Floor Sander Hire in Manchester

Find information on local drum floor sander hire and edger sander tool hire in Manchester

An electric floor sander is an item of powered equipment that is used for the sanding of old, dirty, or finished wooden floors.

By using one of these tools you can speedily sand and restore wooden floorboards and wooden block flooring to a condition where they can be stained, varnished, painted, or alternatively be enjoyed in a fresh and clean restored finish.

By choosing floor sander hire in Manchester you can sand old wooden floors in the fastest time possible, making a great difference to the appearance of traditional wooden floors in your Manchester home or property.

A floor sander machine is available from any good tool hire shop that provides the rental of DIY or home improvement equipment.

This includes both independent tool hire shops as well as those that operate on a National basis.

Types of Floor Sanders that you can Hire

There are two main types of electric floor sander machines that you can choose to hire and use.

In most UK households it is best to hire both of them as they work in a slightly different way and are used for sanding two different areas of traditional wooden flooring.

The first type of machine is the upright electric DRUM FLOOR SANDER machine.

This is as the name suggests a sanding machine that is used in an upright fashion rather like an upright styled vacuum cleaner.

This tool has a large diameter revolving drum that spins round which sands away the top surface of your wooden floor boards when used. It does this by having a large sheet of abrasive sand paper attached to this drum in an almost endless loop. As the drum rotates this sand paper makes contact with the surface areas of the flooring, removing years of grime and dirt as well as old varnish, paint, and any other covering or finish.

By pushing the drum sander back and forth across your floor the machine will steadily sand-way the flooring until you obtain the desired finish.

Most electric drum sanders are supplied with a dust collection bag as standard equipment.  

The second type of machine that is used for cleaning and restoring wooden floors is the “hand-held” electric EDGER SANDER machine.

This tool is used down at floor level and is pushed around by hand when carrying out this type of improvement work.

The edger sander is used for the sanding of floors around the edge of rooms and spaces in your Manchester home.

It uses a flat disc of abrasive sand-paper as opposed to the sheet that is attached to the upright drum sander.

In case you are wondering why you need this tool we’ll break the details down now!

The large upright drum floor sander will sand the whole of any room with the exception of an area around 2” wide that is at the edge of the floor area. This will apply to the whole circumference of the room.

So after using the drum sander your room will have a “strip” around the room that is un-sanded.

The “edger sander” can reach into this area allowing you to match the sanded finish to everywhere else!

When you choose the hire of an edger floor sander you may be given the option of taking a machine to which a dust extraction bag can be fitted. Some tool hire shops offer these dependant on the exact make and model of machine that they have within their hire fleet.

Frequent Questions

Are the floor sander machines easy to use?

Yes, both the drum sander and the edger machine are straight forward and easy to use. Both of these tools operate off a standard 240v electric mains supply. Most tool hire shops in Manchester will supply them fitted with an RCD (circuit breaker) device to give you added safety protection and security.

What type of wooden flooring can they be used on?

Both machines can be used on any type of wooden floor. This includes traditional wooden floor boards, block floors, and parquet type floors.

Should any raised nails or screws be removed?

If the floor that you intend to sand has any raised nail heads or screws these will damage the sandpaper that is fitted to the machine. It is recommended that you remove such nails and screws or ensure their heads are punched down or screwed down below the surface of the flooring material.

What safety precautions should be taken?  

There are several key points that should be taken before you start to sand a floor using one of the tools.

In no particular order: the area should be kept free of children and pets, there should be no electrical cables or anything nearby that could become tangled or damaged whilst using these sander machines. Always wear a dust mask and safety glasses, if the machines are supplied with dust collection bags - use them! Try and keep the working area as clean as possible as you carry the work out - if need be stop using the machine(s) and vacuum-up any dust before moving onto another area or section of the floor. Always unplug the tools when not using them for anymore than say 5 minutes, try and keep all trailing mains cables behind you.

How many sheets of sandpaper should I need?

This all depends on how large the area is that you wish to sand, and what the existing condition of the wooden flooring is. We recommend that when you collect the floor sander from your Manchester tool hire shop you take at least 4 or 5 extra sheets of sandpaper than what is usually offered by the tool hire shops staff! Just make sure that you can return them for a refund if you don’t need to use them!

Partially Sanded Wooden Floor

This image shows a traditional wooden floor boarded area that has been partially sanded by the use of a drum floor sander machine.

The use of an edger sander will allow the space close to the skirting board and architrave strip to be finished off.

Afterwards the area can be stained, varnished, painted, or left in a natural finish.  

Correct Floor Sanding Method

This image shows a drum floor sander machine in operation, note how the user is sanding in a diagonal pattern and not along the grain of the floor boards.

When you obtain the rental of floor sander tool in Manchester ensure the tool hire shop issues you with an operator instruction guide that will explain this method of use.

Safety footwear and protective clothing should always be used when carrying out any type of DIY.

Please also always wear a dust mask and safety glasses!

Choosing Floor Sander Hire Manchester

Finding and choosing the hire of a floor sander in the City of Manchester is easy and straight forward, as it is in other nearby locations including Bolton, Rochdale, and Stockport.

Most tool hire shops and equipment rental outlets in Manchester provide the service of temporarily hiring one of these machines, and at prices that are cost effective and affordable.

Prefer to carry the work out over a weekend? Ask at your local tool shop if a special weekend rate is available! Most UK companies offer a discounted rental period that covers Friday PM through to Monday AM, allowing you ample time to carry the necessary work out.

Electric Drum Floor Sander Tool

This image shows the electric drum floor sander tool.

Inside the base assembly of the tool there is a large diameter drum to which a loop of sandpaper is fitted.

Sandpaper is available in various grades that are known a grits. These range from extra coarse through to fine grade.

The machine is also fitted with a dust extraction / collection bag - this will collect a large amount of the saw dust that is created when sanding wooden floors.  

One of these tools can be obtained from most tool hire shops including the likes of companies that include Brandon Hire, Hirestation, HSS, Jewson, Keyline, and Speedy Services (previously known as Speedy Hire).