"The builder RUINED my floor... Can You Fix It?"

Once again, a journeyman builder tries his hand at sanding, but once again, it doesn't go well. Check out my resand of this gem of a floor hidden under a dented old dirty surface.
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[@doitdave21]

I worked as a parquet and floor layer in Germany for 10 years. We used exactly the same tools as you and proceeded in exactly the same way as you. I've seen many youtube videos about sanding parquet floors. In my eyes, your videos with your approach and results are considered exemplary. Nice to see that you reach such a high level of quality. This work looks easy as a spectator, but requires a lot of practice until you achieve a respectable result. Every floor is different. This is where you can see who has experience and that comes at a price. Keep up the good work!

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Cheers David 🍻

[@masterswish3355]

@Lee Roland Sounds like a good price.

[@MrMaxymoo22]

@Lee Roland that's a very good price for this service. I don't hang a ceiling fan for less than $300 and that takes a couple hours at most. This is at least a two day process and requires a few hundred in materials and thousands in equipment.

[@pondlakes]

@@MrMaxymoo22 a couple hours to hang one ceiling fan? You gotta be kidding..

[@W0pper1997]

Empfiehlst du das einschlagen der Nägel? Unser Parkettleger meinte das es auch einen nachteiligen Effekt haben kann, gerade wenn das Parkett sehr alt ist und die Nägel Rost angesetzt haben. Man löst wohl die Rost-Holz Verbindung und es fängt an zu quietschen

[@johnluiten3686]

It never gets boring watching a pro work.

[@HowToSandAFloor]

I hope not, because it felt very boring editing this video 😂

[@maxheadrom6560]

it never gets boring watching somebody liking his art working

[@truey90s]

The benefit of filming yourself doing the job would be protection so you can prove that you did the job properly and also make a youtube video for a little bit more income

[@mysty0]

Theres those who call themselves Pro, but Qualifications dont make you a Pro!

[@danroaddog]

Sanding on the angle flattens the floor. Second sanding is with the grain is done with a finer grit sand paper to remove sand scratches.

[@bilnitro]

40 years of doing finish carpentry and I didn't know a pneumatic nailset was a thing. Nice work!

[@chiebert290]

Suprised me too.

[@ThaiRoney]

That’s used to remove nails from pallet wood that was been sawzallwd Off. Nail and hammer is best

[@SilvaDreams]

@@ThaiRoney Yeah was going to say that seems like it's driving the nail a bit deep, you want to just under surface level and that looked like it was driving it at least half way through which can cause the wood to split or come loose over time.

[@sw4370]

same here in my 40 years doing this I've never even heard of one

[@sw4370]

@@SilvaDreams even though I love a new tool I would feel better using the old tried and true.

[@machinech183]

Can't say enough how good it is to see someone take pride and doing a great job. Taking time to share that knowledge is a real gift. Thanks for the video and here's hoping the holiday's treated you well.

[@m.cigledy6769]

The sparks at 5:20 are a bit scary. I burned a vacuum to the ground like that, and I was lucky I was able to get it outside without hurting myself or setting my shop on fire.

[@Dallasjcutler]

The first sanding marks clearing up the unevenness, so satisfying!

[@W0pper1997]

Since it can take a couple of days till the floors are finished it is super important to store the dust bags outside of the house, if they aren't disposed right away, as they are self inflammable. Every cloth that came into contact with the oils should be dunked in water too.

[@jimluby4588]

Beautiful restoration, and working in your socks is always a plus. Sad people try to say they can do a job, when they know they can't. Just glad there are more people around with your skills.

[@mikevandenbosch9081]

Very enjoyable to watch a skilled craftsman doing a job properly. All of the small details reveal that you have experience and you care enough to do it well for you clients. Well done.

[@splanzza]

Top notch! Been following for a while. Don’t let anyone downplay your approach and craftsmanship. So much to learn out of your examples and not just for flooring or any trades in general but as simple life philosophy. All the best from across the pond. 👊

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Cheers 🍻

[@fly66]

My client banged nails down unfortunately it went straight through a pipe. Luckily my cousin who was a plumber sorted it in 15 minutes. He told me only to do this if I know where pipes are. I’ve had four near misses over 25 years. Great videos by the way.

