinds of situations.

How to fill the gaps in your parquet flooring

From all of the wooden floor repair jobs, gap filling is one of the less time-consuming and kind of fun tasks. Here is how to fill gaps in floorboards the easy way:

1. Start off with hoovering and then deep cleaning the areas with gaps. This will help the filling product adhere better afterwards;
2. Find a good type of gap-filling option that is suitable for your parquet flooring and case. We suggest using an acrylic filler. As always – make sure to ask at the store and to read the instructions of the agent.
3. Make sure to colour-match the product by testing it. Apply a small amount on one of the edges of the flooring. Leave it to dry completely to get a better idea of the end colour.
4. Take a putty knife and carefully fill in the gaps. The more careful you apply the paste, the less excess that you’ll need to clean afterwards.
5. Once you are done, make sure to remove the excess filler.

See that filling gaps in parquet flooring is not that hard? Still, if you don’t feel like doing it yourself, you can always get a professional to do it for you.

How to sand parquet flooring

Unlike gap filling, parquet floor sanding is a job that will require a bit more time and attention to detail. With that in mind, it’s important to note that parquet floor sanding and wooden floor sanding are actually two very different things.

The difference between sanding a wooden floor and a parquet floor

The main difference between sanding a wooden floor and a parquet floor is the type of equipment that you are going to use. Wooden floorboards can survive a serious sanding job, due to the fact that they are very forgiving, which means that you can use a more heavy-duty machine. Parquet flooring, on the other hand, is a lot more capricious and every potential mistake will be VERY visible. For more details on how to sand your flooring, you can check our in-depth article.

How the different parquet flooring patterns have specific sanding techniques

When it comes to sanding a parquet flooring, there is much more to it than just turning on the equipment and doing random motions, hoping for a beautiful end result. The way in which your flooring is assembled really does determine how you are going to sand its surface. Needless to say, if you don’t know how to sand parquet flooring with a specific pattern and still continue with the task, you risk ruining it. To avoid such scenarios, it’s better to leave the job to a professional.

How to refinish parquet floors

Out of all of the parquet restoration jobs, the hardest and time consuming one is refinishing the surface – the task really does require special tools, skills, and a lot of hard hours. Honestly – this is the type of project that you would want to call an experienced specialist for. Still, if you want to learn how to refinish a floor, we’ve got you covered. Here are the steps that you need to follow:

1. Prepare the parquet flooring. The very first step of the refinishing process is to clean the parquet flooring. You need to remove the gummy layer with a special detergent and fix any loose boards. If you don’t, the next step – sanding the surface, will be a complete nightmare.
2. Sand the surface. Get your sanding equipment and start work on the parquet floor. Take your time and make sure to remove all of the old finish. Don’t forget to take care of the corners of the flooring.
3. Stain your flooring (if needed). If you want to tint your flooring in a certain colour, you’ll need to stain it. Besides giving it an overall better appearance, staging the parquet flooring will also provide extra protection against general wear and tear. Just apply the stain that you’ve chosen with a piece of cloth, using wiping motions, and remove any excess with an old rag. We advise that you work in sections – it’s easier. Once done staining, leave the parquet flooring to dry overnight.
4. Apply a finishing layer. The last step on how to refinish a parquet floor is to apply a finishing layer to seal the whole deal. It’s best that you use an applicator – a brush can leave the flooring looking uneven. So, apply the product evenly, making sure not to leave air bubbles behind, wait for the layer to dry, and then sand it gently. Repeat this process several times, following the instructions on the finish. In most cases, you’ll need about 3 coats of product to get a good end result. Don’t sand the last layer – you want it to stay shiny.

That’s it – you’ve just successfully refinished your parquet flooring.

Hire a professional to restore and repair your wooden flooring!

Restoring and repairing your wooden floor is probably one of the most time-consuming and laborious home renovation projects that one can start. Not only is the task hard, but it also requires certain skills and specific tools. That being said, if you want to skip all of that sand dust and hours spent on gap filling, why not just hire a professional to take care of the repair work for you? We, at Fantastic Services, offer a wide range of floor restoration and repair solutions that will bring back the initial shine of your wooden floor – from gap-filling and sanding to staining, re-oiling, and polishing – the professionals who we work with can do it all! So don’t leave one of the most important parts of your property to chance and book our expert services today!

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Did you find our article helpful? Make sure to leave a comment below, sharing your very own parquet restoration tips and tricks!

Image source: Shutterstock / LEKSTOCK 3D