Polishing floors

Get the professionals

Hi all

I get my personal and professional (clients) floors done by professionals. It is a skill like good painting. A cr*p job always shows. On cost Last year three rooms cost $750 in Inner Sydney. Not bad I thought and remember it is tax deductable.

It up to you but considering the time, hire costs, risk, loss of rent, etc..versus what $$$ you could make with the time it's a no brainer for me.

Even having a background in building by being surrounded by professionals you realise the difference they make.

Regards Peter 147
 
Peter 147 said:
I get my personal and professional (clients) floors done by professionals. It is a skill like good painting. A cr*p job always shows. On cost Last year three rooms cost $750 in Inner Sydney. Not bad I thought and remember it is tax deductable.

It up to you but considering the time, hire costs, risk, loss of rent, etc..versus what $$$ you could make with the time it's a no brainer for me.
Click to expand...
Peter,

A fair point.

But in Canberra, we're in a different situation.

As Acey mentioned, there's a 3-6 month waiting list for work. And prices are probably very much higher than in Sydney.

I hope that this thread has made people aware of the difference in results between using a professional and DIY. For some, DIY will be the way to go. For others, there's only one alternative-and that's obviously NOT DIY.

I can now look at "renovated" houses with polished floors in a new way. The difference between home jobs and professional will be obvious.

(For my units, that was never an issue).
 
geoffw said:
Peter,

As Acey mentioned, there's a 3-6 month waiting list for work. And prices are probably very much higher than in Sydney..
Click to expand...

As a Country boy I suprised there is shortage of trades usually the reverse.

You need to import some brazilians as for some unknown reason they seem to specilise in this stuff in Sydney.

Perhaps here is a business opportunity for someone?

Peter 147
 
Peter 147 said:
As a Country boy I suprised there is shortage of trades usually the reverse.

You need to import some brazilians as for some unknown reason they seem to specilise in this stuff in Sydney.

Perhaps here is a business opportunity for someone?

Peter 147
Click to expand...
Don't forget, there is a very big shortage of everything in the ACT.

Maybe fires which burnt down 500 homes early last year had something to do with that.

I would have thought that people from Warsaw would have been able to do better than people from Brazil.

Especially as it has to do with Polish.
 
Doh!

geoffw said:
Don't forget, there is a very big shortage of everything in the ACT.

Maybe fires which burnt down 500 homes early last year had something to do with that.
Click to expand...

Doh!

Classic example by me of thinking locally. I totally forgot samll event of massive bushfire in Canberra. With that demand I'm amazed you can find the floors to buy to polish.

Peter (Homer) 147 :eek:

PS Left field question but did insurances go up heaps after the fire?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Peter 147 said:
Left field question but did insurances go up heaps after the fire?
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No, they didn't (well, they did not for me, but I'm in NSW- albeit next to bushland).

What did go up dramatically was the building costs.

People who had insured for full replacement value of their homes found that, due the the huge increase in building costs, the replacement cost insurance did not give them replacement cost.

Many people just had to sell their blocks.

Others, including those who were mortgage free, had to add a very big amount to their mortgage.

On the positive side, some insurers did a fantastic job.

I have a work colleague who lost his home. He went home to his family in Wagga that night- AAMI had a serviced apartment ready for him the next day. The rest of his experiences with them were extremely positive.
 
Geoff,

ask for quotes to break down sanding and sealing, most wont have a problem with this, and, *big and*, if they think they will get the complete sand and seal job, read - "sand and polyurethane two pack" the 'sand only' component will be cheap.
Read cheaper than you can hire for.
Play it cool and accept the quote for the sand only component. They will hate it !!!
The sealing is a breeze in comparison, be it two pack, water based or polyurethane or the simplist of all, tung oil. And dont let them tell you tung oil dont cut it, easy touch up and used in 4 of my places with the first try being 7 yrs ago and still looking great despite touch ups and alot of wear and tear. Sorry QB.
astroboy
 
astroboy said:
Geoff,

ask for quotes to break down sanding and sealing, most wont have a problem with this, and, *big and*, if they think they will get the complete sand and seal job, read - "sand and polyurethane two pack" the 'sand only' component will be cheap.
Read cheaper than you can hire for.
Play it cool and accept the quote for the sand only component. They will hate it !!!
The sealing is a breeze in comparison, be it two pack, water based or polyurethane or the simplist of all, tung oil. And dont let them tell you tung oil dont cut it, easy touch up and used in 4 of my places with the first try being 7 yrs ago and still looking great despite touch ups and alot of wear and tear. Sorry QB.
astroboy
Click to expand...
Thanks AB.

That's a good idea to get separate quotes- though I suspect I'd get better value for the polishing than the sanding. My sanding turned out OK- not great. My polishing turned out not all that great.

I've only seen tung oil in one place, where we spent a week. We definitely left scratches (well, we have children), and I don't think the owners were impressed.
 
geoffw said:
Thanks AB.

That's a good idea to get separate quotes- though I suspect I'd get better value for the polishing than the sanding. My sanding turned out OK- not great. My polishing turned out not all that great.

I've only seen tung oil in one place, where we spent a week. We definitely left scratches (well, we have children), and I don't think the owners were impressed.
Click to expand...