[@rodneydrake5308]

Thanks!

[@tdkrei]

It doesn't get much better than that. Nice workmanship. Keep on smiling.

[@gregcarter661]

This is absolutely a thing, and a process, of beauty. Thank you for showing us how it should be done.

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Cheers Greg 🍻

[@Marigoldblu]

Just loved watching this true craftsman at work. How delightful was that floor when finished. 🙂

[@jasoncooperpcola]

I must say, it looks like you have 100% confidence in your abilities. That floor turned out great!

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Cheers Jason! 🍻

[@veronikavolhejnova5036]

Love watching people do what they really know how to do... Probably will be some king of artisan or craftsman in my next life. Thank you!

[@mongosaqqara]

Loved your equipment and old school skills...I've been a builder for 45 years and would not attempt to finish a floor though I have installed many...This process requires years of experience and shouldn't be done by armatures ...looks fantastic!

[@warplanner8852]

Amateurs. It's French in origin.

[@jonasaur6462]

I think this is my fav floor sanding video ever. Well done!

[@DiscoFang]

Random. Not sure why this video was recommended. BUT Bravo. This is exactly the process of how we sand floors except for 2 things: We use a Canterbury after the drum sanding (use exactly the same Hummel) and in the corners use a scraper rather than a delta orbital. Not sure why the whole diagonal thing is a surprise, it's the only way to flatten a floor. Oh dear, the number of floors we fix where someone has left the whole floor rippled. Nice job.

[@tylerwarren8139]

Beautiful job! I've been performing sanding and finishing work on floors and staircases in Canada for the past 25 years or so. My process is quite similar to yours, but I do see a few differences. A lot of work for one person at any rate. Cheers!

[@bomax5995]

This must have been 10 or 12 more processes than I thought was needed. Fantastic job.

[@feber]

Looks awesome. I always work alone so i never get any impressions from others, watching you work have helped me do better end results.

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Really pleased to hear that! Cheers 😁

[@Horus9339]

Using nails straight through the Oak, that is a crime in itself, and those steps would have caused my boss to bury me under the flooring. We always used porter nails as they gave a better finish and you did not have a chance of nails slowing drawing themselves up out of the floor. Still each to their own I'm sure (I know you did not do the original job so not criticising you Sir). You really did a beautiful job there, what I would have given for those sanders, we were olde school on your knees with a flatbed sander, and a world of pain for anything from 4 hours to 12 hours of out of body experience (once over 48 hours on two floors that had to be finished for a shop). Honestly the pain was worth it after the osmo went on. Thank you for sharing your work.

[@graphguy]

Wow... my hat is off to your professionalism and even artistic pride. That was a magnificent transformation.

[@Professor-Scientist]

wow beautiful mixing and applying technique

[@joeselby6016]

You did a great job on the floor. Looks brand new

[@breaking_mowers3811]

HI there! Amazing vid! In the past I've laid literally 100's of meters of hardwood flooring. Never had a problem with sanding, sealing and finishing. Never had a warranty call back always had satisfied clients. I have learnt a lot from your video though, hats off to you sir, you are an artist and a craftsman.

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Cheers 😁

[@kkrobertson1]

WOW!!! I have watch countless hours of DIY floor sanding and never seen this process EVER! I have a tons of question I'm sure you've already answer in other videos. Looking forward to watching them.

[@PatchesKB]

I remember hours and hours of working on floors with my dad. Although we didn't have a pneumatic nail punch. That's a sweet tool!

[@nascarhyde]

Great job once again Ben! Beautiful plainsawn white oak floor! I can't wait until you do your next video on sanding new floors. I'm all done installing my random width quarter/rift sawn white oak floors! Paul from Clinton Township,MI , USA

[@HowToSandAFloor]

When are you planning to start sanding?

[@nascarhyde]

Late January Merry Christmas 🎅 🎄

[@maltriseins]

The transformation, wow. You've just earned yourself another subscriber.

[@Dougfrilled]

Watching this makes me want to see a video series of an entire home being designed and built by experts from KZbin all working together.

