I'm moving in with my girlfriend into her 1940's apartment with real hardwood floors in rough shape. They're worn out with little to no finish on them. They smell quite bad due to her two dogs, spills, and years of abuse (before her also). Nothing really cleans them and my latest thought was waxing them to seal it all in after a good cleaning. Will this work? Is it a good idea? We rent otherwise I'd say refinish them. It's just one room 20' x13'. Should I just refinish them? Thanks!
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If they are that bad just have them refinished. Your floors will look so much better which will make everything else look better. Not a large space to do its not going to cost that much and it will make all the difference in the world.
When my ex lived we me he refuse to pitch in money to paint a few rooms that really needed it, when we broke up and he moved out I painted and wow what a difference..
Love where you live now and if its minor repairs or painting a few rooms who cares if its a rental.
view LoriSF's profile
if you can afford it or better yet if your landlord is willing to split the price of refinishing them I would refinish the floors. Your home is your piece of the world, and you should make it special, like Lori said nice floors will make everything else look nicer too. Good luck, keep us posted on the project.
view nickel525's profile
I'd be backing your landlord some cupcakes and asking if you can paint the floorboards white! The more worn they are, the better, although I'm not sure if a bit of white paint could undo the smells, but at least it would look lovely!
view MsUnreliable's profile
If there's no finish on them at all you might be able to get away with a few coats of Osmo. It's an environmentally friendly hard wax oil. You might want to do a light sanding first.
view dearmisha's profile
i have a similar issue: an LA 40s apartment with real wood floors burried under UGLY carpet. Someone painted the wood floor with white paint! Horrrible! What is the best way to remove the white paint from the wood (in an environmentally friendly way)? I used 100% alcohol to remove a lil bit of the paint and the wood looks really pretty underneath. But i don't think I could use the alcohol on the entire floor.
Any suggestions??
view SydneyBristow's profile
As a landlord myself, I agree with Gregory in that you should definately speak with your landlord first. Even if your landlord is super cool, you definately need to discuss it with him or her. This way there are no surprises and everyone is on the same page.
view Seaside's profile
If you can't do a major refinish, you might try Varathane Renewal:
http://www.rust-oleum.com/product.asp?frm_product_id=72&SBL=1
I used this on a really cruddy floor that had no finish on it and it worked miracles. I was absolutely amazed. It's pretty cheap and just involves some elbow grease.
I don't know what to do about the fact that your floor smells though.
view Pixie's profile