Sanding of Wooden Floors a GUIDE in the CORRECT USE of FLOOR SANDING MACHINES 1

USEFUL TIPS FROM START TO FINISH

Sanding of wooden floors A GUIDE IN THE CORRECT USE OF FLOOR SANDING MACHINES 1

SANDING WOODEN FLOORS

Sanding wooden floors

Wooden floors are on the rise. The be maintained. Most important for as well as the D.I.Y.-guy a few tips beauty of nature gives comfort and the looks of the wooden floors is with this manual in order to ensure prestige. They can be used any- the sanding job. The LÄGLER com- the best results on the floor. where in the house and are easy to pany wants to give the professional

How to use this manual

1. Preparing the floor for sanding ...... 3 2. How to choose grits properly ...... 4 3. Important items while working with HUMMEL ...... 6 4. Floor sanding with a belt sanding machine HUMMEL ...... 8 5. Fine sanding with HUMMEL or TRIO ...... 12 6. Edging with edge sanding machine UNICO ...... 14 7. Working with other machines ...... 16 8. Removal of cracks and joints ...... 19 9. Last cut ...... 19 10. Varnishing of wooden floors ...... 19 11. Intermediate sanding with TRIO ...... 20 12. Final coat ...... 21 13. Maintenance of coated wooden floors ...... 21 14. Special tips and safety ...... 21 Safety precautions ...... 23

The following manual shows the The writer can not be held responsi- most common methods. For special ble for any accidents or damages re- appliances use these methods as a sulting from the use of this manual. base and adjust.

2 1

PREPARING THE FLOOR FOR SANDING

Preparing the floor for sanding

NEW FLOOR

For best results and a safe work- pieces of your floor have to be fas- ing environment the floor has to tened. be cleaned before sanding! Loose

OLD FLOOR

Check for nailheads on old floors. Joints that are wider than 1/24“ (1 mm) To remove old paint try to do your Use a punch to sink them into the have to be closed with pieces of sanding only backwards. wood. Sanding over them may dam- wood. Wide joints cannot be closed age your sanding belt or sanding durably with a filler. Skirts have to be drum and leave marks on the floor removed for proper edging. later on!

CHECK THE KIND OF FLOORING

Mosaic parquetry: All the cuts have Strip flooring and planks: All the Exception: Old planks with big dif- to be done in a 45° angle in order to rough cutting has to be done in a ferences in height. First cut with avoid different abrasion on soft and 7° - 15° angle. The fine cuts are done the plank to level the high points. hard grain. in direction of the wood. Then proceede as with regular strip flooring.

Old worn out planks first ... then rough sanding cut along the plank ... under a 7° - 15° angle to level the floor.

Fig. 1 How to level old plank floors.

3 2 2

HOW TO CHOOSE GRITS

How to choose grits properly

The natural beauty of a wooden floor and soiling. After the rough cut the Start with as fine a grit as possible. only shows after proper sanding. floor has to be leveled. The fine grits Quality of work, speed and expenses are only used to remove the sanding are a direct result of your choice of The choice of grits and the amount marks of the rough grits. grits. of cuts on a new floor depend on overwood and underwood, soiling Never jump more than one grit. Fine sanding belts are cheaper and uneveness. Figures 2 to 6 show Otherwise you will have a hard time than rough ones! the importance of the sequence to remove the marks of the one of grits. The rough grit is used to before. remove overwood and underwood

COMMON SEQUENCE OF GRIT!

G16 G24 G30 G36 G40 G50 G60 G80 G100 G120 G150

Fig. 2 That´s your normal range of grids.

THE GRIT The grit of a sandpaper tells you the size of one grain. To separate the different grain a riddle is used. The number of the grit gives you the amount of meshes of a riddle per square inch.

4 2 2

HOW TO CHOOSE GRITS

Fig. 3 Sequence of grit for floor sanding. The proper sequence is most important for your succes.

Fig.4 If you jump too far from one grit to the next it is im- possible to remove sanding marks.

Fig. 5 Time and amount removed 3 cuts G 40 - G 60 - G 80

Fig. 6 Using finer grit on the first cut you need less time and waste less wood.

