Re-Varnishing

A hardwood flooring is not disposable. The beauty of its surface can be rejuvenated by re-varnishing after many years. It is usually worth allowing a professional do the re-varnishing and the preparatory work, because special tools and machines are needed for the job. Expertise also guarantees a successful result. Alternatively, for small areas, a re-varnishing repair can be a do-it-yourself job. For this purpose, use, for example, the Upofloor varnish repair kit.

The recommended condition for varnishing is during damp weather conditions, when the possible joint gaps caused during the dry season have gradually been closed. During the dry season, varnishing may cause strong movements in the wood, filling the expansion gaps and thus preventing them from closing.

Always pay due attention to occupational safety aspects required by the law related to handling varnish!

Maintenance varnishing
With water-based varnishes

When the varnished surface in the areas receiving the hardest wear is worn almost to the wood, it is time to perform maintenance varnishing.

Before you start, repair dents and cracks with putty, remove previous coatings and remove, for example, greasy stains. Sand the area you want to repair with a circular grinder, or a sanding net or sandpaper (coarseness 120­ - 150), or by manual sanding with the similar coarseness. This method aims to avoid sanding that penetrates into the wood, which enables several new maintenance varnishings.

Sanding of the entire area to be varnished is always required for the new varnish to stick.
Carefully remove all sanding dust and apply 1 - 2 coats of surface varnish alongside the board with a stainless steel trowel and 1 - 2 coats with the felt/flotex trowel. The coats of varnish should be allowed to dry between applications.

Note! Always follow the varnish manufacturer’s instructions. The total consumption of varnish is approximately 0.1–0.15 litre/m2. It is recommended to perform maintenance varnishing in the entire room or over a sufficiently large area to avoid visible boundaries.

Re-varnishing
With water-based varnishes

Remove old varnish from the floor using an abrasive belt grinder. Sand diagonally to the floorboards at an angle of 30 - 45°. The coarseness of the sandpaper should be between 40 and 80. If the hardwood floor has been varnished before, coarseness of 36 - ­60 should be used. Corners and edges should be sanded using an angle-sanding machine with the same coarseness values.

If necessary, repair dents and cracks with putty or a mixture of the sanding dust and priming varnish.

Finish the area by sanding alongside the board (coarseness of sandpaper 80­ - 100), corners and edges should be separately sanded. Corners, pipe penetrations, etc. are finished by manual sanding with the same coarseness values.

Before varnishing, carefully remove all the dust. Apply one coat of priming varnish using a stainless steel trowel. When the varnish is dry, sand the area either with a circular grinder with a coarseness of 100­ - 150, or manually alongside the board using a similar coarseness, when necessary. Apply a minimum of 2 coats of priming varnish.

Apply surface varnish slowly with a felt/mohair trowel or varnishing roll/brush lengthwise on the board, progressing at a pace of approximately 1/3 of the width of the trowel. Repeat with a second coat when the surface is dry.

Note! Always follow the varnish manufacturer’s instructions. The total consumption of varnish (ground and surface varnish) is approximately 0.25–0.4 litre/m2. The varnish reaches its final strength in 1­2 weeks, but it can take light loads after approximately two days.

Repair varnishing

Restrict the area to be varnished by, for example, using adhesive tape, roughen and clean the area. Spray some Upofloor repair varnish according to the instructions. Remove the adhesive tape immediately.

The gloss of repair varnishing always differs from the old one. Upofloor hardwood floorings have a gloss factor of approximately 35. If the new varnish is glossier than the previous variety, you can rub the board with a coarse cotton cloth to smooth out the difference.
To repair small scratches and cracks, use the varnish bottle and the brush in the Upofloor repair kit.