Stripping and Finishing Floors
(My View)

This is one of my favorite videos in the series for two reasons; because they do such a good job of explaining the procedure and because stripping and finishing floors can be a real money maker for you. Some people specialize in this type of floor work and make a handsome living from it. Others do it as a sideline to their regular cleaning business. In either case, mastering the art of stripping and finishing floors can lead to a good source of income for you for years to come.

Stripping and finishing floors requires great attention to detail. You have to get all the old finish and stripper off the floor without leaving stripper on the baseboards or any furniture you didn't remove. And you have to carefully apply the sealant and the finish eliminating any air bubbles that form when you apply the sealant and finish and make sure you don't miss any spots.

But if you faithfully follow the procedure in the video you will produce a flawless result which the customer will appreciate and pay you well for. Also, if you do this sort of work on a regular basis you will find that it you get awfully quick at it. Quick work, good money, what a deal!

I won't go over all the tips they give you in the video but there are two I want to mention briefly.

The first is the use of wet/dry vacuums or as everybody calls them, wet vacs. You can take up the stripper and old finish using just a mop and bucket but it is very time consuming. I strongly urge you to invest in a wet vac if you are going to do this type of work. Wet vacs are the workhorses of the commercial cleaning world and you will soon find many other uses for yours.

The second tip has to do with the later coats of finish you put down. When you do a strip and finish job you will always lay down at least two coats of finish to protect the floor. After the first coat, lay down the finish only up to about eight inches of the baseboard. The reason for this is simple, no one walks right next to the wall so you don't need the extra protection. This makes laying down the later coats of finish a lot faster because you don't have to worry about splashing the baseboards.