I have wood floors and one area in front of door is down to bare wood. I don’t want the hassle or expense or redoing the whole room. Is it possible to get a small area refinished? I understand that it wouldn’t match the rest of the floor, but it doesn’t match now anyway.
Yes. It probably needs to be cleaned and sanded first, and then you can coat it with whatever you want. A professional can do a very good job that no one would notice, except maybe you. If you do it yourself it might be noticeable, but as you say, it already doesn’t match. Besides, no matter what it looks like when you’re done, you can just throw a rug over it.
BTW: What kind of finish do you have on the floors now?
Thanks Tripolar. I’ll do a little research on professionals–I guess I assumed they wouldn’t take such a small job.
I think it’s poly, but the last time they were done was before we bought the house. I know there are tests I can do to figure out what it is, denatured alcohol and the like, if I decide to do it myself.
It could also be a varnish or shellac. Clear shellac is an easy finish, but it can take a number of coats. There are likely YouTube videos on how to apply it yourself.
If the finish starts to come off with mineral spirits, then oil or wax. If it gets tacky with alcohol then shellac. If it gets tacky with aceone then varnish (polyurethane or another kind).
All are easy enough to recoat. Unless someone put wax over shellac or varnish.
I prefer using re coating w thinned shellac. Can put it in over anything but wax.
If you are a little bit competent with a paintbrush you can probably refinish the small area yourself with a little effort. You are looking at a minimum of about $250 for a contractor to come in and do such a thing; it just the economics of small jobs.
You can more than likely use a water based Urethane finish that is rated for flooring -Varathane for instance. With a little bit of sanding it will bond to most wood finishes sufficiently. Just pick the appropriate sheen to match your floor; gloss, semigloss, satin. If you want to bring out the wood grain you will have to pre-treat it with oil or use an oil based finish instead.
Most modern flooring is going to have been finished with urethane anyway. Site finished hardwood done in the last ten years will probably be finished with Bona Traffic, a two part urethane using a catalyst hardener - just not easy to find in small quantities. Pre-finished hardwood is usually finished with a UV hardened urethane. Older floors may be alkyd, or varnish but urethane should still stick to them. A shellac finish is pretty unlikely, it is not well suited for the purpose and is getting expensive now anyway. Lacquer is not recommended as it can get really slippery.
If you want to colour match the old floor you can try prepping the repair area with Danish oil, its available in several tints.
Thanks for the replies, really useful. I may do it myself, I find myself taking on too many projects around the home but this seems very doable.