From: Info Info [mailto:info@restoreyourtiles.com]
Sent: Thursday, December 09, 2010 12:44 AM
To: Restoration and Maintenance
Subject: [sccpartners] Stripping minwax polyurethane finish from marble

Partners,

5 months ago I bid the project to strip urethane finish and repolish marble in residential foyer and powder room. Sensing problems and difficulty stripping the floor I bid very high praying that customer never calls me. Guess what, she called and she offered to strip the finish by herself. I agreed to refinish the marble afterwords and accepted the project with some other things like cleaning her ceramic floor in kitchen and fixing some grout issues. Now, when we already done with those other things, she backed out of the stripping job and wants us to do it.  

So I got few questions for you to help me do that stinky project most efficiently.

1. Can you strip Minwax polyurethane wood floor finish using something other than methylene chloride? Yes

2. Can I use black pad for stripping (I have to hone it at minimum 220 grit anyway to remove possible scratches)? Yes the black pad will not scratch the marble, however I would recommend a brush on you floor machine instead of using the black stripping brush.

3. What would you use other than black pad? using a brush you may find if you use your grout equipment ( pressure cleaning system ) it may actually work as good or better than a brush.

4. Can that finish be ground off with lets say 100 grid metals and can that be quicker than stripping? So say you can but I not seen it done successfully it leaves the sealer behind in the grout lines.

5. What past experience did you have with similar projects and what I have to be aware of? In my early days in the business I did more of these type floors than I should have. In your contract you MUST have that you are not responsible for ANY damage to the wood work paint or stained. Regardless how well you mask and protect that stripper will soak through the protection and damage the woodwork.

You must also tell the customer that the house must be  well ventilated. This means the doors and windows need to be opened. I would highly recommend you technicians wear respirators, safety glasses and rubber glues through this entire stripping process. Make sure all your item regarding possible damage are written into your contract and the customer signs the contract and signs or at least initials the items that expresss the possible damage to their home.

I no longer do these type of jobs, this risk are high and the rewards are low and there is a reason the customer now wants you to strip the floor instead of them, they know what it’s going to take. Plus working with these stripper are extremely hard on your technician .

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Adam Bartos

BiO Tile

PS Waiver to sign about paint, woodwork and fumes is almost ready.