5 3 3

WORKING WITH HUMMEL

Important items while working with HUMMEL

RELATION BETWEEN OFFSET AND WASTE

One pass means: Lower drum, move backwards in the same track, lift Big offset brings less waste and vice forward to turning point, lift drum, drum when you reach starting point. versa. reverse direction, lower drum, move

Fig. 7 Your offset influences your waste.

6 3 3

WORKING WITH HUMMEL

PRESSURE SETTING IN RELATION TO THE SEQUENCE OF GRIT

Your HUMMEL has three pressure GROB (rough), MITT (medium), FEIN settings, that are related to the grits. (fine).

Fig.8 Fig 9 Adjust drumpressure according to grit you use. Adjust your walking speed to the grit you use. Fast Fine grit means low drumpressure. walking means fine grit.

WALKING SPEED IN RELATION TO SEQUENCE OF GRIT

Your walking speed has to be even much faster with a belt sander than Fast walking => less waste! and not too slow. You have to walk with a drum sander.

7 4 4

FLOOR SANDING WITH HUMMEL

Floor sanding with a belt sanding machine HUMMEL

TEST CUTTING

In order to avoid deep sanding marks If you are satisfied start working. If or consider to do two fast cuts with it is better to start with a fine grit. you are not either go down one step your fine grit. Do your first pass with grit 50 or 60.

Fig. 10 Working plan for the HUMMEL

8 4 4

FLOOR SANDING WITH HUMMEL

STARTING

As you see in figure 11 always start One pass means forward and back- ing and turning points of your second on the left and offset to your right. ward in the same track (see fig. 7). cut should be in another area than If you do it the other way your left Never offset more than 85% of your the ones of your first cut. Never stop hand side wheel will always run on drum. with a lowered drum. the uneven floor and transfers all the waves directly to the drum. You will Try to have your starting and turning not get an even floor! points in areas with less light. Start-

Fig. 11 Always offset to the right so your left hand side wheelrruns already sanded part all time.

9 4

FLOOR SANDING WITH HUMMEL

SANDING ACCORDING TO SEQUENCE OF GRIT

Each square in figure 12 symbolizes two choices of grit, left hand and for the right one in the first square, one cut. In every symbol you have right hand bottom side. If you opted stick to it in the second square.

HOW TO WORK THE DIAGRAM

• Check your kind of floor (strip, • If you are not satisfied with the • If you use a HUMMEL for fine sand- mosaic or else). result of one cut it´s possible to ing you have to consider the main repeat it. direction of the wood. • Do a test sanding with grit 50/60 and then decide which way to go. • We recommend the use of the three-disc sanding machine TRIO • Your advancement in the diagram for the fine sanding. That is the only depends on the looks of the floor machine that guarantees an even after the cut. floor without sanding marks.

ATTENTION

Stick to your sequence of grit and Check your wheels and drums for don´t jump more than one. residues before you start on a new job and after the first cuts on old To ensure good quality sanding you floors. have to clean your floor after each cut.

10 4

FLOOR SANDING WITH HUMMEL

Fig. 12 Diagramm for use of HUMMEL

11 5

FINE SANDING WITH TRIO OR HUMMEL

Fine sanding with TRIO or HUMMEL

FINE SANDING WITH TRIO

TRIO starts with grit 60 on wood. In most cases you could get around If you are redoing laminated floors Either use paper or mesh and go up with 60 paper or mesh. The direction and don´t succeed with 60 grit it is in grit depending on the kind of finish of sanding doesn´t matter with TRIO possible to go down to 40 grit. you want. but it is advis-able to move forward all the time. Remember the system of TRIO gives you a very fine, dust free sanding job.

Any direction possible with TRIO!

Fig. 13 Diagramm for use of TRIO

12 5

FINE SANDING WITH TRIO OR HUMMEL

FINE SANDING WITH HUMMEL

Fine sanding with HUMMEL is similar Don´t walk too slow with your fine Set your pressure according to grit. to rough sanding. paper to avoid waves. Use less pressure, finer paper and walk faster on soft wood. Check the direction of your san- Check your sequence of grit. ding.

