Patch staining hardwood floors.

Just John
by Just John
There are small areas of lightened patches on my floors. Can patch staining and sealing be an option?

  3 answers
  • Francesca Francesca on Aug 19, 2017

    i don't know anything about diy patching but just to give you info, a contractor tried it on our wood floor and it was enough as a camouflage initially. Not great but enough. Within a few months it had just worn away. He wasn't a "floor" guy so maybe a professional one would do a better job.

  • Just John Just John on Aug 19, 2017

    Thx Francesca!

  • Nnettat Nnettat on Aug 20, 2017

    Since we don't know the size of the patches, I'll go on the speculation of about 3x3". I can only tell you what this fanatical old lady would do/has done. It involves hands & knees, sandpaper (100 grit or lower along with 175-200 grit), wooden sanding block, stain, polyurethane, a few cheap artist brush (these will thrown away after use), and a little patience. There are sets of brushes at craft stores which are cheap. Grab one of these. Unless you are accustomed to using a flexible brush, find the stiffer ones. Need some rags as well.

    Tape off the area to be worked on with a slight inclusion of the area around it. Sandpaper. Starting with the 100 grit attached to the block, sand the patch. You are trying to break thru and remove the polyurethane over the patch till you are nearly to the wood itself. Sand more lightly in the area outside the patch, the edging or overlap. Follow with the 200 till you get to the wood and sand just a bit into the wood. You will never get all the polyurethane. It has seeped into the wood.

    Stain should be a little darker than what is on the rest of the floor or use the same as the rest of the floor. (NOT the stain which includes the polyurethane, the one step jobbers.) Will probably need to put a second coat in either case.

    Using one of these cheap brushes, spread the stain across the patch area. Immediately follow up with a rag wipe. Move the tape out or remove altogether. Stand up & check color. Too light? Add another coat of stain. Let dry. Throw away the brush.

    Once dry, check color again. Light, add again. Even after this coat and still light? Need a slightly darker stain. Repeat till match or slightly darker. Darker may be better. Less noticeable. Your choice. Throw away brush if added another coat. Let dry.

    Make sure surface is free of any dirt. With a new brush, polyurethane your area feathering lightly in the area around your patch. Let dry. Throw away brush.

    Will need 2 or 3 coats of polyurethane. Let dry between coats. Most instructions say that you should lightly sand between coats, but I have just made sure the surface was clean. Use a new brush for every coat.

    Stand back and admire the marvelous job you have done.

    As I said, a little patience.

    If doing a larger area, say a 3'x3', get some of the larger cheap brushes at a home improvement store. Just make sure the size is controllable and not too large for the project. I don't recommend an electric sander unless you are really familiar & confident with one. This is all a matter of control & patience.

    I know this may seem long-winded, but I wanted to make sure my info was thorough and not just give you a hint of what to try. I have done basically the same thing for scratches on a friend's floor. (Hers was furniture scratches and dog scratches. She wanted to have the whole thing redone but this solved her problem.)

    I hope this has helped. Let us know what you have done.

    • See 2 previous
    • Just John Just John on Nov 12, 2017

      Thanks Nnettat,

      i apprecia your response and it’s thoroughness........I don’t like loose edges and you left none. This is a start......I can now decide my attack from here.


      John