[@dees3179]

Errrrr,…..if you are looking for a volunteer to live in it……….

[@mkl5448]

That wood is gorgeous, excellent work to correct that past mistake.

[@mpbattista5038]

You should get you a RAC-A-TAC with chest support to save your back when punching the nail heads back in and edge sanding. If you’re worried about wheel marks I’m sure there are some soft rubber castors to not mark the floor up. Just a thought. Great video.

[@tonycampaign5337]

I'm only 8:29 minutes in. Even without stain or finish & still looks 1000k times better. absolutely beautiful!

[@GatorsNest]

That was an above and beyond job for sure. Im sure the profit margin for work put in was very low but you helped rebuild the industry reputation and gained a new client for new work and hopefully get some positive word of mouth! Beautiful job sir!

[@DiscoFang]

Exactly the process we do on every floor except for the drum sand after filling. That whole job would have been done in an easy 2 days. Using waterbased woodfiller it could have been 1 day including the seal coat. Depending on sqm rate where he is there's definitely healthy profit in there. But you're absolutely right, beautiful job!

[@toaster816]

My first home the floors were hacked. It was almost as if the guy didn’t vacuum after he sanded and before he put the poly on. Floors were gritty as hell. I redid all the floors prior to moving in with the family. New found respect for floor guys after doing it, there are pros and then there’s everyone else, myself included. Awesome job.

[@TheNuclearBolton]

Can’t understand why people are so careless sometimes. A guy who I payed to polish the paint on my car didn’t even wash it or decontaminate and got a bunch of swirls all of it. I asked him prior to him doing the job if he would clean the paint and he said it was not necessary… i have to keep the car waxed to keep it looking somewhat ok and my family says it looks perfectly fine and make me question life

[@u.s.a.198]

absolutely amazing! you take the time and don't rush to make it look fabulous! i like the sawdust / filler trick. i was curious to see what you were going to do for punch hole filler. thank you for sharing!

[@warrenmaker798]

Great job. Almost impossible to sand a floor correctly with a hire sander. I had the EXACT same machine as yours for many years, absolute beast.

[@MarzAdam]

In Denmark we often use lye for wood floors to keep the wood raw but still protected and easy to clean...

[@thechumpsbeendumped.7797]

The beginning part (with the nail punch) reminds me of the movie “No Country For Old Men”.

[@BeasleyStreet]

Floor sanding is without doubt the singular most underestimated task, it takes the right attitude and perseverance as there are no short cuts to a proper job done right first time, oh, and having the right tools for the job, I know the trade and one of the contractors I know has state of the art sanders, a small fortune I can tell you...its a price worth paying as it costs a lot more aggravation and money to have a floor messed-up put right!

[@giantgrowth4204]

The spreading technique was all I needed to see. Well done sir. Well done indeed

[@johndoe7793]

nice recovery, you would think it was obvious the nails need tapping down but that floor looks great.

[@mattiasdevlin1363]

This was fascinating to watch. I worked for a few years doing this with my dad, over 25 years ago in Sweden. The process is very similar but I do not remember ever doing nailed down floors, so that bit was interesting. Our equipment was a touch older...

[@rufusduck71]

I Used to use bona traffic for a few years but after a while it breaks down badly and then your into a total new sanding job again (depends on location and usage obviously) now I only use oils (minimum 4 coats of secret formula ) And the floors look amazing for years and are so easy to spot repair or a quick once over the lot .

[@blizbiggy]

This looks much better than what it started out as. Great job

[@RelaxingRestoration]

So mesmerizing to watch!!!

[@cornishcat11]

just wow lovely work by a true craftsman.

[@samcarlson9089]

Interesting seeing someone else work. Differences in the process. Lots of things I would do different for efficiency but the results are the same. Floor looks great. Only do occasional floors now with hire machines and oh how I miss the pro machines when doing them! I like the use of the air hammer for punching the nails. I never thought to do that!

[@AubreyStJohn3000]

A pleasure to watch you work!

