Foretravel Owners' Forum For owners and Fans of Foretravel Motorcoaches September 07, 2025 ...

Refinishing the galley wood floor

November 21, 2010, 09:20:27 pm

As renovation projects go, this one was not very sexy.

Our wood galley floor had begun to show a lot of wear.  To the casual observer it looked o.k., but I knew it was very close to the point where a total sanding down to bare wood would be necessary and that would entail a lot more mess, time and money.

So I decided to re-coat the floor with two layers of a fast drying Minwax Semi Gloss polyurethane.  Here are the steps:

1.  I removed any cabinet doors and registers that would keep me from using a brush or roller right at the edges of the floor.

2.  Vacuumed the floor carefully.

3.  Washed floor twice with TSP (tri-sodium phosphate).  I did not use a real wet cloth.  More to the damp side.  I did not want water to get into the wood in those spots where the previous finish had worn thin.

4.  Next I separated the edge of the adjacent carpet from the wood flooring.  To do this I bought a bargain price plastic mini blind at Walmart for $2.96.  I used about a half dozen slats and set them on edge between the carpet and the wood.  On the radius it helped to cut the slats into shorter segments.  Sometime it was helpful to secure the slats to the carpet with a piece of masking tape. (see photo)

5.  I used all three tack cloths that came in one package and opened them up and wadded then loosely into the size of a six inch paper plate.  Then I carefully and thoroughly tacked the entire floor to remove any dust or dogie hair.

6.  Turned off the Aqua-Hot in the living room.

7.  Using a high quality bristle brush I cut in the corners and edges and then used a 4 inch foam roller to spread poly in both directions.  I would finish each section by lightly dragging the brush from a dry edge to a wet edge.  This critical step removed air bubbles and any lap or joint marks between each segment as I progressed toward the bathroom.  This step took 15 to 20 minutes.

8.  Set the alarm for 4 hours, got up at 1:00 to lightly sand the floor with 320 grit paper, the tack cloth and then repeated step 7. 

By 7:00 a.m. the floor was dry enough to walk on in stocking feet.  The entire job probably took me about 2 hours of time and just under $50 for materials. And it looks great.  Next time I do a floor project it will be to stroke a check in 2012 to replace the wood and the carpet with Dura-Ceramic.

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #1 – November 21, 2010, 09:22:48 pm

Wow, looks great.

But, no sanding?

That does sound too easy.

Brett

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #2 – November 21, 2010, 09:34:22 pm

Nice job and great step by step instructions. Did you re-finish your drawer faces also? They look like new.
Jon

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #3 – November 21, 2010, 09:44:27 pm

Thanks, Jon.  Drawer fronts are in great shape so I did not refinish.  Previous owner took nice care of the interior.

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #4 – November 21, 2010, 10:33:38 pm

That looks VERY nice, George!  Great job.

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #5 – November 23, 2010, 10:21:33 am

Wow!  Very nice work, George!  Have you done floor refinishing before?  Sure sounds like you know your stuff!

Very clever way to shield the carpet edge, too.

Michelle

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #6 – November 23, 2010, 03:24:10 pm

George, I also love the job you did to your flooring, however for me, I went for the Ceramic Tile floor, the one drawback, it does not take kindly to glass or other breakable items when they get dropped. But the ease of cleaning compared to the carpet is a no brainer.  Being cheap and tacky, it works for me.

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #7 – November 23, 2010, 04:05:13 pm

Thanks, Michelle.
 
Yes.  I have done them and paid someone to do them.  Those big sanders are a real bear work with.  I wanted no part of creating all that mess. We live in the coach 24/7 and I decided to work on the floor now before it needed to be sanded.
 
As I said, in 2012 -- out with the wood and carpet and in with Dura-Ceramic.

Quote Selected

Re: Refinishing the galley wood floor

Reply #8 – November 23, 2010, 09:03:33 pm

I am all for the DuraCeramic, too.  Our "new" coach has some kind of ceramic tile in the kitchen and bath.  NOT a fan.  It seems to have just enough of a rough surface that it holds the dirt and the grout is the type that stains.  My DuraCeramic was a breeze to keep clean and the grout was much nicer.  I just had to scrub this stuff on my hands and knees and the dirt that came off was unreal.  I am thinking of a change.

Quote Selected