Prevent Scratches on Hardwood Floors

Have you scratched up your hardwood floor in the past while moving tables or furniture? Here are some tips to prevent your hardwood floors from being scratched!

Steps

Furniture That's Not Supposed to Move

  1. Use a business card or a small cutout with construction paper on all four legs of the object. If done correctly on most objects, you can prevent scratching. However, this will not prevent moving.
  2. Use felt, cork or rubber pads meant for the bottoms of chairs and tables. These will protect the floor while still allowing it to slightly move.
  3. Use carpet tape or velcro if you don't want the object to move. These, will prevent the object from moving unless forced, but will do nothing to protect against scratches when moved.
  4. Rubber chair legs can be purchased specifically for the bottoms of chair legs.
  5. Wrapping the bottoms in a plastic bag and using a rubber band will hold it as long as the bag stays on.

Furniture that Can/Needs to Be Moved Frequently

  1. Sometimes chairs and desks can have wheels attached to them. Ask your local store.
  2. Products called glider pads can be attached to the bottoms of legs to furniture. They make them incredibly easy to move.
  3. Try sanding and oiling the bottom of the chair/table leg until it has rounded sides. As long as a lot of weight isn't on it, it shouldn't scratch.

Moving Heavy Furniture

  1. When moving heavy furniture, slip a folded cotton towel under the legs while a helper tips or leans the object,
  2. Slip additional folded cotton towels as described above, under remaining legs (or point of contact) until each has a towel between the leg and the floor.
  3. A small area rug can be used instead of towels, but be sure that the smoothest / softest side of the rug is against the floor (many rugs have an abrasive or rubber backing to help keep in place).

Repairing Scratches

  1. For simple scratches, there are scratch-removing sprays.
  2. Oils and finishes can repair small scratches on the wood.
  3. If the scratch has a slight texture (past the finish) you should use wood patching.
  4. Deeper scratches require wood fillers and repairing chemicals.
  5. If you want to do it the easy way, you can just throw a carpet over the scratch. (Nobody will ever know.)

Warning

  • Always test chemicals out on a section of the scratch before applying it in full.
  • Always try to prevent scratches before they occur, especially on nice hardwoods like Redwood.

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