Fig. 14 Diagramm for use of HUMMEL

13 6

EDGE SANDING WITH UNICO

Edge sanding with UNICO

Check your sequence of grit while more aggressiveness adjust the HUMMEL/TRIO paper sanding with UNICO. angle of the sanding disc. => UNICO paper TRIO mesh => UNICO mesh Guide your machine in a rotating Always keep moving to avoid sanding movement along the edges. faults. Always use the same sanding material to avoid differences on the Don´t exert additional pressure. For floor.

Fig. 15 Diagramm for use of UNICO

14 6

EDGE SANDING WITH UNICO

Fig. 16 Move the edger in a rotating fashion without pressure along the edges.

15 7

WORKING WITH OTHER MACHINES

Working with other machines

PROFIT Fig. 17 shows you a diagram for the use Basically the same rules apply as for of the DIY machine PROFIT. HUMMEL.

Fig. 17 Diagram for use of PROFIT

FLIP Fig. 18 shows you a diagram for the use disc are higher than on UNICO so you of the stair and edge sanding machine have to move a little bit faster with this FLIP. Keep in mind that the rpm on the one!

Fig. 18 Diagram for use of FLIP

16 7 7 7

WORKING WITH OTHER MACHINES

ELAN Fig. 19 shows you a diagram for the use disc are higher than on UNICO so you of the stair and edge sanding machine have to move a little bit faster with this ELAN. Keep in mind that the rpm on the one!

Fig. 19 Diagram for use of ELAN

ELF Fig. 20 shows you a diagram for the use Basically the same rules apply as for 200 of the drum sanding machine ELF. HUMMEL. 250 300

Fig. 20 Diagram for use of ELF

17 7

WORKING WITH OTHER MACHINES

SUPER- Fig. 21 shows you a diagram for the use HUMMEL of the SUPERHUMMEL.

Fig. 21 Diagram for use of SUPER- HUMMEL

FIN Fig. 22 shows you a diagram for the use floors and cork floors. of the FIN in fine sanding of wooden

Fig. 22 Diagram for use of FIN

18 7 8 11

REMOVAL OF CRACKS AND JOINTS

Removal of cracks and joints

Some cracks and interstices show Use filler and flat steel spatula to If you have joints wider than 1/24“ after sanding a floor so check for spread it over the whole floor. Make (1 mm) use wooden splinters to fill them before your last cut. sure the filler sinks in properly. them.

Last cut

Proceed as in section 5. before if you have applied too much In order to get a good quality surface filler. stick to the rules in section 5. Choose your grit according to your sequence. Some fillers are very hard on your Make sure you use the same sand- sand paper and can cause burns ing material on the edges as on the It is advisable to use same grit as especially while edging. floor. 10

Varnishing of wooden floors

Before you start use a good vacuum failures and correct them on the dust and direct sunlight when you cleaner to tidy the floor up. spot. For information about quantity, are done. ways to apply and drying time please Start varnishing in the light and refer to the manuals of your varnish move to the shade in order to detect supplier. Protect your work from

19 11 12

INTERMEDIATE SANDING WITH TRIO

Intermediate sanding with TRIO

Intermediate sanding is mainly used Preferably use mesh 120. It is also Remember to use the same sanding after the first coat of waterbased possible to use paper 120 but the material on the edges as on the varnish. The wooden surface reacts mesh with its pad as a back up is floor. to the varnish by becoming rough. much softer to the surface. Don´t use For the good looks of the finished much pressure and move fast. floor it has to be smoothed out before applying the final coat.

Any direction possible with TRIO!

Fig. 23 Diagramm for use of TRIO

20 12

FINAL COAT

Final coat

Before you start with the final coat Make sure you have no airbourne If you wish to imporve protection tidy up your floor. dust particles because they will of your floor further, put on another settle down on your fresh coat af- coat. terwards.

Maintenance of coated wooden floor

To keep your floor in good shape use CLIMATE polish once in a while. For the well being of you and your floor the average temperature should Heavy use => every 3 weeks be between 68° - 73° F (20° - 23° C) easy use => every 2-3 months and 55 - 65% humidity.

