Why 280 days of wood drying instead of the standard 30-60 days?

280 days of chamber drying isn't marketing—it's a technological necessity. In the first stage, timber sawn into 'frize' strips and air-stacked in piles with spacers is conditioned in ventilated workshops. That way we reduce moisture by 25–30% from the initial value as gently as possible. The second stage takes place in a vacuum-convective chamber with thermo-humidity treatment developed by our in-house engineering team. It is essentially the same natural process, scaled to an industrial workflow. Frize strips on trolleys with spacers enter the drying chamber. Hot air is the drying medium. Wood temperature is raised to +55 °C, then vacuum is applied with internal pressure reduced to 0.8 atm. Together, these conditions bring sap to a boil for 10–15 minutes per cycle. The cycle runs 48 times per day and continues until the wood reaches 9±1% moisture.

How do you work with clients and confidentiality?

100% of projects under NDA—this isn't optional, it's standard. We don't publish addresses, client names, or floor plan details without written permission. Photography only with client consent, often prohibited entirely. Our team signs personal non-disclosure agreements. For clients from public spheres (politics, business, culture), we can operate through structured legal entities without revealing the ultimate beneficiary. Payment possible via escrow accounts with bank guarantees from top-10 institutions.

Is the 25-year warranty real or just marketing?

Real, but conditional. The warranty covers structural integrity when the temperature-humidity regime (18-24°C, 40-60% humidity) and operating conditions are met.

What's the point of a comprehensive solution: floor + walls + furniture from the same wood?

First, aesthetics: unified grain pattern, tone, and transition from floor to panels, panels to kitchen facades creates a sense of cohesive space, as if the interior is 'carved' from a single block. Second, technology: using one timber batch, we guarantee identical reaction to humidity and temperature—floor and panels 'breathe' synchronously, no deformations at joints. Third, logistics: one supplier, one installation cycle, unified warranty. For clients: one call, design project with all technical nodes, one contract, one responsibility.

Can you restore 19th-century parquet in cultural heritage sites?

Yes, it's one of our core competencies. We've worked in the Kremlin (Red Square), Vaganova Ballet Academy, dozens of estates and mansions. Process: complete documentation (photos, measurements, species analysis, identification of historical installation techniques), then dismantling damaged areas while preserving 80-90% of the original, restoring lost planks by matching timber species, grain, and grade. Finishing layer restoration with application of protective coating (lacquer or oil) to extend service life.

Parquet sanding & refinishing: stages and timelines

On site, sanding sounds simple: “grind and coat”. In practice it is a grit ladder, edges, filling, dust extraction and cure hours — and only then a clean tone.

The one question is a full coating strip or a soft finish refresh without spending an extra millimetre of wood.

Here is the operational process: when a full cycle is needed, how grit runs ~40–60 → 80–120 → 150–240, how oil differs from lacquer on walk-vs-furniture timing, and how the room is prepared before the machine starts.

Sanding and “cycle” work today are one process: remove the old coating, level the plane, close joints and lay a new finish. Historically the tools differed; on site what matters is grit, dust and coat cure.

How many cycles engineered will take and how to measure the lamella — that is parquet and engineered restoration. Here — how the job runs once the cycle is chosen.

Private homes and commercial spaces are a service track. Listed heritage (OKN) is a separate approvals discipline — not “the same machine, faster”.

A full cycle is not always required

A full cycle — when wear is already in the wood or the coating must come off entirely: deep scratches, stains, colour change, peeling lacquer. Then we climb the grit ladder, fill, tone if needed and lay a new finish.

Screen-refresh — when the wear layer is alive but the protective coat is tired: light screening, new lacquer or local oil renewal with almost no wood removal. On thin engineered that is often smarter than running a drum “for shine”.

Choose the outcome before the machine starts. Lamella millimetres and red flags live in the restoration article; here we lock the scenario and the cure calendar.

The grit ladder only goes up

Coarse (~40–60 grit) removes old coating and major unevenness. Intermediate (~80–120) clears the scratch from the coarse pass. Finish (~150–240) prepares the field for tone and finish — without abrasive “steps” in raking light.

Skipping a step or jumping from 40 straight to 180 leaves scratch that lacquer only highlights. Pass direction and grit changes follow the object card — not “by eye on a stain”.

One full cycle usually removes about 0.5–1 mm — exact figure depends on wear and skill. Lamella limit is decided before start, not mid-drum.

Edges and corners reveal the job

A drum or belt machine does not reach the walls. An edger and hand work in corners are mandatory — otherwise you leave a “frame” of old lacquer and a height step.

