⏳ Quick Answer: After floor refinishing, you should stay out of your house for at least 3-4 days if oil-based finishes are used, due to longer drying times and stronger fumes. For water-based finishes, it's advisable to wait at least 2 days.
We recommend waiting a minimum of 24 hours before you walk on your floors– and 48 hours is even better. Start with socks only and keep pets off the floors for a few days. Wait at least two days for water-based finishes and four days for oil-based finishes before carefully putting furniture and back into the room.
If you move furniture back into the room too soon, it can scratch or damage the finish, which will result in a less durable and less attractive floor.
Before it's time to sand the floors, many homeowners ask: “Can I stay in my house while my floors are refinished?” The answer is usually yes. If you'd like to read about the best ways to prepare for and manage the refinishing process, read on!
Therefore, it is recommended that you stay out of your home for at least 72 hours after applying an oil-based polyurethane finish.
The average dry time for water-based finishes is 2 to 8 hours while other urethanes dry between 4 to 24 hours. It is safe to lightly walk on the floor the day after we put on the last coat of finish however, we recommend waiting at least 24 hours before placing any furniture.
However, using the wrong grit of sandpaper can lead to disastrous results. Starting with too coarse a grit can remove too much wood, causing irreparable damage. Conversely, using a grit that's too fine may not adequately remove the existing finish, leading to poor adhesion of the new finish coats.
Ventilation is essential both during and after application of oil-based finishes due to the greater fumes they produce. For maximum safety, open windows, turn on fans, and think about leaving the house for three to four days.
Oil-based polyurethane can take up to two weeks for the smell to fully dissipate, while water-based options usually clear within a few days.
Your floor can be walked on with stocking feet in 3-4 hours and furniture can be placed back on the floor (not dragged) in 48 hours. Area rugs can be put down in one week when the finish is fully cured.
If the furniture is a unique designer antique or a valuable antique, don't refinish it. You might end up destroying the value of the furniture.
Wait 3 weeks before putting area rugs on newly refinished/finished hardwood floors.
The average refinish removes about . 75 to 1mm of the floor's surface. We use this benchmark as a way to calculate the approximate number of times a floor can be refinished. A ¾” tongue-and-groove solid hardwood floor can be refinished about 10 times during its lifespan.
Refinishing hardwood floors one room at a time is definitely possible and can be a practical solution for many homeowners. While it might not provide the seamless look of doing the entire house at once, it allows you to manage the project in smaller, more manageable sections.
space heater, no sanding and a fan to circulate air movement. That is the best you can hope for right now. Then cover with other smells as mentioned already.
The curing process takes approximately 3 days (80% cured after 1 day, 100% after 3 days).
Still, to avoid inhaling fumes, it's recommended to wait at least 3 to 7 days before sleeping in a freshly refinished space with oil-based polyurethane floors.
The solvents in varnish are extremely pungent, and the fumes can cause drowsiness, headaches, skin irritation and dizziness. At high concentrations, a person may become unconscious, suffer respiratory distress and may even develop pulmonary edema.
There will always be a small amount of dust created and released into the air during any hardwood floor finishing process. However, a proper dust control system will take care of the vast majority of the dust created during the sanding process.
Step 5: Apply Neutralizer and Rinse the Area
Once the floor is completely stripped, apply Nutra-Rinse, diluted per the label's instructions, to the area. Apply the neutralizer solution at 250 to 300 square feet per gallon. Remove the neutralizer solution with a wet/dry vacuum or an automatic scrubber.
Baking Soda
Baking is a household staple used for several cleaning tasks, including removing haze from engineered hardwood floors, cleaning grease off hardwood floors, and, most importantly, removing moisture. Baking soda contains sodium bicarbonate, which is an effective absorbent material.
As a general rule, polyurethane can take as long as 30 days to completely and correctly cure. It would be best to give yourself a full 3- days before using your wood floors following a polyurethane treatment for the best possible outcomes.
Next, you will need to determine whether the wood floors in your house are solid hardwood or engineered wood. That is an essential distinction because engineered flooring cannot be sanded and refinished like solid hardwood flooring can.
Floor refinishing can vary in duration, but a standard 3-4 days is the typical timeframe for a 1,000 square foot job. The time that is actually needed depends on some factors like your home layout, as we will explore in this blog post.
Dark wood flooring is making a bold and luxurious statement in 2025. The rich, deep tones of dark wood species, such as walnut, mahogany, or dark-stained oak, add sophistication and warmth to living rooms, dining areas, and bedrooms.