I’m sanding some pine floors in an old house (1916). I have a lot of experience with new floors but very little with old floors. When I use the edger, the old finish seems to melt, then gums up the sanding disc after only a few feet. I’ve tried moving fast, raising the edger slightly, with the grain, against the grain, 36 grit thru 100 grit paper, all to no avail. Finish also reconstitutes with acetone. Any ideas on what the old finish would be, and how to deal with it? Thanks, k
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Have you already sanded the field or are you starting with the edge.
With an old finish hard to tell what it is. Is this the first time refinishing or has it been recoated you have no idea.
It could be shellac with wax (a french polish finish). Would explain the gumming. What about denatured alcohol does it dissolve the finish? If so probably shellac.
If you had no problem with sanding the field there just may be no wear on the edges no one walks there, if you have not sanded the field you probably will have the same problem with it. I had this happen with a small room fir floor that was painted just uses lots of paper,
If you are only worried about the edge and it is shellac lots of rags and alcohol is one way. Small sections use the alcohol as you would paint thinner.
I don't know if it would would work, but Porter Cable makes a carbide disk
for removing paint as well as the tool, the disks can be soaked in paint remover to unclog them. Watching the correct rpm they might work in an edger.
Agin if it is just the edges you could hand scrape, then sand.
Wallyo
I had to use liquid stripper on a few of my pine floors in my c:1680 house (see website below then the Goose hill Rd. Project).They were painted and it immediately gummed up my drum sander's paper. after I liquid stripped it I then used the drum sander.
Sometimes ya gotta do whatcha gotta do.
Hi, I feel for you. That stuff is shellac and floor sanders hate it. The best answer I've found is a spray bottle of kerosene and keep spraying ahead of you as you edge. It's messy and smelly, as if you already ain't making enough stink.
I would recommend the first cut be done with #4 grit. Then 36 grit for a second time around. then 80 grit to finish up. At least the last two cuts will go without gumming up.
Alcohol will also cut shellac. If perchance there has never been a coat of another type of varnish on top of that shellac, you could remove it with alcohol. Chance are pretty slim because ordinarily shellac was used before world war 2 and pretty much forgotten about after that so it's pretty hard to expect that a floor hasn't had a coat of something put on for the last 70 years. I hope this helps, Mesic