Wausau Wood Floor Refinishing Projects
Posted by Aaron Schaalma
From light maple floors to rich warm brown
These old maple floors in Wausau had been refinished a few years back, but were in need of a refresh. They were the traditional color of maple that you might see in homes of this age, and the clients wanted to give the floors a more dramatic appearance. Maple hardwood has a tendency to change color based on its age and its exposure to sunlight, so after we had sanded the floors, we put a few color samples down for the clients to see. Once the clients chose what color they liked, we stained the floor and then applied 2 coats of water based finish. You can see the dramatic effects changing the color of the floor had in this space. [caption id="attachment_3315" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
These maple floors where worn and not fitting the style of the house. Now they are the focal point[/caption]Aged yellow to updated modern color
One of the fascinating things in Wisconsin is getting to work with so many different species of hardwoods. From maple to oak or hickory, Wisconsin homes are unique in how many different species of hardwoods you’ll find in houses. In this particular house in Rib Mountain, they had a birch floor that had been installed over 10 years ago when they remodeled their kitchen space. It was a natural floor that was coated with a finish that over the years had changed colors from a semi transparent color to more yellow finish. In addition to the yellowed finish, the floors had seen a lot of wear from their dogs, and parts of the floor squeaked when they walked on it. The first project was to fix the sub-floor from squeaking. This required us to go from the basement and screw through the joists at an angle to catch the sub-floor and pull it back down into place. Then we ran a bead of sub-floor adhesive along the joist and sub-floor. Once we had resolved the squeaking and creaking of the sub-floor, we went upstairs and did some minor repairs. We fixed a couple of areas in the floor by replacing the birch flooring with new wood, and then sanded and stained the floors. When I originally met with the owners, we discussed different finish option for their project. As we continued talking we learned that we both had Golden Retrievers, and they were concerned with trying to keep their dogs off of the floor for an extended period as the finish cured. We discussed multiple options, and the owners decided to go with our UV cured finish which would drastically reduce the curing time of the finish. This allowed them to have a quick turn-around time to moving furniture back in and allowing the dogs on the floor without worrying about damaging their new investment. [caption id="attachment_3316" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
These birch wood floors where all scratched up and dated. Now they have a more modern look[/caption]
From golden color to Modern farm house warmth
From the worn spots to the dated golden tones, these white oak floors had seen better days. The clients were remodeling their house from a traditional style to a modern farm house style. Having the wood floors refinished was one of the final things they where going to have done to complete the transformation. They had painted a lot of the trim and took the fireplace from the very traditional red brick look to a more modern style. They wanted the white oak floors to match their new style, so we started by sanding the floors down to bare wood. We then did a larger sample in a well lit room so they could get a feel of what their space would look like. After the sample was approved we finished the sanding, water popped the floor (opens the wood grain up), and then stained the floor, allowing it to dry overnight. White Oak hardwood contains tannins, so it was important to use a special sealer that blocks out the tannins before we applied the finish. Without this sealer, the tannins would pull from the wood into the finish and leave discoloration marks. After the sealer was applied, we applied 2 coats of a commercial finish to complete the project. You can see from the before and after pictures how changing the color changed the look and feel of the room. [caption id="attachment_3319" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Before it was yellowish color, after it's a modern brown grey. Fitting the style of the house[/caption]
All of these projects that we worked on in Marathon County were projects where the wood floors were refinished. Whether it was due to normal wear and tear, or changing the look of a space, having your floors refinished adds value to your home. It is a great return on investment, whether you are planning to stay in your house for years to come, or are thinking of selling it in the near future, having your hardwood floors refinished is definitely worth it! 
