We are renting a house that has hardwood floors in the entryway, living room
and hallways. I really don't like the hw flooring (I must be the only one).
Anyway, the floor is very dingy looking and really needs to be refinished
but since it isn't my house I am not going to invest the money and the owner
doesn't really care what it looks like (he was going to put carpet in LR but
decided against it for whatever reason). Is there something inexpensive
that can be done to get the floor looking better?
I have a huge area rug in the living room to cover most of it.


Thanks for any ideas.

F&I
--
~Never knock on Death's door: Ring the doorbell and run (he hates that)~

"Fire&Ice" wrote in message
.. .
We are renting a house that has hardwood floors in the entryway, living
room
and hallways. I really don't like the hw flooring (I must be the only
one).
Anyway, the floor is very dingy looking and really needs to be refinished
but since it isn't my house I am not going to invest the money and the
owner
doesn't really care what it looks like (he was going to put carpet in LR
but
decided against it for whatever reason). Is there something inexpensive
that can be done to get the floor looking better?
I have a huge area rug in the living room to cover most of it.


Thanks for any ideas.

F&I
--
~Never knock on Death's door: Ring the doorbell and run (he hates that)~

floor wax applied with a buffer.

Humm.... since the guy doesnt care about it too much...

Time to learn the art of sanding floors using a floor sander.
(make sure to rent one with the vac attached for dust)

Take the rented sander and experiement.

Easy job. When dont with sanding slop on the cheapest
polyurathane you can find. Should last a year or two.

Tom


Fire&Ice wrote:
We are renting a house that has hardwood floors in the entryway,
living room
and hallways. I really don't like the hw flooring (I must be the
only one).
Anyway, the floor is very dingy looking and really needs to be
refinished
but since it isn't my house I am not going to invest the money and
the owner
doesn't really care what it looks like (he was going to put carpet in
LR but
decided against it for whatever reason). Is there something
inexpensive
that can be done to get the floor looking better?
I have a huge area rug in the living room to cover most of it.


Thanks for any ideas.

F&I
--
~Never knock on Death's door: Ring the doorbell and run (he hates
that)~

Sexytom976 wrote:
Humm.... since the guy doesnt care about it too much...

Time to learn the art of sanding floors using a floor sander.
(make sure to rent one with the vac attached for dust)

I would never think of tackling a project like this as a renter.
Good luck. - David

Clean the floor with an oil soap (such as Murphys Oil Soap). Rinse
well. Apply a wax (I like Johnson's Paste Wax). Buff with old cotton
towels or an auto buffer.

On Tue, 1 Feb 2005 16:23:06 -0600, "Fire&Ice"
wrote:

We are renting a house that has hardwood floors in the entryway, living room
and hallways. I really don't like the hw flooring (I must be the only one).
Anyway, the floor is very dingy looking and really needs to be refinished
but since it isn't my house I am not going to invest the money and the owner
doesn't really care what it looks like (he was going to put carpet in LR but
decided against it for whatever reason). Is there something inexpensive
that can be done to get the floor looking better?
I have a huge area rug in the living room to cover most of it.


Thanks for any ideas.

F&I

Charles Spitzer wrote:
....
floor wax applied with a buffer.

Thorough cleaning first, though...

"Fire&Ice" wrote in message
.. .
We are renting a house that has hardwood floors in the entryway, living
room
and hallways. I really don't like the hw flooring (I must be the only
one).
Anyway, the floor is very dingy looking and really needs to be refinished
but since it isn't my house I am not going to invest the money and the
owner
doesn't really care what it looks like (he was going to put carpet in LR
but
decided against it for whatever reason). Is there something inexpensive
that can be done to get the floor looking better?
I have a huge area rug in the living room to cover most of it.


Thanks for any ideas.


Speaking from experience and as a landlord, I would be livid if you followed
Tom's advice and sanded my floors.

The paste wax suggestion is an excellent one but it takes a lot of work. An
easier approach that works almost as well with 1/10th the work is to find a
Janitor supply store in your area and buy a commercial grade liquid wax for
wood flooring. $10-15 a gallon and a gallon goes a long way.

The finished result will look as good as you are at getting the floor clean
before you apply it. The shine should last 3-6 months before you need to
recoat.

Colbyt

Colbyt" wrote in message
...

Speaking from experience and as a landlord, I would be livid if you
followed
Tom's advice and sanded my floors.



I would never think of sanding the floors in a house I don't own. That is
just me and I do have respect for other people's property.



The paste wax suggestion is an excellent one but it takes a lot of work.
An
easier approach that works almost as well with 1/10th the work is to find
a
Janitor supply store in your area and buy a commercial grade liquid wax
for
wood flooring. $10-15 a gallon and a gallon goes a long way.

The finished result will look as good as you are at getting the floor
clean
before you apply it. The shine should last 3-6 months before you need to
recoat.



Ding * ding * ding...I think we have a winner here. That sounds like
something I can handle. I think my husband will be moving all the furniture
out of the living room this weekend when he gets home, but he doesn't know
it yet.
Thanks so much for your advice.

F&I

--
~Never knock on Death's door: Ring the doorbell and run (he hates that)~

Colby,

Speaking from experience and as a landlord, I would be livid if you
followed Tom's advice and sanded my floors.

I wouldn't dream of making any modifications to a rental without consulting
the landlord. That could lead to many unwanted problems!

However, back when we rented, I often asked our landlord if we could make
improvements. I can't remember a single time he was against it. In many
cases, he would even buy the materials, and we were essentially free labor.
We landscaped the front and side yards, repaired damage from previous
owners and repainted the walls, fixed plumbing problems, repaired the
appliances, etc. We got a better place to live, and he got an improved
rental without having to pay someone to fix things. When the time came to
move, he practically begged us to stay...

I'm sure it depends on the landlord and how long you plan to live there,
but it couldn't hurt to ask the landlord if you want to make improvements.
You might be surprised...

Anthony