• Refurbish wood flooring for a bright, new look.texture of red wood - can be used as background image by Elnur from Fotolia.com
  
  Without refurbishing, a wood floor appears dull over time. It drags the entire room down, giving a bright room a grimy and cramped appearance. Refurbishing a wood floor involves any process that helps it regain a fresh, new look. Refurbish your own wood floor to dramatically change the look of the room.
  
  

Always Scrub First

• Before performing any type of refurbishing to a wood floor, completely clean the floor. Any dust or dirt on the floor leads to scratches and unsightly streaks in the final product and problems with the finish sticking on the floor. Vacuum the wood floor, and use a damp mop to clean it. Use only a small amount of water, and dry the floor immediately after it is clean.
  
  

Prepare for Detail Work

• If you are sanding the floor in preparation for painting or applying a gloss, use a drum sander and an edger. While both of these tools are versatile, they will not get into all the corners of the room. To sand the small corners of the room, use a piece of sandpaper or a scraper. Plant the edge of the scraper in the corner, and drag it towards you, abrading the finish to ensure that you pull the finish off completely.
  
  

Work Towards the Door

• When applying a finish or paint to the floor, start in the furthest corner from the door, and work backwards towards the doorway. It is possible to paint yourself into a corner, where the only solution is to sit in the corner overnight while the finish dries or to ruin portions of the finish by walking on it.
  
  

Clean After Sanding

• After you have sanded the flooring, clean it again. Do not use water as the water will soak into the newly sanded wood. Instead run a vacuum carefully over the floor, picking up as much of the sawdust as possible. Sawdust on the floor prevents the finish from adhering properly and causes the final result to look dull and uneven.
  
  

Use Filler

• Where the wooden floor has gouges or noticeably deep scratching, clean out the scratch and apply latex wood filler. Smooth the latex with a putty knife until it is level with the rest of the floor, and allow it to dry for half an hour, which gives you a smooth floor surface to work with.