Remember back in February when the leak from the seal on the toilet in the second floor bathroom led to us tearing down the ceiling in the library? Remember how the project just had one complication after another after another? Remember the scary looking broken joists? Well, thanks to A. kicking my rear end a bit, it is finally complete. Almost.
I still have to make some crown moulding to fit the space, and I have to put the endcaps on the radiators, but that's little stuff. The room is now usable, for the first time since February! One can walk in there without tracking out dust!
It is at this point that I want to give a big shout-out to Perpetual Renovator. In that post, she discusses a product, Restore-a-Finish, which she has had good luck with in the past. I used it on the floors in the library, which were all scratched up because someone failed to properly cover the floor before beginning demolition and also had lots of water spotting from the previously mentioned leak. The floors don't look like new, but they look a lot better - enough so that I'm no longer in trouble. After using the Restore-a-Finish on the floor, I finished it with Feed-n-Wax.
Now I just have to get to work on fixing the table that my computer will sit on.
Photos taken by the always lovely and tolerant A.
8 comments:
Once you have the library finished, you plan to quit, right? I mean, as a librarian your duty will then be done. Looks really nice!
Someone will be needed to maintain and update the collection - I think I can fit that into my job description, I hope. And there are all those other rooms that need massive bookcases. A librarian's work is never done.
That's looking gorgeous!
How much did you have to prep the floors to use the Restore-a-Finish? I'd never heard of it but am super curious after checking out Perpetual Renovator---we have a water-based finish on our oak floors and they desperately need help (mostly due to a rather large and excitable dog), but we have neither money nor energy to clear everything out and actually refinish them. This is an intriguing option if I could get results anything close to these!
Artemis, there wasn't that much prep work involved. I'd guesstimate that this room, which is about 10x12, took three hours total, over the course of two days.
First we mopped the floor several times to remove all the drywall dust - this was not included in the above calculation.
For surfaces showing more wear, you use very fine (0000) steel wool to apply Restore-a-Finish. This takes longer than applying it with a rag, but it helps to really work it into the floor as well as smoothing out the scratches. After a few minutes, a rag is used to wipe up any excess.
The manufacturer recommends using Feed-n-Wax afterwards, which we did, the next day. The wax is rubbed on much like any other wax, then allowed to sit, and buffed off.
We found the results to be very satisfying. The product doesn't remove the scratches from the floor, but it does help them to blend in. The floor doesn't have quite as much of a shine as I might expect, given the effort I put into polishing the wax.
It's definitely worth a try.
You have a truly beautiful, elegant and inviting library. You should be very pleased.
love the library and those floors!
I just found a tudor that I want to buy/FIX. UH OH!
http://tinyurl.com/ybvkb4z
I think it's SO FUNNY that both products you used are three word brands separated by dashes with one letter in the middle! What if all home improvement products/experiences had to follow this model?
Chelsea and Liam - I gave that place a drive-by today after my weekly visit to Home Depot. Nice place. Go for it!
Holyoke - they were both made by the same company. That's the only excuse I'm giving them. If I had to use a third such product in a given writeup, I think I might explode.
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