Can You Refinish Flooring Before Installing It?

Physically Possible

• It is technically possible to refinish loose pieces of flooring before installing them. That doesn’t mean it’s efficient, but it is physically possible. However, flooring is refinished after it’s installed to ensure that the floor is even and free of cracks and dips before you go to the trouble of staining it.

Large Area to Cover

• If you’re looking at installing flooring over a large area, like an entire room, you are going to get the job done much more quickly if you install the flooring and use tools meant to cover larger areas, like larger brushes to apply stain. Sanding the flooring will go much more quickly using a large floor sander instead of sandpaper on each individual piece. Plus, if you have a lot of wood pieces, you’re going to have to set them somewhere to dry after you stain them. It’s more convenient to refinish them after you install them because they’ll already be spread out.

Damage From Installation

• Wood flooring has become very simple to install -- many brands have tongue-and-groove connections that snap together -- and Build Direct notes that the connections allow you to reposition and reinstall the pieces as needed. Repeatedly connecting the pieces could chip their sides if you’re not careful, and if you drop one, you could scratch the finish. With that risk ever-present, refinishing the flooring after you install it will save you time and paranoia. Another problem is finding that one of the pieces is slightly uneven, requiring filler or patching. That would require you to re-sand and refinish the flooring in that area again, if you installed wood you already sanded and stained.

Replacement Pieces

• Sometimes the only flooring you have to install is one or two pieces of wood due to damage that is contained to a small area of the existing floor. In this case, you’re not going to need a floor sander, and you’re not dealing with a large number of wood pieces. However, installation can still result in a few nicks and chips in the finish if you’re not careful. It’s certainly possible to finish the wood before installing it, but be prepared to do some spot sanding and finishing just in case.