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*Question & Answer Getting Rid of Nicks &* *Scratches on a Hardwood Floor*

Dear Bob

The moving men made several dings and scratches to the Hardwood floors of my new house. Can you give me some advice on the best way to fix them?

Dear PB

You can usually cover up these little eyesores in your Hardwood Floors with color putty sticks. Yes, it sounds like a Band-Aid repair, but it's the quickest and least involved way to handle these problems. Simply clean the nicked or scratched area thoroughly and rub the putty stick over the damaged spot. Let the color dry for a few minutes and then wipe it with a clean cloth. Most of the time, getting color into a nicked or scratched area is all you need to do to make the damage disappear - at least to those who don't know that the area was damaged before. Use the same stuff to fill nail holes in a patched floor after the top coat is applied.

If a nick or scratch in your Hardwood Floor is really a dig or gouge, you face a whole different type of repair. It involves using wood filler and stain and trying to match the existing floor color. If your floor is really showing its age, you may need to refinish the entire surface instead of spending time and energy on smaller fixes that really are better handled by redoing the entire surface. You'll like the results a lot more!

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