Sander for skirting and doors
Discussion
I absolutely hate manually sanding woodwork and i'll have loads of it to do in the coming months. Anyone got any recommendations for a good sander for doing things like skirting boards, door frames and doors? I had a Bosch one years ago that only seemed to be useful for destroying sandpaper.
Maybe not that helpful, but I've tried this and found all to be unhelpful. The various oscillating sanding tools make a mess of good wood skirting and doors, and belt sanders struggle to get to the edges and into corners.
I've recently finished restoring all the skirting in my house and all the 1930 4 panel doors. For the skirting I heat gunned the many layers of ancient paint off - messy, but it would have been impossible to sand off. And then hand sanded the final step to remove the final bits of gunk and smooth. The doors I got dipped - initially at a local door shop, and latterly using an online service that picked up and dropped off. I then lightly hand sanded and pained while horizontal with a gloss roller. All the skirting and doors look stunning now.
I would say it was all 'medium' effort - if I tried to sand it all it would have been a mammoth task and not looked nearly as good. If I'd just done a light run and added yet another coat of paint it'd look crap and be peeling within a couple of years. As it is the first bits in the house I did were 15 years ago and they still look perfect.
I've recently finished restoring all the skirting in my house and all the 1930 4 panel doors. For the skirting I heat gunned the many layers of ancient paint off - messy, but it would have been impossible to sand off. And then hand sanded the final step to remove the final bits of gunk and smooth. The doors I got dipped - initially at a local door shop, and latterly using an online service that picked up and dropped off. I then lightly hand sanded and pained while horizontal with a gloss roller. All the skirting and doors look stunning now.
I would say it was all 'medium' effort - if I tried to sand it all it would have been a mammoth task and not looked nearly as good. If I'd just done a light run and added yet another coat of paint it'd look crap and be peeling within a couple of years. As it is the first bits in the house I did were 15 years ago and they still look perfect.
nunpuncher said:
I absolutely hate manually sanding woodwork and i'll have loads of it to do in the coming months. Anyone got any recommendations for a good sander for doing things like skirting boards, door frames and doors? I had a Bosch one years ago that only seemed to be useful for destroying sandpaper.
What is the current surface? If you're trying to sand paint off, don't bother!Something with an extractor / hoover attached so you're not blowing dust everywhere. I used to have an old Makita BO4555 which was pretty good had a go with a dustless solution and there was no looking back.
I got a Festool RTS400 for my skirting and doors, it's awesome. Purchased secondhand and probably worth more now because Festool holds it value so well. Problem is I don't want to sell it.
You definitely don't need a Festool but I'd be looking for something small that will get in to corners and can be hooked up to an extractor. Makita, Bosch, etc. will do something decent.
I got a Festool RTS400 for my skirting and doors, it's awesome. Purchased secondhand and probably worth more now because Festool holds it value so well. Problem is I don't want to sell it.
You definitely don't need a Festool but I'd be looking for something small that will get in to corners and can be hooked up to an extractor. Makita, Bosch, etc. will do something decent.
Simpo Two said:
What is the current surface? If you're trying to sand paint off, don't bother!
Currently painted. I'm not wanting to completely remove the paint, just smooth it out and give the the surface a decent key for fresh paint.It's not an old OLD house so I don't plan on going to the lengths eein did. Been there and done the endless hours of heat gun and scraper on layers of thick gloss emulsion when I lived in a Victorian era flat.
nunpuncher said:
Simpo Two said:
What is the current surface? If you're trying to sand paint off, don't bother!
Currently painted. I'm not wanting to completely remove the paint, just smooth it out and give the the surface a decent key for fresh paint.if you are just looking to smooth it down a bit and don't fancy doing it by hand your best bet would be a 1/4" sheet sander
ONE OF THESE
you can get cheaper if you want
you can also cut whatever grade of sandpaper you want to size and use the clips to hold it in place
this will work well on the flat surfaces but you'll still need to hand sand any curved or intricate bits
ONE OF THESE
you can get cheaper if you want
you can also cut whatever grade of sandpaper you want to size and use the clips to hold it in place
this will work well on the flat surfaces but you'll still need to hand sand any curved or intricate bits
Rather than using a sander to flatten all the imperfections, use a carbide scraper, cabinet scraper or a Stanley knife blade with some masking tape around the back edge, held perpendicular to the surface. It will allow you to quickly knock high spots down, making any sanding you do much more effective.
https://youtu.be/AxLTI8Dl8Kk
That video shows the basic principal.
Having a rubber sandpaper cleaning block to go with whichever sander you pick is also a good idea when sanding paint.
https://youtu.be/AxLTI8Dl8Kk
That video shows the basic principal.
Having a rubber sandpaper cleaning block to go with whichever sander you pick is also a good idea when sanding paint.
I find these better for getting in awkward places.
I still use an old black and decker small mouse type sander too works well.
https://www.toolstation.com/sponge-abrasive-pads/p...
I still use an old black and decker small mouse type sander too works well.
https://www.toolstation.com/sponge-abrasive-pads/p...
I bought one of these:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B082PX299G?ref=ppx_pop...
Cheaper than the more established brands (bought because I didn’t know how much I’d use it - turns out its a lot!) and it’s been pretty good. Though that is with no prior experience with sanders. It’s done the job though. Makes keying up skirting and doors a breeze, removes high points without issue, and flats back filler easily. I’ve used it on the walls too to remove imperfections or flat filler. Only thing is that you still have to manually sand the more decorative elements as it’s only good for broad, flat surfaces.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B082PX299G?ref=ppx_pop...
Cheaper than the more established brands (bought because I didn’t know how much I’d use it - turns out its a lot!) and it’s been pretty good. Though that is with no prior experience with sanders. It’s done the job though. Makes keying up skirting and doors a breeze, removes high points without issue, and flats back filler easily. I’ve used it on the walls too to remove imperfections or flat filler. Only thing is that you still have to manually sand the more decorative elements as it’s only good for broad, flat surfaces.
Demelitia said:
Rather than using a sander to flatten all the imperfections, use a carbide scraper, cabinet scraper or a Stanley knife blade with some masking tape around the back edge, held perpendicular to the surface. It will allow you to quickly knock high spots down, making any sanding you do much more effective.
https://youtu.be/AxLTI8Dl8Kk
That video shows the basic principal
If the task is just to flatten, I think that's the quickest and tidiest idea. A cabinet scraper is really just a rectangle of steel with a tiny burr on one edge.https://youtu.be/AxLTI8Dl8Kk
That video shows the basic principal
When the burr has worn away you restore it one of these: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kirschen-3915000-Scraper-...
Ive got the Festool Rotex 125mm, this beast eats through paint, I did the whole side of a summer house with 2 discs,I also got the Festool Delta sander 400dts, both excellent units are expensive, maybe look at long term investment or sell on when you've finished with them. The wife moaned about me buying yet another tool, when I showed her how powerful it was on the stairs handrail post removing multiple layers of gloss and stain, I got the nod of approval. Don't forget dust extraction too...
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