Special tips and safety

Make sure to empty your dustbag proper container and store it out- the level of the floor. Unlevel floor as soon as it´s one third full. Over- doors to avoid fire risk. means lot of movements. As you pro- stepping that limit means your dust ceed from rough to fine sanding the pickup is getting worse. One sign for the quality of sanding is movement of the lever has to cease the level of the floor. By observing as a sign of a level floor. When you are finished with the the lever to lower or lift the drum on machine empty the dustbag into a the HUMMEL your are able to judge

21 14

Attention

HUMMEL and UNICO are both build that is approved by the german Before you start working with your according to CE machine safety professional association as being machinery make sure you have read rules. Both machines are proven to dust-free! and understood your manual. emit less than 2 mg/m³ dust. For your own safety don´t use ma- The TRIO is also build according to chinery that does not respond to the the CE rules. The TRIO is the only latest safety rules. floor sanding machine in the world

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SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

Safety precautions

Keep your workplace environment Always wear adequate work attire No loose tools and attachments tidy and orderly Do not wear loose clothing; do not on machine Disorder at the workplace increases wear bracelets, necklaces and Before switching machine on, make the risk of accidents. similar loose decorations that might sure that all and any wrenches or become entangled. setting fixtures are removed from Always be aware of environmental machine. effects Use protective devices Never expose an electric tool or ma- When doing dust-generating work Avoid inadvertent machine start chine to precipitation. Do not work always use a breathing mask of the While machine is power connected with electric tools or machines in a filter class P3. never carry it with your finger close damp or wet environment. Make sure to the switch button. Before plugg- your working area is brightly lit. Do Never use power cable for ing in make sure that machine is not use electric tools or machines improper purposes switched off. in close proximity to inflammable Do not lift or carry your tool or ma- liquids or gases. chine by the power cable, do not pull Always try to be concentrated cable in order to disconnect plug While working always watch what Protect yourself from electric from socket. Protect cable from heat, you do and what happens around shock oil and sharp edges. you. Go about your job in a sys- While working with electric tools tematic and reasonable way. If you or machines avoid physical contact Do not work in stooped posture feel unable to concentrate refrain with grounded metal appliances like Avoid unnatural or strenuous bodily from using your machine. pipes, radiators, kitchen ranges, postures. Make sure to always stand refrigerators etc.. on solid ground and in balanced Check your machine for visible posture. and hidden defects Keep children away Before starting a job check your Do not permit children or any other Keep your tool or machine in machine carefully; in particular, persons to touch the machine or the good shape check its protective devices and power cable. Keep them remote from Keep your tool or machine clean for its wearing components and make your working area. better and safer performance. Ad- sure they are in perfect working here to the maintenance instructions order. Check moving components to Store your electric tools and and change defective or wornout make sure that their mobility is not machines safely parts when necessary or in recom- impaired, that no parts are broken While not in use your tools and ma- mended intervals. Check the power or fissured, that all parts are in their chines ought to be stowed away in cables regularly and, if you detect proper place and securely fastened; dry, locked spaces, out of reach for any defects, have the defective in short, make sure that all require- children and unauthorized persons. elements replaced by a certified ments for a proper functioning of the specialist. Also check the extension machine are fulfilled. Defective parts Do not overcharge or overburden cable regularly and replace it in case must be repaired or replaced by an your electric tools and machines of damage. Keep the handles dry and authorized service shop, unless oth- It is better and safer to work within free of oil and grease. erwise recommended in this manual. the machines’ prescribed capacity Defective switches must be replaced ranges. Disconnect power plug by authorized service personnel. While machine is not in use, unplug Never use your machine while its Always use the most adequate power cable. Also do so, under any power switch button or any other electric tool or machine circumstances, prior to any main- electrical components are defective Do not use lowcapacity machines, tenance work or gear change. or ineffective. tools or attachment parts for heavy- duty tasks. Never use a tool or machine for a purpose for which it has not been designed.

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Eugen Lägler GmbH Maschinenbau · Industriegebiet Kappelrain · D-74363 Güglingen-Frauenzimmern

Telefon +49 - 71 35 - 98 90-0 · Telefax +49 - 7135 - 98 90-98 · e-mail: [email protected] · Internet: www.laegler.com Copyright © 2001 Eugen Lägler GmbH - All rights reserved No warranty for contents of this manual. No liability for any kind of damages, losses or injuries resulting from the use of this booklet. Subject to change without prior note.