[@robertstamp2409]

What a fantastic job, I’m well impressed with the results 👍👍👍

[@tullgutten]

Turned out MAGNIFICENT 😳🤩

[@HBCFloorsanding]

The best craftsmanship I've seen and got the pleasure from learning from first hand. Keep up the good work mate 👌🏻

[@mhpjii]

Excellence is always exceptional!

[@davidlynch9469]

I live in the US, and the boards don't typically get a nail straight through the surface where I live. Maybe other states use this method, I can not say. We use a special nail gun and hammer that drives the nail through the groove. This way, when the tongue on the next board is installed, it covers up the nails. I'm curious if the flooring you show is typical in your area of the world. Awesome work.

[@XxBlueSkiesx]

Beautiful transformation!

[@BUTRINTNY]

I do floors but you are perfectionist!

[@christheone248]

I had a house build in 1908, I was so glad to actually get rid of my wooden floor but putting down nice carpets. We also did a restoration on the floors first but after 100 years the wood just wasnt the same anymore

[@andrewe2853]

Mate all I can say is stellar job well done.

[@haraldolsen8313]

You did a gret job beautiful finish 👍

[@josephedlin2172]

Watching really makes you value the work and experience required to do a job. I’ve got wooden floors I need to fix but don’t even know what kind of trades person this is? At the moment it seem there’s hardly any trades people and the ones I find cost a lot but keep messing stuff up but of course want paid anyway - I haven’t not paid anyone, but it’s very frustrating and now I’ve run out of money for a couple months and only have half what I needed done 😢

[@redtide08]

I had floors redone when I bought my house. They did a great job sanding and finishing but they didn't do the sawdust and poly fill. Really wish they had taken that extra step, looks very clean.

[@soderbergj]

I swear I felt it when you twisted your ankle. I hate when that happens but the floor looks great!

[@ELMarTiLL0]

Excellent Job, I'm impressed with your attention to detail in all your other videos as well, My Question though is " Is there a way to get rid of the nail holes in a wood floor" ? I saw how you pushed them in, but is there a way to blend them in so as they are not so visible, My OCD was is bothering me on this ... 🤔

[@Tom_Losh]

Beautiful! 😍

[@careysharp8340]

Well done sir 👏

[@broncoramfan]

1 great job. You can really tell the difference between an expert and a novice. 2 did you sand after the sealer coat? 3 traffic hd for the win. I loved that stuff when I was in the trade. 4 how difficult is the learning curve on the trio? 5 once again great job

[@HowToSandAFloor]

I never sand the sealer coat, I don’t think you should either, I only lightly abrade before the final coat

[@tomthompson7400]

@@HowToSandAFloor is that like sanding ?

[@HowToSandAFloor]

@@tomthompson7400 yes

[@watchthe1369]

You leave the baseboards in place in common practice over there? We usually pull them up and reset them when we have the pattern.

[@stukaman1162]

Here's an idea: (1) determine whose homes this same contractor also worked on and ruined the floors. (2) schedule a brief meeting with the owners. (3) Bring this video with you. (4) Have ready a few contracts for your floor recovery services. (5) Expect to get really busy - you earned it.

[@RJ-ue3ub]

I don't think he needs more contracts. I suppose he already is very busy. Good idea though

[@TheFool2cool]

That's one shiny estwing hammer, I wish mine still looked like that!

[@803brando]

as someone that paints cars i see some similarities in technique. that "cross-hatch" sanding method is the only way to get something flat.

[@Pow3llMorgan]

Way I know this man takes pride in his professionality is that he has different shoes for the different stages of work and goes bare socks for the finish. :P

[@robynmacneil3554]

The homeowners must have fell to their knees. It's an unbelievable transformation. Wow, wow, wow.

[@robkaratzas963]

very informative, especially with the extra links :)

[@fredericksullivan7925]

We countersink screw our floors then leave it for the layers to finish cause that's an art in itself with special knowledge.

[@edro3838]

I’d say that’s how it’s done the right way. Quality job right there.

[@martbouv3332]

and this everything in only 14 min ? man ure world class 😝

[@ianemery7785]

Is nailing the normal thing in US? My father, uncle and cousin were wood floor layers here in UK for many years and all flooring they did was secret nailed or glued so I was very surprised seeing your opening minutes where you were punching the nail heads. Watching your video took me back many, many years.

