- 1). Thoroughly clean the gouge in the floor with a soft bristle brush or scouring pad.
- 2). Sand any rough edges or loose pieces of wood out of the gouge, and from around the edges of the gouge, with the sanding block or sandpaper.
- 3). Vacuum any dirt or debris from the damaged area.
- 4). Stain the wood filler to match the floor. This may involve mixing more than one type of stain with the wood filler in different proportions before you arrive at the one that works. Let the samples dry before determining whether or not they match.
- 5). Use the putty knife to fill the gouge with the matching wood filler. If the gouge is more than 1/4 inch deep, fill about 1/4 inch of it with the wood filler and allow it to dry before filling the rest of the gouge with filler. Make sure the filler completely fills the gouge, even extending above the top of the wood. This may take more than one application, as the wood filler may shrink as it dries.
- 6). Allow the wood filler to dry. The length of time this takes will depend on the filler and how much stain you mixed with it.
- 7). Gently sand the repaired area with the sanding block or sandpaper until the filled spot is smooth and even with the surrounding wood.
- 8). Thoroughly clean the repaired area with a vacuum cleaner or a tack cloth.
- 9). Use a small paintbrush to cover the repaired area with a finish that matches the rest of the floor. Let this dry, and repeat several times, until the repaired area's finish is even with the rest of the finish.
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