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Domestic Sanding Philosophy

Our Philosophy,

Not any craftsman can work in a domestic scenario, to us it’s the cream of floor refurbishment and finishing, unlike large scale site work, where quality never seems to be of any real importance, timescales are tight and don’t really give a damn attitude reigns.

The Domestic market is flooded with floor sanding firms touting there trade, because of the lack of large scale site jobs. Commercial sanding companies are now seeking work in domestic sectors, to stay afloat, in the current economic climate. Fair play to those companies, after all we all have families and lifestyles to keep. Problem is most site workers have little domestic knowledge, Poor people skills, bad attitudes, foul language, untidiness, lack of attention to detail, and the same don’t give a damn outlook on the profession. These factors have all come into play lately, which seems to tar all tradesman with the same brush. Don’t get me wrong there are plenty of excellent sanders out there capable of 100m2 of hardwood sanding a day, but being an excellent sander is not just what it takes to strive in the domestic market.

Amongst quality you need knowledge of all types of floor styles, wood types, Flooring products

Quality.

County floor sanders key to pleasing it’s customers is to maintain the highest quality standard of sanding and finishing to all projects, we work swiftly, clean and tidy, Always being polite, punctual and willing, Communication with our customers is vital, sharing our knowledge giving advise on what’s best for our customers and not ourselves, Always going out of our way to give that tiny bit more to be that tiny bit better at what we do than anyone else.

We are not members of any trade guilds or associations, as we have found that these companies are really only interested in large membership fees, there are never any problems for anyone, wanting to join these associations, as long as they have the money to pay there subscriptions and can sign their own name, A Company being a member of any trade associations, does not guarantee they will give a good service or carry out a good job.

County floor sanders lets its reputation speak for itself, we can supply you with names and telephone numbers of all recent customers that have been serviced by us. we also carry out high spec work for many high profile people and since refurbishing the floor in his home, come highly recommended by Tommy Walsh, T.V celebrity builder.

Floor cannot be rushed, rushed floors will look rushed and wear fast. use cheap products, get an inferior job, pay peanuts get monkeys, we are not cheap, we charge a fair rate for what we do, we are highly competitively priced for the type of quality and service we give.

When our floor sanders come to your home they bring

Professionalism

Ability

Knowledge

Quality

Manners

Respect for your home

Respect for you

Respect for our surroundings

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Our Flooring Services

Services

Repairs

All types of repairs are undertaken including Board replacements, Fireplace removal and Re-weaves, Block floor repairs and re-gluing

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Tidying up old floorboards
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Replaced with matching reclaimed boards

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sanding

Using Superb quality, 98% Dust Free Sanding Technology by Frank, Bona and Laglar, Our highly skilled and highly experienced teams are capable of bringing even the poorest floors up to an excellent standard with minimal disruption to your home.

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Specialised Trio Orbital sander

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Stair treads and risers sanded, stained and sealed

 

Stair Sanding

Old pine staircases can be repaired, refurbished and brought back to a virtually
original state.

 

 

Sealing / Varnishing

Horses for courses is a phrase we use quite often, As the type of Seal / Varnish / Laquer we use, largely depends on the type of wood your floor is made of and the type of look you are trying to achieve.

Oil modified Varnish is lovely on Oak, but not so nice on new Pine.

Hard wax oil Is always a pleasure to use and complements hardwood to the max, but beware it does need regular maintenance.

Polyurethane Waterbourne Varnish is the most versatile of all the Varnishes we use its great on any type of flooring, Finishes available in Matt, Matt Silk and Gloss.

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Staining

Whatever colour your thinking we are sure to be able to achieve your every wish, The dyes we use leave the timber looking natural as all grain and variation is shown through our Light Fast stain. You can have an off the shelf colour or let us create almost any colour or shade using our own mixing methods.

 

Colour Washing / Tinting

Using the Latest methods we can create diferent levels of colour, warmth and opacity, from a simple white or Cream wash to a complete colour change using universal tints.

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Gap Filling

Gap filling between Floorboards is something thats quite new to the trade, Since rennovation of Pine floors has became so popular in recent years the demand to fill gaps has became greater and greater, But beware poor ventillation, Seasonal climate changes, Eratic heating methods or boards working loose over time can all make it drop out, Pine is renowned for moving and floor brads can work loose over time, Gap filling can never be guaranteed but every effort is made to keep it in.

