Time on site: 4 days | Area: 22.5m2
This wood floor sanding project in Taunton involved restoring a 22.5m² oak floor in a period conservatory, where years of direct sunlight through the glazed, wrought-iron roof had taken a real toll on the finish. Conservatories are one of the best rooms in a house to sit in, but they’re one of the harshest environments a wood floor can be asked to survive, and this one hadn’t come through unscathed.
The starting point
The oak had been fitted some years earlier and had suffered badly from UV exposure, a problem that creeps up slowly rather than announcing itself. Areas that caught the most direct sun through the roof glazing had faded and worn noticeably faster than areas shaded by furniture, so by the time we arrived the floor had developed a patchy, uneven look, sun-bleached in some spots, comparatively rich in others, despite the timber underneath being perfectly sound.
Preparation
We helped the client move furniture out of the conservatory before starting, and back in again once the job was finished, one less thing for them to worry about during the work. The floor was then checked over carefully for movement or damage before sanding began.
Sanding back the damage and sanding flooring during a heatwave
The floor was taken back through our usual graded sequence using our Lagler and Bona sanding systems, removing the old, sun-damaged finish evenly across the whole space and returning the boards to clean, bare oak.
The job fell during a heatwave, which meant timing the finishing work carefully. With that much glass overhead, the conservatory heated up fast once the sun got high, hot enough that lacquer applied in the afternoon would start flash-drying before it had a chance to level properly. We got round it by sealing each morning while the room was still cool, giving the finish time to cure evenly rather than fighting the heat.
Finishing details
To rebuild a finish that would hold up to this room’s light levels, we applied Bona Prime Amber followed by Bona Mega Matt, chosen specifically for its resistance to the kind of UV wear that had caused the original problem.
The result
Over four days, the conservatory floor went from a patchy, sun-damaged surface to a single, even one, warm and consistent under the glazed roof, with no trace of the fading that had built up over the years. The client was delighted with how it came out, and we’re already booked in to carry out further sanding work in the adjoining living room in the coming months.
Could your wood flooring benefit from sanding?
We have over 20 years experience sanding and maintaining oak flooring in Taunton, Somerset, and the South West.
Contact us today for a free quote.
Unsure whether sanding is the right option for your floor? Read our guide on Is floor sanding worth it or should I replace my floor?