Parketline Nna parquet archive: a journal about wood floors

An independent journal about wood floors and parquet. Not a manufacturer, shop or workshop, and not affiliated with the previous website on this domain. Leave sanding and complex repairs to a craftsman.

Planning

Planning the work

An old floor often looks hopeless when all it needs is good care. The opposite happens too: a tired subfloor hides under fresh lacquer. Refinishing parquet is easier to plan if you do not rush the decision and break it into clear stages — from a calm inspection to signing off on the finished work.

Sanding removes a thin layer of wood from the floor, and that layer will not grow back. So first ask whether care or a recoat will do, and only then about full restoration.

— From the editors

How this section works: we describe the general order of preparing to refinish a floor, without timelines, estimates or process charts. The specific scope of work, materials and sequence are determined by a craftsman after an inspection, and the conditions for applying the finish by the lacquer or oil manufacturer.

How to approach refinishing a floor

  1. Inspection

    In daylight, walk across the whole room and note creaks, sagging, gaps, worn paths, stains and swelling. Write down where they are and take photos: this makes it easier to explain to a craftsman what concerns you.

  2. Decision

    Decide what the floor needs: regular care, a recoat of the top layer of finish without removing wood, or restoration with sanding and strip replacement. A craftsman will help you choose, but it is useful to know the options in advance.

  3. Choosing a finish

    Lacquer gives a durable film and easy daily cleaning, oil a natural look and spot repairs, wax a soft, warm sheen with more frequent care. Think about who lives in the house, whether there are pets and how much attention you are ready to give the floor.

  4. Craftsman and estimate

    Invite a craftsman for an inspection and ask for a written description of the work: what will be done, which materials and finish, who removes the debris. An estimate that lists the stages helps you compare offers and avoid misunderstandings.

  5. Preparing the room

    Clear the room of furniture, take down curtains that would collect dust, cover the vents and close off adjoining rooms. Agree on where belongings will be stored and how family members and pets will get around the room.

  6. Sign-off

    Inspect the work in good light: look at the floor against the light, walk on it, check the edges at the walls and thresholds. Ask when you can walk on it and put furniture back, and keep the care instructions for the new finish.

Humidity and the seasons

Wood changes size along with the humidity of the air: taking up moisture, it swells slightly; giving it up, it shrinks. That is why a wood floor "breathes" with the seasons, and this is a normal property of the material, not a defect.

In winter, heating dries the air, and thin gaps appear between the strips. In summer, especially in damp weather, they close, and with too much moisture the boards may cup. Seasonal gaps should not be hastily filled with rigid filler: in summer the wood will need that room.

The best thing you can do is keep the room's humidity within the range given by the flooring manufacturer and monitor it with a hygrometer. If the gaps do not close all year round or the floor buckles, discuss the cause with a craftsman.

Questions for the craftsman

  • What finish is on the floor now, and how did you determine it
  • Is there enough wood left for sanding, or is a recoat the better choice
  • Why does the floor creak, and is it related to the subfloor
  • What finish do you suggest, and how should it be cared for afterward
  • How will you control dust and ventilate the room during the work
  • When will it be possible to walk on the floor, put furniture back and lay rugs
  • Materials

    Strip and inlaid parquet, engineered and solid planks, parquet panels, end-grain blocks and wood species. The article catalogue lives here too.

  • Care

    Caring for lacquer, oil and wax, light and dark floors, entryways and sunny rooms, the seasonal check.

  • FAQ

    Answers about the journal, choosing and laying a wood floor, care and repairs.

Sources

  • Technical documentation from manufacturers of parquet, lacquers and oils
  • EMERCOM of Russia — home fire safety guidance

Information about wood floors is given in general terms, based on encyclopedic and etymological dictionaries, technical documentation from manufacturers of parquet, lacquers and oils, and home fire safety guidance from Russia's emergency services ministry (EMERCOM). How to treat your particular floor is up to its manufacturer, and the condition of the floor and subfloor should be judged by a craftsman who sees them in person.