 

 

Mastic Gap filling (Floor Fudge)

Using Bona gap fill, Blanchon floor fudge or Unika coloured mastic, we can fill gaps between floorboards which is flexible and so will not fall out or crack, Available in a variety of colours to match or contrast with your exsisting floor colour. Mastic fillers are also re-sandable.

 

 

Sand only Service

If you would like to save money, then why not use our sanding only service, we will give plenty of advice on how to varnish the floor yourselves and even supply you with varnish or wax for your desired finish.

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Screen/Scrub and Seal

For a fraction of the cost of a re-sand, why not get your already finished floors revitalised and add another 5 – 7 years to the life of your floor varnish.

 

 

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Frequently Asked Questions

oak sanding

Are Quotations free? – Yes between the hours of 930 am
and 430 pm Monday – Friday

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Steps and Risers Sanded, Stained Dark Oak and Sealed

Do you have to see the job before you start work? – We
like to view larger jobs and heavy repairs, but  are happy to do single rooms and hallways without first viewing, sending a photo helps a great deal.

Is the process dust free? – We use 95% dust free machines for the majority of the process, but fine sanding on the finish can cause a little dust, we make every effort to hoover up all remaining dust before we varnish.

Should we decorate before or after the sanding process? –
In our opinion we are less likely to ruin your decor than a
decorator has of ruining a freshly laquered floor, however
well they can mask up, one spill can ruin the finish.
Skirtings do get marked and will need re-touching.

As a standard how many coats or varnish to you apply?
Unless specified we apply 3 coats when using waterbourne
varnish or 2 coats of hardwax.

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Floor board gaps mass filled with sawdust and resin mix

Can you fill all the gaps in my Pine floorboards? – We can if we feel the filler has a chance of holding.

Can we see a sample of stain colours? – We approve stain colous on site, on the actual floor, our stain charts give you a guide.

Can you lime our floors? – We use colour washing to achieve this effect. Its environmentally friendly and does not damage the wood

Is Hardwax a good idea? – It looks and feels great, brings out the real beauty and lustre in the wood, but does require routine maintenance.What is waterbourne seal? – Its waterbased Polyurethane, comes in finishes of Matt, Satin/Slk and Gloss. We apply 3 good Coats.

Can you remove a firehearth in my bedroom? – In Most cases yes. We blend in the repair with reclaimed floorboardsHow long roughly should it take to complete projects? – If you allow a day per room then that will give you a rough idea.

Do we need to clear all furniture before you arrive? – Yes, usually our prices are based on working from a clear room unless specified.

Prices what do they start from? – The costing to sand and laquer a 4m x 4m room with pine floorboards is approximately  £350.00 (No Vat To Add)

What Products do you use? – Generally we use the Junckers range on our commercial projects and Granwax for Granwood floors, Granwax have been in the flooring business since 1912, based in the UK, they offer the highest quality chemicals with the lowest VOC content in comparison to any other manufacturer in the world. We also use Bonakemi, Blanchon, Osmo and Blanchon Hardwaxes.

Can you provide references? -We have a long list of very satisfied customers and are happy to give details of our most recent ones on request.

What are your payment terms? – On one day jobs we will require payment in full on completion, we accept Cash or BACS
On jobs scaling more than 1 day we will require a deposit of 30% cleared funds, BACS or Cheque at least 4 days prior to our appointment or cash deposit on the day we start. Final payment to be made by cash or Bacs on day of completion

Do you take away all the sanding debris? – Sorry we can no longer offer this as part of our service, Our vehicles are not licensed to carry waste, and believe it or not we would actually be breaking the law. We will leave all debris suitably bagged for your disposal.

Is it true that its easier to sand and finish a wood floor without staining? – TRUE, preparing floors for staining requires more attention to detail and extremely even sanding, as colourings will show of any imperfections, where as a clear natural finish does not.

Staining floors is not that difficult itself, the key is in the preperation thats needed to get good results, 70% of our jobs are stain and colouring jobs, Company’s offering sand and seals only are probably not competent enough to offer this service as it envolves so much more finishing and attention to detail than simply sanding and varnishing. Excuses our customers have heard lately from other companies are: “You can’t stain pine”, “Our stainer has left the country for two weeks”. Any professional floor sander worth there salt should be able to prep a floor for stain, No excuse.

What woods are difficult to stain? – In my experience i find Maple and some poor grades of beech extremely hard to stain without getting blotcheness, Dark woods can only be stained darker.