I should have added ask for sealing quotes using a number of sealers, tung oil, water based, oil based two pack etc, gives you the best opportunity for a low sand only cost.
And dont under estimate tung oil, given three good coats, easily applied with 12 hrs between them, the finish is *very* durable. I have a german shepard with longish nails (or so they sound) who we play hide 'n seek with in the house and his nails sound like grinding wheels spinning on the spot. But hey, no visible damage, nor with furniture movement or any other day to day stuff.
Timber is best fed rather than sealed. Every time.
astro
 
Queen Bee
New lap top,slow typing ,internet off the air because of storms.In answer to your question.If you say its amyth ypu must have heard it before.I made enquiries to my manufacturer who assures me the molecules of gloss is harder than satin because wax and matting agents are added to gloss to make satin?If you use belt sanders you should not get chatter marks.Geoff having just move to Gold Coast Prices do seem dearer tan Sydney and waiting time for tradesmen longer.They like the surf here. Cheers Layer 181
 
We're not stupid you know.

I can see a sand job coming from a mile away. We don't mind doing them, but stipulate that we don't guarantee the quality of "their" finish because we haven't completed the whole job. Sometimes people try to come back after a sand only to complain because their polyurethaning looks like crap, but they try to blame the sand.

If someone asks me for a sand only, or sand & poly quote I always make sure that my sand only price is at least three quarters the price of a sand and poly, then we get the full job, or at least we get a decent amount out of it.

The sanding is the labour intensive part so why should we offer that "cheap". Anyone can plonk a bit of poly on the floor - even me! I'm not saying that it will look any good, but I can do it. Anyway, if you don't lightly sand in between coats it looks like crap most of the time.

I've got nothing against tung oil - but I probably wouldn't put it in a rental.

Cheers, QB
 
I use Tung oil with commerical clients but we get it buffed weekly and waxed monthly after 30,000 visitors. Cannot use poly because if/when they wear a hole (bloody kids) we cannot patch.

I have poly at home and in IP's and find it no maintenance.

regards Peter 147

PS we also had until recently a dog.
 
In reply to Layer

I spoke to the people that supply our poly yesterday and hit them up about whether gloss is more hardwearing than satin. They assure me that they are both exactly the same, except that satin has flattening agents added.

They said that it is a "myth" that gloss is more hard wearing. Maybe your poly is different? - but thats what I got from them.

Also, gloss is more likely to have wear tracks and dull down where foot traffic has been, whereas with satin you can't see it.

What do you think?

Cheers, QB
 
Queen Bee
Most gloss loose that extra shine through exposure to UV rays within a short period of time and I found those clients who request that super gloss look tends to call for a buff and acoat befpre it gets to that stage.But you are correct about wearing tracks.
cheers layer 181
 
Do not mix products with other products or products from other manufacturers.


Always clean new applicators, brushes and rollers before use to remove any loose fibers which could end up in your finish.


Do ensure the area to be coated is dust free as fine dust can settle in wet and drying finish, making the coating appear bubbly and rough.


Applicator or Roller. Whether to use an applicator or roller is generally a matter of personal preference some find applicators easier to use while others prefer rollers. Which ever you choose try not to work the finish too much or go over the same area too many times as this may create air bubbles in the finish.


Drying times: Good ventilation, temperature and humidity are important for proper curing of a finish. They can affect drying times dramatically.


Re-coating sanding test. When unsure if a coating is dry enough to apply another coat, lightly sand the finish in an inconspicuous area. If it powders up and doesn't clog the sand paper it is dry. If it gums up, drags or clogs the sand paper, leave it for a few more hours and test again.


Is 4 coats better then 3? In one simple answer generally no. Too many coats or coats applied too thick may cause drying and curing problems. As a general rule more is not better unless the timber is exceptionally porous.
 
In Perth, price to sand and coat a floor is around $25 + GST per sqm. This is for full gloss finish (polyurethane) For Semi gloss or satin, add about $2 per sqm. Semi gloss and satin coating is a lot more expensive. We use 1 coat sealer, 1 coat gloss, and finally 1 coat semi gloss/satin. Floors are screened back and vacuumed in between coats so the new coat has something to key into.

IMO satin/semi gloss APPEARS to wear better, as it is already a dull finish compared to full gloss. Also imperfections do not show up as much with the semi. As far as im aware though, semi/satin/full gloss all wear at the same rate. (depending upon who you speak to!)

Hope this helps

Boods
:)
 
We're charging $35 per sqm in Wgtn. Had to put our prices up since petrol has risen to $1.74 a litre. And suppliers put everything up as well.

I agree, that semi gloss or satin looks better, wears better. With gloss you can get a dull track mark where there is alot of heavy traffic, like in front of kitchen benches etc.

We charge the same though for gloss, satin and semi gloss. And we're charging $400 for bathrooms, no matter what the size.

We're moving to the Gold Coast soon, and we're bringing our machines over, so if anyone wants their floors done, we can come and have a look. I'm sure we can do special deals for forumites!

Cheers
QueenBee
 
Queen Bee said:
We're moving to the Gold Coast soon, and we're bringing our machines over, so if anyone wants their floors done, we can come and have a look. I'm sure we can do special deals for forumites!

Cheers
QueenBee
Click to expand...

Something tells me you wont be bringing the drummy or belt sander over in your hand luggage...:D


BTW...that was just my 100th post...woohooooooo!!! Im almost a veteran..
 
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