Flooring and tiling
Floor sanding and sealing
Whether this needs a licence in Ireland
No licence required
Taken from the statute below; not yet reviewed by a lawyer
Floor sanding and sealing: what the job involves
Bringing an existing timber floor back to bare wood with drum and edge sanders, repairing and filling it, then finishing it in lacquer, oil or hard-wax oil. It suits original pine floorboards, parquet and solid or thick-wear-layer engineered floors.
Also asked for as: sand and varnish floorboards · floorboard restoration · parquet restoration · refinish wooden floor
How the job is usually done
- Check the floor: type, how much wood is left above the tongue, gaps, damaged boards, nails and staples.
- Empty the room, punch nails below the surface and replace or repair damaged boards.
- Sand with a drum or belt sander through coarse to fine grits, then the edges and corners with an edger.
- Fill gaps with resin filler, slivers or a gap system, as agreed.
- Vacuum thoroughly and apply stain, if chosen.
- Apply the finish in several coats, with light sanding between and drying time after each.
- Leave the floor to cure before furniture and rugs go back.
Floor sanding and sealing: what is included
Usually included
- Sanding the floor and edges
- Punching nails and minor repairs
- Gap filling, as agreed
- Two or three coats of finish
Usually not included — agree it separately
- Moving furniture, unless agreed
- Lifting carpet and removing staples and gripper, unless agreed
- Replacing large areas of damaged boards
- Painting skirting afterwards
Materials and who supplies them
- Sanding belts and discs, filler and finish, supplied by the sander
- Replacement reclaimed boards, if needed
- Stain, if chosen
How long it takes
Usually two to three days for a room or two, most of it drying time between coats; longer for many rooms, stairs or oil finishes.
When to book
Book when the rooms can be emptied for several days and windows can be opened for ventilation, which is easier outside winter.
Floor sanding and sealing: the rules in Ireland
What the official sources say, checked against them on the date shown. A summary, not legal advice — follow the link to read the rule itself.
Old floors may be covered in vinyl or bitumen adhesive containing asbestos, or painted with lead paint; these must be checked before sanding, and asbestos removal is controlled work.
Applies to: the contractor and the homeowner
Health and Safety Authority — asbestos regulations · hsa.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
Building work on a home is charged at the reduced VAT rate of 13.5%, but where the materials come to more than two-thirds of the price, the goods rate applies to the whole job; ask how a supply-and-fit quote is charged.
Applies to: the contractor
Revenue · revenue.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
What floor sanding and sealing costs, and why
What jobs on Talqero came to
Not enough comparable jobs yet to publish a range here. Talqero shows a price range only once at least five comparable jobs, agreed prices or offers exist — a range from fewer would describe a handful of jobs, not the market. Post your job and compare the offers you get.
What affects the price
- Area and the number of rooms
- Condition: paint, varnish, staples, damage and gaps
- Gap filling method
- Finish: water-based lacquer, oil or hard-wax oil, and staining
- Stairs, edges and parquet patterns
- Removing carpet, gripper and staples first
- VAT: building work on a home is charged at the reduced rate of 13.5% by a VAT-registered business — unless the materials come to more than two-thirds of the price, when Revenue’s two-thirds rule applies the goods rate to the whole job. Ask whether a quote includes VAT.
Paperwork to ask for at the end
- Finish product name and care instructions
- Advice on when furniture and rugs can go back
Safety
- Sanding creates fine dust; good sanders use dust-extracting machines and seal the room off.
- Rags soaked in oil finishes can self-heat and catch fire; they must be spread out to dry or kept in water in a sealed tin.
- Ventilate during finishing, and keep children and pets off the floor until it has cured.
- Old paint on boards in older houses may contain lead; sanding it needs extra precautions.
Floor sanding and sealing: before you hire
Questions to ask a tradesperson
- Do you use dust-extracting sanders?
- How will you deal with the gaps?
- Which finish do you recommend for a busy floor, and why?
- How long before we can use the room?
- How many times can my floor be sanded?
What you can do yourself
Hiring a sander is possible, but drum sanders gouge floors easily and edges are hard to match; most people get a better result from a professional.
What to put in your task
- Roughly how many square metres?
- What type of floor is it?
- What is on the floor now?
- What finish would you like?
- Are stairs included?
Photos that help
- Each room floor in good light
- A close-up of the worst area and of any gaps
- Any paint, adhesive or stains on the boards
- The edge of a board where the thickness can be seen, if possible
Floor sanding and sealing by county
Choose your county for floor sanding and sealing close to home.
- Floor sanding and sealing in Dublin
- Floor sanding and sealing in Cork
- Floor sanding and sealing in Galway
- Floor sanding and sealing in Kildare
- Floor sanding and sealing in Limerick
- Floor sanding and sealing in Meath
- Floor sanding and sealing in Tipperary
- Floor sanding and sealing in Donegal
- Floor sanding and sealing in Wexford
- Floor sanding and sealing in Kerry
- Floor sanding and sealing in Wicklow
- Floor sanding and sealing in Mayo
- Floor sanding and sealing in Louth
- Floor sanding and sealing in Waterford
- Floor sanding and sealing in Clare
- Floor sanding and sealing in Kilkenny
- Floor sanding and sealing in Westmeath
- Floor sanding and sealing in Laois
- Floor sanding and sealing in Cavan
- Floor sanding and sealing in Offaly
- Floor sanding and sealing in Sligo
- Floor sanding and sealing in Roscommon
- Floor sanding and sealing in Monaghan
- Floor sanding and sealing in Carlow
- Floor sanding and sealing in Longford
- Floor sanding and sealing in Leitrim
Flooring and tiling
Need floor sanding and sealing? Describe the job.
Post it once, free. Professionals near you reply with their own price and when they could start. You choose, and pay them directly.
Questions about floor sanding and sealing
Does floor sanding and sealing need a licence in Ireland?
No licence is required for this work in Ireland (source: www.cru.ie). Ask instead for references and photographs of similar jobs.
Can engineered flooring be sanded?
Often once or twice, depending on the thickness of the wood wear layer. Thin wear layers cannot be sanded safely; a sander checks before starting.
Lacquer or oil?
Water-based lacquer is hard-wearing and easy to clean, suiting halls and kitchens. Oil and hard-wax oil look more natural and can be patch-repaired, but need topping up more often.
Is floor sanding dusty?
Much less than it used to be with modern dust-extracting machines, but some dust escapes. Rooms are sealed off and the floor is vacuumed before each coat.