Hi,

I am getting ready to rent one of the floor sanders from Home Depot, they have the belt type, they have the large plate type sanders with one large sheet of paper and also they have that sander which has four discs - I think 6 inch.

I figure the belt is much too aggressive and will cut too fast, so I was thinking either the plate or disc. It seems the plate type would do a better job at giving me a more even or flat finish and maybe more economical as far as paper is concerned. I do need the sander to be a bit agressive though, I have some pet and water/salt stains to also remove.

Any opinions on this? What would be the best way to go - I am doing about 420 square feet of White Oak...

Well that square-buff machine will provide a nice flat surface, but it wont sand out urine stains. Only dynamite will do that.
The belt sander is indeed very agressive, and best used in the hands of a professional. I am suprised you can rent one; unless it is some light duty version of the industrial units we use.
The four disc machine you refer to is something I am unfamiliar with, so cannot comment on its effectiveness.

Actually I own a Clarke EC 8 drum sander it's quite old, my next door neighbor sold it to me for five bucks he wanted to get rid of it, needs some work so I am hesitant to use it because of it's aggressiveness.

The disc machine at home depot has four 6 inch disks on the underside, I assume they run both in orbital and vibratory mode.

I own and use a belt sander, but the other day I had a job that was just to small and cut up for the big machine and to bis for my palm sander. I went to HD and rented one of the 4 disc machines. They said it was more for sanding as the square buff is for recoating. It did OK but if your floor is not very flat you will be there forever. Depending on how large the job is the rental would cost as much as hiring a pro and take 10 times longer.

Thanks,

About how long do you think it would take to do 410 sqare feet with the four disc sander?

If it's a new install probably 1to 2 days for the first pass to an acceptable quality then another day for the rest of the passes, then you need to buff between coats. If it is a refinish probably double it to get all the old finish off.

It's a refinish however the old finish is mostly worn off, and what ever is left seems quite thin, just around non traffic areas. I would not be suprised if it's the original finish when the house was built 52 years ago. The floor was carpeted for a long time then I tore up the carpeting several years ago. I'm finishing with Rubio Monocoat Oil, they reccomend sand up to 100 grit.

The guy at home depot reccomended that I do a chemical strip prior to sanding, is this a good idea?

I have never used chemicals first. The reason refinishing takes longer is because the boards are not flat so it takes a lot more sanding to get to those low spots to strip the finish. It took me all day to do around 100sf with the 4 disc sander. Most pros would use their edger for such a job but I was also trying to keep the dust down that's why I wanted to try one of the other types.

Thanks,

I am wondering I have two dark blotches on my floor - cat pee - would bleach - if I put some on the stain - get out some pet cat-urine stains out of White Oak after some sanding? Or are they in there permanently?

Also I am wondering, is that edger that Home Depot rents out a belt machine? If it works faster than the 4 disc machine maybe I should use that instead for the whole job - I don't mind getting on my knees.

Or I'm starting to think now maybe I should just rent a drum sander from Home Depot since it would work faster. How many square feet is average per one sheet of paper for that machine?

If the stains are from cat urine the boards have to be replaced and now is the time to do that prioor to sanding. Dont try to edge 400sf thats going to be bad,bad. rent the 4 disc sander and put your ipod on and just take your time.

Great thanks.

What grit sizes do you think I should use? Maybe starting at 24 grit, then 36, then 80 then 100 or 120? I am applying Rubio Monocoat and also taking off some very worn thin layer of finish on white oak.

Also how many sets of 4 discs do you think I would need for 400 square feet?

Your first grit will probably need 2-3 sets as they will clog up with finish. But I would try the 36 grit first and if that doesn't work then go down to the 24. I would get 2 sets of all the rest and if you don't need them you can return what you don't use. I wouldn't skip right to 80 without going with 40 or 60 first depending on what is used for the first cut. As for the final pass use what Rubio suggests.

The Rubio guy says 100 grit for the last cut. You can do 120 but there can be minor issues.