Boston.com reader renovations: Album 2

Before Who: Joan Haynes Where: Waltham What: Kitchen floor refinishing 'In the fifties the second generation covered the floor with rubber tile, and underneath was roofing tar as glue and roofing paper for smoothness,' Joan says. She went through four gallons of stripper and used a wire brush to scrape up the roof tar and paper, then blasted it with hot water and used a wet-vac to get 3-square-foot chunks up one at a time.

Before


Who: Joan Haynes
Where: Waltham
What: Kitchen floor refinishing

"In the fifties the second generation covered the floor with rubber tile, and underneath was roofing tar as glue and roofing paper for smoothness," Joan says. She went through four gallons of stripper and used a wire brush to scrape up the roof tar and paper, then blasted it with hot water and used a wet-vac to get 3-square-foot chunks up one at a time.