Greetings fellow Redditors, I could use some helpful advice from others with experience refinishing hardwood floors. My girlfriend and I recently bought a house built in 1932 with hardwood floors. The upstairs is Pine, while the downstairs is Oak. The upstairs floor is dinged-up (pine being relatively soft) and is also the least square footage (around 400 sq ft). It is going to serve as our pilot project to determine if we should hire somebody to finish the downstairs floor. Our combined experience is zero, but we have done some research. I have a few questions in particular.
First, a close-up of the floor to show the separation between boards (a nickel was added for scale). These are the largest of the gaps in the boards.
Question: Should I use a trowel and wood filler to seal these cracks before staining and polyurethane? If so, what is a good brand to go with? Products like this here come up when searching. I have heard people say you can mix the wood dust from the sander in with a wood filler to match the floors, but I haven’t seen a product like this at any of the major stores (I could be looking in the wrong place). Another concern of mine is with the temperature. It is winter here in the Midwest and the temperatures and RH are low. If the boards expand, will it press the filler back out?
Any input would be valuable at this point, we are looking to refinish this weekend. If anyone has used a stain or polyurethane that they are exceptionally satisfied with, please share the brands name. I will post a proper DIY when all is said and done. Thanks.
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