Home DIY

Sanders for sanding down old stairs - what we talking? Google tells me RO Sanders are the one...

Yes.

You could probably also use a mutlitool if you have one.

It's too fiddly a space to fit much else.

Cheers. I have neither atm so looking to buy. Assume corners will be an issue with circular RO.

This is a pipe with a ring seal socket, it could be grey or black or orange
https://www.travisperkins.co.uk/OsmaDrain-Double-Socket-Short-Radius-Bend-87-5%C2%B0-160mm-6D561/p/710073
The plain end with an existing socket is the best option, a bit of silicone grease or spray will help it fit. The other sort should fit almost everything else.
It it best to pull out the existing and see what's there and check the length you need. Block the drain with something smell and rat proof while you go shopping.

You have that pretty much right. Start the alcohol binge much earlier in the process though.

You should definitely wash the walls and ceiling with sugar soap. Why oil based eggshell? The acrylic is pretty durable these days and far less a pain in the ass. Woodwork needs a primer/undercoat maybe 2 depending.

Your future floor work may screw with your woodwork depending on how carefully it's done.

Are you sanding off paint or just sanding bare wood. It's common to use a delta sander and a square random orbital type. Festool also do a linear sander which works well. Having only 1 sander is not really a thing, over time you end up with at least 4 or 5 and use a few on most jobs.

One of the most useful I have is the Festool RTS400, if you are looking to have just one sander then this is the one I would choose. A multitool with a delta sanding attachment is useful for the corners. Sharp chisels work well for the corners too.

If they are painted I would recommend stripping the paint rather than sanding it off. Use an IR stripper or chemical stripper.

Cheers for the reply. Happy to buy multiple sanders. Just picked up a pointy one for the corners. The stairs are bare wood, maybe some paint but very thin patchy and flaky. And sander model recommendations for around 50 quid? Or is that too cheap?

Would be too cheap for me. I use them so much it doesn't make any sense to skimp. It's sometimes easy enough to wrap some decent sandpaper around a sanding block and do it by hand! The trick is to buy a decent/suitable roll of sandpaper.

If you don't have a multitool it would make sense to get a good one as it covers a lot of jobs. The Fein top set has all the sanding bits included including delta and it's a pretty good sander. But you've bought a delta now!

Airhead has given a better run-down than I could.

Personally I'd get a decent multitool, as you'll get more use out of it over the years (for the obvious reason). Then also go the hand route if it's just surface rather than thick paint or stain.

Obviously if you're going to be loads of sanding and decorating then it might be worth investing in something else.

I'd have just thought stairs are an exceptional job, in that they are super awkwardly shaped while still being a decent surface area. Normally it's one or the other.

So who is the forum sparky?

Friend needs a rcd fitted in the next 10 days.

Ta

Depending on timescale and how different the skirting is now to how it will be, leave it until after the floor sanding is done. We had to sand and repaint our skirting after the guys we got in threw a load of Omso around.

Cheers for the reply. Is hand sanding not crazy hard work? Had a play with the small sander I bought and did a couple of floorboards that needed doing before the carpet. It’s only really the stairs and a tiny landing needing doing so wondering if I should just pay for someone to do it if a proper sander will be bear their day rate and only get used for day.

Sanding is the shittiest thing going, especially if there's anything on the surface in the first place. And then there's tidying. Always pay.

Hmmmmmm I’m going to get some quotes. Hope it’s not more than a couple of hundred. Imagine it’s joyless hard work.

My guy is £50/step (including primer and two coats lacquer). He’ll do floors all day long but he hates stairs with a passion.

Similar story - in fairness ours were open plan stairs and required the underside sanding as well, but when we asked him he basically said any figure we offered would be too low and he meant it. In the end we just stained the floor to match the stairs :/

Jesus Christ that’s insanely expensive. I’ll do it my bloody self then!

I used this to sand floors in four large rooms. Lots of exercise but worth it for better finish and not cutting away mass of wood from 70 year old 16 mm t&g pine floor boards.

Also useful for light sanding between coats of Fiddes wax-oil. For the stairs we chose carpet.

What on earth is that link? Link me up buddy!

https://www.screwfix.com/p/pole-sander-260-x-85mm-395-1300mm/33586#_=p other retailers exist

This still too cheap?
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/7176085

Worth the extra ££

Cheers. I got the connector with the big rubber seal, since the guy in the shop said that it would work, even though the soil pipe end had a ring seal. I think he was right, because there was enough plain pipe below the ring seal for the connector seal to fit onto.

However... it turned out to be irrelevant, since the bodgers who put in that drain left the actual soil pipe too far away for the flexible connector to fit. To make up the distance they just added a drain connector, but with the seal removed to make the soil pipe a couple of inches higher. I was very surprised when that lifted straight out, but it meant that I could just get rid of it an push the new flexible connector into the soil pipe proper. Seems to be sorted.

For sure?
Have a chap coming round tomorrow to quote, will see what he says, if not will pull the trigger on that one, wet weekend anyway isn't it...

If you're getting a RO sander, then that's the best bang for £ in that price range.