J and J technician running dual drum sanders with dust collection bags on a maple gym floor

The Keys to Unlocking a Successful Gym Floor Refinishing Project

By John Scillieri Hours Published on

A gym floor refinishing project is your opportunity to make your sports facility stand out, so make sure you don’t miss it!  As the pride of your entire facility, the gym floor rightfully deserves a lot of attention.  And, as such, you should always maintain it correctly.

When it comes to proper gym floor maintenance practices, sanding and refinishing is one of the essential long-term procedures to keep your floor in top condition.  If it’s time to treat your gym floor with a refinishing project, here are a few key aspects to keep in mind to ensure successful gym floor refinishing.

Make Your Gym Floor Stand Out with a successful gym floor refinishing project

Gym floor aesthetics have expanded significantly beyond the center circle, as was the case in the past.  Modern processing capabilities and graphic design techniques have allowed today’s hardwood gym floors to feature oversized logos, lettering, shapes, and techniques.  Nowadays, every middle school and high school can achieve a professional and sleek look.

When crafting design plans for your newly-refinished hardwood floors, color is one of the vital things to consider.  It is an essential aspect of building up your facility’s brand identity.  Facility operators are getting away from using solid-color paints and moving towards more stains that highlight the maple’s natural color. 

There are many different ways to achieve a specific and unique look for your hardwood gym floor.  Regardless of the method, a professional contractor should provide you with various aesthetic options and floor design techniques to create memorable scenes and design patterns on your hardwood floor.

Plan for the Future

Most facility operators use the gym floor refinishing project to get creative with the design patterns.  Although there’s nothing wrong with this, you should also keep in mind the floor’s future flexibility.  If properly maintained, sanded, and refinished every ten to fifteen years, the hardwood floor is likely to outlast the entire sports facility where it’s installed. 

For example, if you apply a strong stain to the wood, it will most likely impact the floor’s visual appearance for the entirety of its life.  Even when you sand it down ten years later, there will still be a noticeable discoloration in the wood from the decision you made a decade ago.

How Much Will It Cost?

All of this sounds good, but how much can you expect to spend on your gym floor refinishing project?  The ballpark price for a full sanding and refinishing project is around $3 per sq. ft. However, keep in mind that your costs can vary depending on the contractor and several other essential factors. 

We’ve covered this topic and answered many other fundamental questions about gym floor refinishing in this detailed refinishing guide.

Carefully Choose Your Finish

Apart from choosing the design features of your newly-refinished facility, you should also pay attention to the specific type of finish you’ll apply to your new hardwood gym floor. 

There are two types of finishes, each with its unique features, benefits, and drawbacks you need to consider.  They are:

  • Oil-based — The curing process in oil-based finishes results in a darker appearance of the underlying wood.  Depending on what you’re looking for, this will either be a positive or negative factor.  Oil-based finishes also take much longer to dry.
  • Water-based — Water-based finishes allow for a more transparent appearance of the hardwood floor.  However, these products require more coats to provide the wood floor with adequate protection. 

Oil-based products were the industry standard for decades.  But, over the past few years, water-based products are rapidly becoming more popular.  This is mainly due to specific federal and state regulations prohibiting the amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the air. 

The federal limit for VOCs in floor finishes is set at 400 grams per liter.  That being said, many states adhere to significantly more stringent limits.  As the restrictions vary from state to state, the variety of products you can use will depend on your location.  Regardless of which option you decide to go with, make sure your contractor uses an MFMA-approved finish.

At J&J Gym Floors, we service most of NJ, NY, PA, MD, DE, and CT.  The state limit for the latter two locations is set at 275 g/L.  The regulations in the other four listed states limit VOCs in finishes at 350 g/L.

It’s always best to pick a low-VOC product to protect the students, staff, and faculty from toxic fumes.  Regulations are much stricter today than they were half a century ago, as now we know all of the potential hazards that can arise from inhaling VOC fumes. 

Most importantly, it’s crucial to choose a flooring contractor you can trust.  You need to know that you can rely on the contractor to complete the job safely and efficiently.

Planning a Successful Gym Floor Refinishing Project?  Contact Us Today

Sanding and refinishing your hardwood gym floor is the best way to prolong its life expectancy. It’s much more affordable than installing a completely new floor and will make your facility lively and aesthetically pleasing. 

With that said, there are many things to consider if you want to make sure that your project goes smoothly.  For this reason, it never hurts to get a professional opinion from a licensed and reliable contractor.

We have the experienced staff and specialist equipment to provide you with a full-scale refinishing of your hardwood gym flooring.  If you’re considering embarking on a gym floor refinishing project, we can help you get the job done correctly!  Give us a call at (973) 801-7219 or contact us online.

John Scillieri

John Scillieri is the Founder and Managing Partner of J & J Gym Floors, bringing over three decades of expertise in hardwood flooring to the sports and fitness industry. Following in the footsteps of his father, a renowned hardwood floor professional, John launched J & J Gym Floors after graduating college, combining rich family tradition with innovative approaches to gym floor installation, maintenance, and customization.

With a passion for quality craftsmanship and a commitment to customer satisfaction, John has led J & J Gym Floors to become a trusted name in the industry. His hands-on approach and deep understanding of flooring technologies ensure that every project, from local school gymnasiums to professional sports arenas, receives the highest standard of care and attention to detail. When he's not transforming gym floors, John enjoys staying active and spending time with his family, always keeping an eye out for the next big trend in sports flooring.