Well, I hired a guy to refinish the living room and he got rid of the chattermarks with a multidisc attachment for a buffer but couldn't coat the floor properly and subsequently eloped. The floor cannot be refinished due to a lack of wood and even if it could a hummel belt sander would induce chattermarks again due to wide spaced joists etc.. Multidiscs are a thing of fables around these parts btw. I had to go far and wide to find someone who had one and they couldn't coat.

I am left with 4 coats of satin oil based poly a good bit of trash, T bar applicator marks, and a few small areas where the finish wasn't applied in level fashion - call it puddles for lack of a better word- just a few.

I am at my ropes end in terms of hiring help. I am running out of options and am considering tackling the project myself. I have seen an orbital floor sander with the 12 "x 18" screens used to great avail. I actually have a pack of 100 grit 12x 18" screens on hand and was considering renting the orbital sander and screening the floor myself. And having a painter friend of mine coat it with a 6" china bristles brush - not ideal but that is what I am considering.

I am wondering if 100 grit screen is too abrasive. Should I screen with 150 grit afterwards? Those screens don't appear to be made in anything finer than 150.

If anyone wants to helm the job for me come on down. Please advise on how to proceed otherwise.

Craftsmanship is dead in America.

Thank You,

Sorry you had a challenging time with your floor refinishing contractor. Here in California the Contractors License Board requires a bond so that contracts are completed.
Be careful about working on the floor too soon after many coats of finish since you could find that disturbing the coats can make the surface peel if it has not had a chance to cure. Rivers of finish that didn't flow evenly take longer to harden.
Screening with 100 grit between coats will help smooth the surface and leave scratches that sometimes take two coats of finish to cover. A painter can help since they have experience with finishing wood. A scraper sharpened with a mill file so a shaving of finish is able to be created will save time and help with smoothing the finish, before any abrasion with screens.
Wait at least a week after the last coat to start working on the floor. Machines help with the job.

He came back. Things got better then they got worse.

He screened the floor with an OBS 18 with 12x18 100 grit screen twice. It now has tons of visible "jhook" scratches that look like a chain link fence across the whole floor. I would love to be able to post a picture. There is also trash, missed spots, and applicator marks on the floor - lots of streaky/strokes throughout the finish from an oil based applicator for a t bar. The last coat was a disaster.

I am trying to get the living room floor to look like it used to. I have zero confidence in this contractor at this point.

Anyone in Georgia?

100 grit screen marks can be coated with a thick coat of poly to make them disappear. However this thick of a coat will probably have bubbles in it. Two coats of poly with the recommended spread rate ought to look a lot better regarding the screen marks. Screen between coats with a finer paper, 120 should be OK. Vacuum and then tack the floor by pushing a damp towel around to collect any dust or little bits that the vacuum missed. Then apply the second coat.

he put a thick coat over the scratches it looks absolutely terrible. there are other scratches in the finish as well. trash too.

it's just a terrible job.

If the guy used a big random orbit sander to take the finish off with rough paper, he probably didn't polish the floor enough to remove the rough scratches. These can show through even with lots of finish on the floor.