Orbital Sander Not Taking Enough Off Floors

Choose a sander that has a lever to raise and lower the sanding drum.

Orbital sander not taking enough off floors. Slow down while sanding. Sure they re easier to use but they re just not aggressive enough to bite into finishes or hardwoods. Almost as aggressive as belt sanders they have the ability to produce a finer finish. Sanding with an orbital sander is a three step process and it will take three separate sanding sessions to get the floor you want.

And many of them flat out refuse to use anything coarser than a 36grit sandpaper on their floors. If your floor has the normal wear and tear and a previous finish there s a good chance you are going to need to start on a 36 grit sandpaper. Drum sanding for hardwood floors. That s tedious and often leads to chatter marks on the floor.

If you re accustomed to hand sanding or using a belt sander where you constantly keep things moving this one can take a bit of a perspective shift to wrap your head around. Orbital sanders were first produced in the early 1990s. So i liked that one of the first things you said is to not use an orbital sander. Be sure to check out how to use a belt or drum floor sander so you don t make common mistakes when using a floor sanding machine.

Refinishing your hardwood floors is a task many homeowners prefer to do themselves but deciding on the necessary tools can be puzzling. Most first time sanders are horrified when they see the sheer aggression of the sandpapers we use for floor sanding. Orbital sanders provide a unique service when it comes to sanding hardwood floors. But random orbital sanders are designed to be used extremely slowly.

Unless you plan to sand many floors in your lifetime the best choice for do it yourself floor refinishing is the random orbital sander. That floor is 3 4 thick. They can do a thorough job when used in the correct manner. I just recently moved into an older home that has some beat up wood floors.

It needs to be a very well laid unfinished floor. Think twice before you rent a flat pad sander aka orbital or square buff sander. Common random orbital sander mistakes 1. Sure it may take longer to remove old finishes than it.

Using an actual floor sander does seem like it would make the process go a lot faster. I have been thinking about sanding them down and refinish the wood.