By radiators, in niches and at thresholds burn-through risk is higher: less shoe support, easier to dig a corner. On thin engineered the edge is the highest-caution zone.

Skirting is often removed or masked before start: dust and abrasive must not live in the gap until handover.

Filling holds joint geometry

After coarse and intermediate steps, joints and small defects are closed with filler from the same species dust or a compatible system — so tone and movement track the field.

Filling is not “seal the gap forever”. In unstable climate micro-gaps can return; the job is a level plane under finish, not the illusion of a monolith.

After filling, another fine sand: leftover filler on the field stains under lacquer and oil.

Dust extraction is a finish condition

Dust between coats causes craters, roughness and poor adhesion. We work with machine dust extraction and before every finish coat: vacuum, anti-static per the system card.

We do not promise absolute “zero dust” as a slogan: sealed openings, film and closed zones cut spread through the flat, but during the cycle the object is a work site.

Tone and finish go only on a clean, dry field. Saving on dust costs more than recoating a layer.

Oil and lacquer live on different clocks

After sanding and tone — finish per the maker’s card (Osmo, Saicos, Bona, Pallmann and equivalents). Coat count and interim lacquer sanding are not “by eye for gloss”.

Load guides (confirmed by the system datasheet): light sock traffic — often within hours or the next day; furniture without dragging — later; full household and point loads — when the coat has built strength. Oil and hardwax-oil usually open soft use sooner; lacquer builds hardness longer between coats and to full load.

Cure climate: steady ~40–60% RH and project temperature. Drafts, cold and “blast heater on” break a coat as surely as dirt on the field.

Cure is part of the cycle — not a pause while it “dries itself”.

Load stage	Guide
Walking (socks / soft)	per datasheet: hours–a day
Furniture without dragging	after coat strength builds
Full household load	when the system has hardened
Cure climate	~40–60% RH, no swings

The object is prepared before the machine starts

Clear the room: furniture, textiles, appliances. Stable humidity ~40–60%, no active leaks, dry subfloor. Otherwise we sand into a problem and lock it under finish.

A flat of ~80–120 m² — often about 5–10 working days including coat cure; timeline flexes with area, coat count and scenario (full cycle vs screening).

We work on our own parquet and third-party floors — after coating audit and wear-layer thickness. Compatibility of old oil/lacquer with the new finish is checked before material is bought.

Can you sand a floor yourself?

On simple solid — basically yes: clear the room, rent a sander and edger, work coarse to fine, fill joints, honour oil or lacquer cure per the instructions.

In practice, without experience it is easy to leave washboarding, burn edges, trap dust under a coat or break the cure calendar. Thin engineered and artistic sets are where a mistake is often irreversible.

If the floor is expensive, the area is large or you are unsure of the scenario — better professional sanding: diagnosis, dust extraction, a clear result at handover.

A private cycle is not the heritage track

In a residence or office, sanding renews geometry and finish without heritage approvals. That is Cardinal Hall’s service track.

Listed cultural-heritage objects (OKN) are a separate discipline: archive, methods, approvals. Not a fast “sand the living room”. The heritage section sits in the cultural-heritage catalogue.

After handover the floor lives in care mode: 40–60% climate, compatible products — see parquet care.

In brief

How is sanding different from a finish refresh?

A full cycle removes coating and a thin wood layer on the grit ladder. A finish refresh (screening) barely touches the timber — the smart path when only the protective coat is tired.

What grit is used when sanding parquet?

Guide: coarse ~40–60, intermediate ~80–120, finish ~150–240. Screening — fine screen. Exact card depends on wear and machine type.

How long does lacquer or oil cure after sanding?

Per the system datasheet: light walking often earlier, furniture and full load later. Lacquer usually builds hardness longer; cure climate ~40–60% RH.

Do you sand with dust extraction?

Yes — dust extraction on site and before finish coats. We do not promise absolute “zero dust” as a slogan.

Can you sand a floor yourself?

On simple solid — with rented kit and respect for the grit ladder and cure. On thin engineered a mistake is often irreversible.

How does flat sanding differ from listed-building work?

In a private home — a service track without heritage approvals. Listed heritage (OKN) — archive, methods and a separate contract; not “the same sanding”.

Need a site diagnosis — describe the floor or joinery.

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Step	Grit (guide)
Coarse / coating strip	~40–60
Intermediate	~80–120
Finish under coating	~150–240
Screening (no full cycle)	fine screen / high grit