A friend hired a handyman to remove a half-height wall from a room with
hardwood floors, leaving a gap in the flooring. Then the handyman said he
didn't know how to fix the floor. Even if sections of new hardwood can be
cut and fit into the gap, is it even possible to finish the new pieces
without re-sanding the entire floor? Should I suggest re-installing a
half-height wall as a MUCH simpler alternative? Have you ever refinished
just one section of a floor without ruining the whole thing? Is this project
as atrocious as I think? Please suggest something.
-Em

Em wrote:
....
...if sections of new hardwood can be
cut and fit into the gap, is it even possible to finish the new pieces
without re-sanding the entire floor? Should I suggest re-installing a
half-height wall as a MUCH simpler alternative? Have you ever refinished
just one section of a floor without ruining the whole thing? Is this project
as atrocious as I think? Please suggest something.

Sure it's possible to patch and refinish a section of hardwood
flooring. To patch the floor typically takes removing the bead from
one and/or cutting the bottom side of the tongue in order to fit them
into the opening.

Typically for something of that type I would start by matching the
stain and finish on a couple sample boards first, then finish them
first and install rather than trying to sand and finish the patched
area in place. Of course, the latter is possible with care but other
is typically easier...

rope lighting. a book case. a coffee table. a gas two way fireplace.
floor tile. carpeting.

Em wrote:
A friend hired a handyman to remove a half-height wall from a room with
hardwood floors, leaving a gap in the flooring. Then the handyman said he
didn't know how to fix the floor. Even if sections of new hardwood can be
cut and fit into the gap, is it even possible to finish the new pieces
without re-sanding the entire floor? Should I suggest re-installing a
half-height wall as a MUCH simpler alternative? Have you ever refinished
just one section of a floor without ruining the whole thing? Is this project
as atrocious as I think? Please suggest something.
-Em

On Fri, 08 Dec 2006 01:50:19 GMT, "Em" wrote:

A friend hired a handyman to remove a half-height wall from a room with
hardwood floors, leaving a gap in the flooring. Then the handyman said he
didn't know how to fix the floor. Even if sections of new hardwood can be
cut and fit into the gap, is it even possible to finish the new pieces
without re-sanding the entire floor? Should I suggest re-installing a
half-height wall as a MUCH simpler alternative? Have you ever refinished
just one section of a floor without ruining the whole thing? Is this project
as atrocious as I think? Please suggest something.
-Em


I have fitted pieices into a hardwood floor, patching small areas. You
don't have to refinish the entire floor. I've sanded the new boards
with a hand finishing sander and then have applied polyethylene coats
with a small paint brush.

Ideally, you would pull out some of the boards and replace them with
longer sections crossing the former wall area. Thus you will not have
the joints lining up and it will look less patched.

If one studies the area, you can see that it is patched, however, to
me and to my tenants the results were acceptable.

Doug

The flooring has "tongues" that meet up with "grooves" so, if the
section removed is lined up long ways then you'll have to remove a good
section of one board for it to fit. If it's short ways then you'll
have to cut a lot of like 4" pieces.

Home depot can order in almost any width flooring where I am, probably
the same all over the place. I'm doing the same type of thing in a
closet, but I'm sanding the whole floor so it's easier...you'll have to
color match the stain if it's stained. This is where it comes in
handy to have a few extra scraps of wood to test out the stain on to
get it "close enough"

Good luck! I'm glad you didn't just put a piece of plywood down,
cover it with carpet and then sell it to the next guy...hence my
closet. I took the seller of my Christmas card list.