Can Floor Polishing Be Done While Living in the Home?

In short: Yes, it is possible to have your floors honed without moving out, and most honing jobs are actually done this way.

With the right planning, the home stays livable and the work goes smoothly. In this article, we explain how to organize floor honing while you are living at home.

Why Is It Possible?

Honing can be done without emptying the house because the method used is dust-free and the work can proceed section by section.

• Wet honing that produces little dust: In wet honing, the stone dust is collected together with the water as slurry; it does not become airborne or spread into belongings and cabinets.
• Work that proceeds room by room: The crew finishes one room and moves on to the next; this way, the rest of the home stays in use and the household can keep up its daily routine.
• Machines powered by household electricity: The machines used in residential jobs run on the home's outlets; there is no need for a generator or a special electrical connection.
• Floors that can be walked on shortly after: Once the honed area has been washed and dried, it can be walked on after a short time, and furniture can often be moved back the same day.

Room-by-Room Planning

The whole house is not honed at once; it is divided into sections:

1. Starting point: Work usually starts from the innermost rooms of the house, so the crew does not have to keep walking across areas that have already been honed.
2. Moving furniture: The furniture from the room to be honed is moved into a room that has not yet been honed or has already been finished, which clears space for the machine.
3. Walkway: A path is left so that the household can reach the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom, so basic needs can still be met while the work continues.
4. Order: The kitchen and bathroom are scheduled for the hours when the household needs them least, so that meals and cleaning routines are disrupted as little as possible.

A typical flow in an apartment: bedrooms → living room → hallway → kitchen and bathrooms → entrance.

What About the Night?

Where to sleep at night can be planned in advance, based on the order in which the rooms are honed and the total duration of the job.

• Bedrooms first: Bedrooms are honed and cleared in the first days, and if the furniture is put back the same day, the household can sleep in their own rooms.
• Temporary bedroom: Alternatively, for a few nights the living room or another room that has not been honed yet can be used as a bedroom.
• Staying elsewhere: For longer jobs, staying somewhere else for a few nights can speed up the work by allowing the crew to work throughout the whole house without breaks.

Sound and Noise

Honing machines make a certain amount of noise. For families who work from home or have small children or elderly members:

• Working hours: If the hours when the machine will run are discussed beforehand, those working from home can schedule their meetings and tasks that require quiet accordingly.
• Sleep and rest hours: Noisy work is paused during small children's naps and the elderly's rest hours, and quiet tasks are done during those times.
• Neighbors: In an apartment building, machine noise also reaches the units below and next door; the building management's working hours are observed and neighbors are notified in advance.

Water and Wet Areas

With wet honing, the floor stays wet for a while; during this time you need to be careful about slipping, electricity, and belongings.

• Slipping hazard: The honed room may stay wet for a while; wet stone is very slippery, so the crew's warnings should be followed and the room should not be entered unnecessarily.
• Electricity and children: Working with electrical tools on a wet floor carries a risk of electric shock; children should also be kept away from this area because of both slipping and electricity.
• Rugs and fabric items: Rugs and fabric items should not be placed on a wet floor; they can absorb moisture and stain, and water left underneath can leave marks on the stone.

Children and Pets

The machines, cables, and wet surfaces in the room being worked on are the hazards that most affect children and pets.

• Keep children away from the room: Machines, cables, and wet floors are dangerous for children; the door of the room being worked on should be kept closed and children should be prevented from entering.
• A separate area for pets: A separate room or area should be set up for pets; cats and dogs should be kept away from wet and chemically treated surfaces.

Kitchen and Bathroom

Since the kitchen and bathroom are used every day, their honing is planned so that the household routine is disturbed as little as possible.

• Meals in the kitchen: Preparing food becomes difficult while the kitchen is being honed; planning ready-made meals or eating out for that day will make things easier for the household.
• Homes with a single bathroom: If the home has only one bathroom, the honing should be done as quickly as possible and at the time of day when the household needs the bathroom least.
• Impregnation curing: Until the impregnator has cured, wet areas must be used with care; early contact with water and soap can prevent the protection from fully penetrating the stone.

Impregnation and Odor

Impregnation, the final step of honing, may leave a slight odor depending on the type of product. In occupied homes, water-based products with very little odor are generally preferred. After application, the room is ventilated by opening the windows; with most products the odor disappears within a few hours. The room should not be entered while the impregnator dries, and furniture should be put back only after this period has passed. If anyone in the household is pregnant, asthmatic or sensitive to odors, this should be shared with the crew in advance.

Sample Schedule: 3+1 Apartment

The duration may vary depending on the repair needs and the desired gloss; this table is only an example.

Preparation Checklist for the Household

A few small preparations made before the crew arrives help the work go faster and more smoothly.

• Put away valuables: Put away fragile and valuable items beforehand so they do not fall over and get damaged while furniture is being moved or the machine is running.
• Roll up the rugs: Roll up the rugs and move them to a room that will not be honed; this protects them from water and mud and also clears the work area.
• Set aside an outlet and a water point: Set aside an accessible power outlet and water point for the crew; in wet honing, the machine needs both electricity and water continuously.
• Safe area for pets: Prepare a safe area with a door that closes for your pet so it is not frightened by the noise of the machine and does not step onto the wet floor.
• Let your neighbors know: Let your neighbors know the working days; neighbors who know about the machine noise in advance will be more understanding and can make their own plans.

Honing While Living at Home in Alanya

In most of the residential projects we carry out in Alanya, the household continues to live at home. We work dust-free with wet honing, complete the rooms one by one, and move the furniture back the same day. In the summer months, we plan noisy work with breaks during the midday heat and rest hours, and in apartment buildings we follow the building management's working hours.