[@JohnathanLingo]

We do a lot of tongue and groove flooring here in the states with no exposed nails. I used to rent the nail guns to do it, so I know it used to be very popular. ;)

[@PortersMob]

Depends on the age of the floor, before pneumatic nailing many floors were face nailed with hand made nails. Though i have been in a few newer houses that were built to look older and included face nailed flooring because thats what the customer wanted.

[@barristanselmy2758]

What a fucking outstanding job you did here. My hats off to you sir. 100% Pro work. The care and love you showed to this persons floor was like it's your own.

[@Ragnar8504]

Rewatching this video. Looking at the light streaks I wonder if the builder actually sanded perpendicular to the grain and his sander left some grooves that show up as light streaks because they're the only places where he actually removed all the old finish. I had grooves like that on my first DIY jobs using Lagler Profit sanders from three or four different hire places. To this day I don't know if that was a user error or if all of the machines had the same fault.

[@mrlatino1964]

Beautiful work....

[@F0reverYoung]

Good job!

[@electorofsaxony7646]

Fantastic as always. One million subscribers is well within your grasp

[@HowToSandAFloor]

My goodness I hope so! 😂

[@cptmuska]

Good job man.

[@gferguson73]

Another great video Ben, love getting a notification saying you uploaded a new vid, floor looks great after your work as always mate keep up the good work 👍

[@HowToSandAFloor]

That’s really nice to hear that, I often wonder if I should upload without notifying subscribers so I don’t annoy them 😂

[@gferguson73]

@@HowToSandAFloor well it's upto the viewers if they want to be notified or not, most people don't turn on the bell notifications but I did because I do the same work as yourself and I learned alot from your channel. So I be buzzing to see each video 👍

[@fireofsev]

Wonderful work. That is a fortune in equipment!

[@Yuritau]

I used to work at a hardware store selling flooring, and you make the floors everyone was dreaming of when they bought the pre-finished tongue & groove planks from us, lol.

[@SilvaDreams]

Oof, those things are such a trap. My mother wanted to get those to redo part of our house when I was a teen, luckily I was smart enough to pick them up look at them and convinced her it wasn't worth it.

[@paulperrin2152]

Quality work

[@archangel_yt8116]

Imma guess its because sanding with the grain doesnt show high and low points. Where if you sand diagnally, because youre hitting multiple boards at once, instead of staying on one board, it brings everything down to a more flush finish. Which also will help with the final result and how it looks

[@Doniekp60]

Excellent finish to that floor, I had reclaimed oak flooring layed (secrect nailed) recently, some of the toungue and groove joints may have a little playin them and can squeak when walked on. What is the best way to fix? Also there are open knots in some of the boards them, should i fill these before sanding? what would be a rough idea on the cost of finishing a floor? 120m2

[@chriskirsten8221]

whats the best poly if you dont want any stain and just want to see the natural color of your hardwood?

[@j444nsy4]

Nice work mate and great videos. You really know what you’re doing. I myself have been doing this job for 20 years plus. I’m looking to invest in a Bona Flexi sand 1.9. Do you use one or similar? Also, I used a new product from Bona. Classic prime ux It keeps the floor looking totally natural with no yellowing. Then two coats of mega one.

[@mr.kenslifeshop4034]

Never saw a pneumatic nail punch nice work!! Milwaukee or Makita make a cordless!!

[@MmmChipotle]

Hey what's up man! I have the exact same hammer!!

[@akinun]

Wish we had a pro like you around here

[@Christopher_S]

Ohhhhh you're the guy that was taken to court by a customer who was a lawyer. I was recommended that video when it was released, and this one today. I thought you looked familiar so checked your channel out to see I've seen that one before. I hope you got all of that nonsense sorted out, this was a great video!

[@OutlawNix]

If someone did not point out the problem with the floor and I bought the house. At least from the view of the floor at 0:49 I would not even bother redoing the floor if that's how it looked. That's cause I kinda like that aged wood flooring type of look.

[@Tien1million]

What chemical was used to mix with the saw dust to make the wood filler?