Abrasive and Sanding Questions We Get Asked All the Time
Some of the most useful things we know didn't come from a spec sheet. They came from years of being asked the same questions on site, on the phone, and over WhatsApp. This week, instead of another product write-up, we've pulled together the questions we get asked most often at Ultimate Floor Care about abrasives, grit sequencing, and getting a finish right the first time. Not every question here is brand-specific, but every one of them is something we get asked regularly.
Bona Abrasives — Specific Questions
What abrasive system should I use with Bona Craft Oil?
For Bona Craft Oil or any pigmented colour oil, go with the Bona Colour System. High-gloss and coloured oils show every scratch, so the sequence matters more than usual:
Coarse: Platinum Ceramic 50 grit on the Power Drive
Intermediate: Green Ceramic 60 grit, to clear the 50-grit scratch pattern
Intermediate: Green Ceramic 80 grit, for the next layer of smoothing
Intermediate: Green Ceramic or Net Alox 100 grit, to flatten out the 80-grit lines
Fine: Diamond Mesh 120 grit, for a scratch-free finish that does justice to a rich colour
Skip a stage in this sequence, and it'll show under the pigment in a way it might not under a clear finish.
What's the Bona Speed System?
This sequence is ideal for low-gloss finishes like Matt, Extra Matt, or Ultra Matt, especially from Bona's Mega and Traffic ranges. It's streamlined, consistent, and works every time:
Coarse: Use Platinum Ceramic 50 grit on the Power Drive with the FlexiSand. This cuts back existing finishes fast and cleanly.
Intermediate: Switch to Green Ceramic 80 grit, still using the Power Drive, to smooth away the 50-grit scratches.
Fine: Finish with Net Alox or Diamond Mesh 100-grit discs. This gives you that effortlessly smooth surface ready for a matt look.
A tip worth noting: Bona recommends using the Quattro Disc for that final sanding stage for the ultimate finish. If you don't have one, the Power Drive still works, but investing in the Quattro is worth it if you're serious about following the Bona system fully.
Do I need a buffing pad under a mesh screen or Jost Multi Hole pad?
Yes, it's always best practice. A buffing pad underneath does three jobs at once: it protects the floor from direct contact with the drive plate, it protects the drive plate itself from wear, and it lets the mesh or Jost pad follow the contour of the floor properly rather than sitting rigid against any minor unevenness. Skipping it might feel like it saves a step, but it's one of those shortcuts that costs you more in the long run, either in floor damage, a worn-out drive plate, or an inconsistent finish where the abrasive couldn't sit flush to the surface.
Is the Bona Scrad Pad for my final sand, or something else?
It's for something else: intercoat abrasion, not the final sand. The Scrad Pad is used together with a Bona Scrad Wing to form the Scrad System, a 320-grit setup designed specifically to cut back grain raise between coats of finish, not to sand bare wood. It runs on the Bona FlexiSand or Bona Buffer. Reach for it between coats, once a coat's down and you need to knock back the grain before the next one goes on. Don't use it as your finishing sand before the first coat goes on at all; that's a different stage entirely, done with your actual finishing abrasive. Mixing the two up either wastes what the Scrad system is built for, or leaves the floor under-prepared for its first coat.
What if I don't have a Quattro disc, can I still use the Bona Diamond abrasives?
Yes. On a Bona FlexiSand, the Diamond abrasives can be run with the Power Drive instead of the Quattro disc. If you don't have a FlexiSand at all, they can be used under a buffing pad on other machines, but that's not a guaranteed setup; the diamond abrasive isn't secured the same way, so it's not certain to stay in place or perform effectively. If you've got the option, the FlexiSand and Power Drive combination is the reliable route; the buffing pad workaround is a last resort rather than a proper setup.
What grit should I finish on for a lacquered floor?
Anywhere between 80 and 120 grit, depending on floor type, the machine you're using, your sanding technique, and the quality you're after. There's no single right answer here; it's a judgement call based on what's actually in front of you, not a fixed number to follow regardless of the job.
Can I mix brands within the same grit sequence, start with Starcke and finish with Bona?
Generally, yes, you can move between brands through a grit sequence without issue, as long as you're not skipping grit stages to do it. Where it matters more is the material, not the brand name. A 100-grit ceramic disc and a 100-grit zirconia disc can leave noticeably different scratch patterns even at the same nominal grit, because the grain structure behaves differently as it wears. So switching from Starcke to Bona mid-sequence is fine if you're staying within a similar material type at each stage; switching material type as well as brand on your final pass is where you're more likely to see inconsistency show up under the finish. If in doubt, keep your material consistent through the finishing stage even if you're happy to mix brands earlier on.
Grit Sequencing & General Technique
What's the reason for using a Rotex?
It should be your last pass; run around the edges. Its job is to blend the edges in with the rest of the floor so you don't end up with picture framing — that visible ring around the room where the edges look different to the field because they were sanded separately and never properly blended back in. Run it too early or skip it, and that mismatch is exactly what shows up once the finish goes on.
What's the next grit I can go to from 36 grit on the belt sander?
60 grit. The rule for grit sequencing is not to skip more than one grit stage at a time, and going from 36 straight to 60 stays within that — jump further than that and the finer grit won't be aggressive enough to remove the deeper scratch pattern the 36 grit left behind, so you're left with visible marks under the finish.
What can I do when a 36 or 40 grit won't touch an existing finish?
One trick that can work, though it doesn't always: run a pass first with a much finer grit. That can open up the existing finish just enough to give your 36 or 40 grit something to actually bite into, rather than skating across a surface it can't get purchase on. It's not a guaranteed fix; some finishes are tough enough that this won't shift them, but it's worth trying before you assume you need a completely different tool or abrasive type for the job.
What do I do if my abrasives keep gumming up on pine floors?
Honestly, it's going to happen. Pine is soft and often carries old finish or bitumen that melts and clogs abrasives no matter how careful you are. You've got two real options. Plan B is switching tools entirely: something like the Metabo Paint Remover strips the problem coating without relying on an abrasive to fight through it at all. Or you push on with sanding and just choose your abrasive smarter; it's worth knowing that a cheaper aluminium oxide disc will clog exactly as fast as a zirconia one in this situation on the first cut, so swapping between the two won't solve anything. The material isn't what's failing you here; it's the coating itself.
What does a typical sanding sequence look like?
40, 60, 80, 100 — that's the standard progression, and it can be run with a mixture of a belt sander and a multi-head sander rather than needing to stick to one machine throughout. Each stage removes the scratch pattern left by the one before it, working down to a surface that's ready for finish.
Can I jump from a 40 to a 100 grit?
No. A 100 grit won't remove the scratch pattern left behind by a 40 grit; it'll only take the peaks off the scratch, leaving the deeper scratches still set in the floor. That damage stays hidden until the finish goes on, at which point it becomes noticeably visible.
The Abrasive Month offer
This week's spotlight is on Bona Abrasives Platinum Ceramic, Green Ceramic, Diamond, and everything in between, all 10% off, alongside Starcke, Gritline and Pallmann across the rest of Abrasive Month. If any of the above raised a question you didn't see answered here, get in touch; we're always happy to talk it through before you order rather than after something's gone wrong on site.
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