[al_mo]

Hi All!

I have knackered the floorboards under my desk. They are pine and my roller chair has killed them.

I know that I should have done something sooner, but haven't been able to.

Please can I get some advise for repairing them. They don't need to be showroom, but really just want to get them back to OK and being protected.

Help very much appreciated. Link for the high resolution money shot photos:
http://goo.gl/tSLBP

p.s. yes it is a schoolboy error!

 

[Dave Paine]

Places like Staples and Office Depot sell clear plastic mats which would have prevented this damage.

You can sand the boards to fix the rough surface and splinters, but you will have low spots, and unless you move your desk, these will get worse.

The best repair will be to replace the affected boards.

I do not see a quick fix. Sorry.

 

[al_mo]

Thanks Dave, I have now bought a clear mat that sits over the top so hopefully this works.

Do you think it is worth applying filler to help stick down and fill the surface a little first? Also should it be completely sanded smooth first, or will a lacquer, sand, repeat be better?

 

[Steve Neul]

As bad as this spot is I can't see any other fix than to refinish the floor in the entire room. It would take too much sanding on that one spot to just touch up. If you just need to try to touch it up I wouldn't attempt to sand it, I would just get a can of Wood Classics polyurethane varnish and put a thin coat of varnish on the spot every evening and let it dry. Eventually you will get enough varnish on the spot it will hold together the loose pieces of wood and will stop further deterioration. Then someday when you are able, you can refinish the entire floor.

In the future if you don't put down a mat or rug, if you would just brush a coat of varnish on the floor under the desk once every couple of months you should be able to maintain the finish.

 

[jack warner]

pull them and replace. then re finish the hole floor

 

[al_mo]

Thanks all - is refinishing the whole floor a big job? This is a rental place and the rest of the large room is perfect. Just this small 1ft damage on three boards... I was hoping to lacquer it a few times and sand and smooth and see if it looks ok :-S

 

[denyoung]

File and sand them first before applying any polish or finishing. There is no other way to fix it than doing those 3.

 

[Steve Neul]

If you managed to rent a good floor sander you could sand the floor and get some finish started over a weekend. The problem with working one spot is the color. If you just worked one end of the room you could never get the color to match. The wood and the old finish is yellowed and it would just show a line where you stopped. That is why I said if you were just going to touch up the spot not to sand it, but to just start putting varnish on it. It would just make the defect bigger. Also to sand that much in one small area you would be able to see a dip in the floor from across the room. You would need to sand a much larger area to feather out the dip.

 

[jack warner]

since its a rental just put a plastic protector over it at let the owner deal with it. id take pics and send them to the owner so you dont get the blame