With just a $100 budget, CafeMom lil_red_53, with help from her mom, recently refinished the tongue and groove pine wood floor on the front porch of her 1870’s farmhouse. And wow, wait until you the finished porch! Plus, lil_red_53 is here today to give us her step-by-step instructions for completing a front porch floor makeover. I love a handy do-it-yourself mom, what can I say? They inspire me to take on projects around the house (even if they’re small, like painting the inside of my medicine cabinet; hee hee).
Front porch (before) Here are the steps lil_red_53 took to refinish her front porch. How to Refinish Wood Porch Floor: Step 1: Clean – Sweep off all surfaces of leaves, etc. Step 2: Sand – Sand and sand and sand! We used 60-grit sandpaper on a hand sander. You have to make sure that you sand down to bare wood on all surfaces.
Step 2: Sanding the porch Step 3: Clean Again – Sweep the porch off really well when you are done sanding to get the dust off. A leaf blower works pretty good for this! It took my mom and me most of one day to sand one side of the porch and then we were able to stain late that afternoon.
Step 3: Sanded and ready for stain Step 4: Stain – I used a long-handled stain applicator that looks like the Swiffer sweepers. I found it in the paint section of our local hardware store. The stain that I used was Behr Premium Wood-Toned Deck, Fence and Siding Weatherproofing Wood Finish (Cedar Naturaltone No. 501). The cost for one can was about $28. For the size of my porch, I needed two cans. It is silicone enhanced for waterproofing and mildew resistance. I live in Northern NY where the weather is a definite factor! I applied the first coat of stain with the brush going along the full length of each board to give even coverage. I let it dry for a couple hours and then applied a second coat. I worked on the steps and the second half of the porch the following day using the same process.
Step 4: Staining the porch One Tip: Having knee pads or something to kneel on makes things (mostly the sanding part) a little more comfortable.
The beautiful finished porch! Refinishing the porch was a messy process with all the sanding; however, in the end, I have a beautiful 130-year old front porch that I love even more. And now it is protected for years to come! The total cost for the porch fix-up, including the stain, sanding pads, and the applicator, was no more than $100 total! Looking back, it may have been worth the cost to rent a floor sander to save on time. You did a great job, lil_red_53! Thanks so much for sharing your “how to.” Your front porch is absolutely gorgeous (and so is your house!). Have you ever refinished and/or stained a wood porch or deck? Do you have plans to take this project on after reading these steps? Related posts: Ask Anthony: How to Strip Chipped Paint off a Concrete Porch Ask Anthony: Tips for DIY Refinishing Hardwood Floors Hannah Huffman: Show & Tell Home Tour
