Dustless floor sanding

Find out why the Dustless Floor Sanding technology is way better than the classic floor sanding systems

The magic of dustless floor sanding 

Having your hardwood floors or engineered wood floors sanded used to be a nightmare. The fine dust residue used to get into all the cracks and gaps, under the skirting boards, all over the walls and so on. In fact, this alone used to put people off having their floors refinished. All that stopped when Lagler Germany invented the drum floor sander with 50% dust collection. Since then, things have gotten better and better every year. The sanding machines capability for collecting dust has increased dramatically and nowadays we can truly say that the dustless floor sanding technology has reached its peak. Most professional floor sanders can collect over 98% of the dust generated within the process of refinishing the wood.

How does it work?

 The new belt sanders are fitted with special fans and dust selectors that will push all the dust through a filtration system and will retain about 98% of the dust. A few small dust particles, usually below 2% are likely to escape but that is such a low level of dust that it is virtually unnoticeable. Some professional belt sanders are attached to special vacuuming systems while others are fitted with special dust bags where all the dust particles are collected and then stored.

The advantage of dustless floor sanding

Most people who had their hardwood floors restored in the early 90s are likely to tell you some horror story about their unpleasant floor sanding experience. In the early 90s, most of the dust generated was usually being blown out directly onto the floor and all over the place. The floor sanding contractor had a separate job of vacuuming the house after the floor sanding to attempt to remove the fine dust particles that were covering the entire home or business. Because the dust was blown far and wide it was nearly impossible to completely remove and in some cases the property owners were still finding dust particles 5 years after the project was completed.

Today, all that is gone. A full living room and dining room can be fully sanded in a matter of hours without any dust being blown all over the place. In some cases, high end retailers can have their floors restored without having to cover their items and without any major disruption to their business activities. No more dust, no more intense cleaning, no more allergies, no more sneezing for weeks.

Water based floor lacquers

 The dustless floor sanding technology was just the start of the trend. The water based floor lacquers that contain no solvents or any harsh chemicals are the cherry on the top. Nowadays, a floor sanding contractor can sand up to 40 sq meters of hardwood floor in 1 single day and have it sealed with 3 coats of floor lacquer before the end of the day. The same process used to take 1 week 25 years ago. The combination of dustless technology plus the added benefits of the water based floor finishes have improved the life quality of the floor sanding specialists as well. Projects can be done a lot faster and alot safer with no dust or chemical exposure.

Things to ask your hardwood floor refinishing contractor

Even if the dustless floor sanding technology has been here for a good while, there are still many hardwood refinishing contractors using old and dated technology that are likely to give you a lot of hassle. You do not need to put up with such practice. Make sure to find out before even accepting the quote if your floor sanding specialist is using the latest dustless floor sanding technology, if they are using low VOC water based floor finishes and if they are actually qualified. A floor refinishing project can end up being hassle free with long lasting results or a never ending nightmare.

What happens to all the collected dust?

All the dust generated by the professional belt sanders can be disposed of in your normal bin. Some contractors take the dust with them while others will expect you to provide the bin for all the waste generated within the process of sanding. There is no harm to ask this question before agreeing to the quote. A large 4 bed house can actually generate about 3-4 bags of fine dust.

Is stairs sanding also 98% dustless?

While the sanding technology for stairs has also improved over the past few years, the stairs sanding is still likely to generate a bit more dust than floor sanding. Smaller tools, more manual sanding, narrower spaces and much more detail is required while sanding stairs. But even so, with the invention of Festool technology, the dust collection for stairs sanding has moved from 0 to about 50%. While this is not perfect, it is much better than it used to be.

In a greener world where everything is becoming more eco-friendly and more natural every year, it was only natural for the floor sanding and the floor refinishing trade to go dustless. You, as a customer, are now the happy owner of a newly refinished hardwood floor without having to spend years of your life cleaning and vacuuming. The contractor is also happier because he doesn`t have to inhale all that fine dust any longer and the idea of messy and dirty floor sanding jobs is being easily removed from people’s heads.