Howdy,

Lots of experts here; never seen anyone here as neophyte as I am, so this
ought to be an easy one g

Love woodworking, but I'm disabled so most of my work is done while I'm on
my butt or one one of the occasional "good" days I get.

My problem: Our LR floor looks like an old school gymnasium floor that's
been ignored for a century and a half while the neighborhood kids and
wildlife used it for their playtimes. Oh, and the occasional spill & cat,
uh, "stuff".

I know HOW and WHATto do. Well, almost, anyway. My main problem is that it
takes a -long- time for me to do things.
Since I would like to refinish the floor as opposed to painting it, I get
the problem of having it lying in mid-conditioned/stained/poly'd/waxed
states for relatively long periods of time. Most areas I can put a sofa or
something over to protect for the durations, but ... well, that won't work
for the whole area. DW just won't allow it, plus occasionally I need to
pass a wheelchair thru the room. The specific question:

Is there a way to cover/protect the floor while it's "in process"?
Particularly pre-stain and post-stain. People would have to be able to walk
over it. There is no other passage in the house to use, so the LR must be
crossed.
The only thing I can think of is to put down one of those big blue tarps
sold everywhere for a few bucks, but I don't know what damage they might
cause to stained areas after a few days of traffic - if damage is an issue,
which I feel sure it must be. Do those tarps mark or distress a bare wood
or wood stains? All stains, finishes etc. would be oil - no water base.

Before anyone asks, yes, I know the pitfalls of lap marks, aging effects and
shade issues of differing drying durations, etc.. The boards are 2 1/2"
wide so I should be able to use board edges and a little 6-day masking tape
for transitions. The wood itself is actually in good shape, so I think as
long as I want a dark stain, sanding will be rather easy to accomplish, and
maybe a little work on some small-area discolorations. It had carpet over
it for about a hundred years.

Any & all polite or humorous ideas accepted with cheer and/or gratitude.

Thanks

Pop Rivet