How to paint old plank floors. Prepping work and fill in cracks in flo

KarenKeasling
by KarenKeasling
  5 answers
  • Lina Splichal Lina Splichal on Jun 11, 2018

    Sand everything smooth and fill in damage with wood putty. Wipe everything down with TSP and then you are ready to paint.

  • Landsharkinnc Landsharkinnc on Jun 11, 2018

    if it is unfinished wood, it could be more valuable just oiled and left unpainted ... but .. sand smooth, remove any nail heads or splinters; if the cracks are small paintable wood putty smoothed into the cracks, be sure the floors are clean and dry; use a paint specifically for wood flooring ...

    • KarenKeasling KarenKeasling on Jun 26, 2018

      Are you saying sanding and not using stripper? What kind of paint do you use for wood floor? A stain of some kind?

  • Cynthia H Cynthia H on Jun 11, 2018

    Lina is absolutely correct - that's how I did my plank hallway. I used floor paint in the slate gray color I wanted. It may take a couple of coats (I had to do mine in sections, trying to keep the cat off of it). Then a good, clear sealer. My son-in-law saw it during a family gathering and thought we'd put a new floor down. I love how I can still see the wood grain, but, now have a nice floor to walk on.

  • Emily Emily on Jun 26, 2018

    Hi although it sounds like you are talking about an inside floor, my husband just painted our front porch decking. He carefully went over everything, sanding and replacing some broken bits of wood, he used "Bondo" to fill in the missing places. Told me you never have wood against wood in filling in, so he placed building paper in between. The last picture is the space covered in the first two pictures. BTW we used Behr's paint and are very happy with it. Or are you talking about interior floors? Can you post a picture of the floor? I have painted almost all the floors in my house and I never sanded them first.

  • Landsharkinnc Landsharkinnc on Jun 27, 2018

    Hey Karen -- paints / stains are very different products --


    stains retain the wood tones/grain, and wood stains also come in 'colors' -- stains are absorbed into the wood and are to 'sanded' to remove a very thin layer of wood that has absorbed the stain;


    Strippers are used for paint ... disolves the polymers in the paint allowing you to scrape it off .... but there are strippers for stained floors --http://www.kleanstrip.com/diyers/diy-projects/remove-wood-stain --very labor intensive for an entire floor; and you're still going to have to sand to get a good surface.


    you can rent a floor sander and do it in a 10th the time. BUT with a floor sander, a lot of 'damage' can be done if not used properly.


    Paints cover the wood and you won't see shades of the wood color or the 'grain' and the wood has to be bone dry, free of oils/waxes etc. in order for the paint to adhere properly. Traffic will play a part in what kind of surface you choose -- https://www.todayshomeowner.com/painting-wood-floors/


    Stained floors age more gracefully ... painted floors can wear thin with traffic and the wood could show thru, or the paint could become scratched and expose the undersurface.


    Behr makes great products for wood surfaces -- decking, floors in your home, etc. That brand would be my first choice - never used it on an indoor surface, but use their products on our deck and some other outdoor wood surfaces we have.


    Hope this helps -- big job for sure, but you can do it!

    • KarenKeasling KarenKeasling on Jul 06, 2018

      Thanks for your input. I have painted plank floors and wanted to strip them but I know that is work that I may not be able to do.