How to Refinish Hardwood Hand-Scraped Floors

Remove the furniture and anything else in the room. Place plastic drop cloths over the doorways and air vents and attach them with painter's tape. Wear a breathing mask and goggles.

Sand 100- and 120-grit floor polishing screens with a 100-grit palm sander to remove any high spots on the screens. Load a floor polisher with the 100-grit screen and run the polisher over the floor, following the grain of the wood.

Replace the 100-grit screen with a 120-grit screen and repeat the polishing. Use a palm sander with the same grit sandpaper as the screen for any hard-to-reach corners or edges.

Sweep the walls and vacuum the floors with a shop vac. Wipe the floors with a tack cloth.

Select a finish for the floor. Finishes come in a variety of stain shades and most are either oil-based or water-based polyurethane. A finish that has a tung oil or linseed oil base will give the wood a more rustic, vintage look, which will complement the hand-scraping distressed look. White woods should use a water-based polyurethane.

Apply the finish to the corners and edges of the floor with a painting pad for water-based finishes or a china-bristle brush for oil-based ones. Cut in these edges as you apply the finish to the open floor; otherwise, it will dry and leave a lap mark.

Apply the finish to the floor with a synthetic wool applicator for water-based finishes or a lambswool applicator for oil-based ones. Follow the grain of the wood and overlap the strokes. Let the coats dry for 24 hours between applications.

Apply as many coats as necessary until you get the sheen and color you want. Hand-scraped floors will show the stain differently on various parts of the floor. Allow the floor to dry according to package directions.