Hardwood floors offer a variety of benefits to homeowners, including their beautiful appearance, resistance to spills and stains, and longevity. Unfortunately, they aren't impervious to damage.

Whether it's a chair carelessly dragged across the floor or a stone caught in your shoe, many things can leave scratches on your floor. If your floor has weathered a variety of scrapes and scratches over time, a professional will be able to restore and refinish the surface. Unfortunately, this can also be a costly process. For smaller areas of damage, there are several ways you can repair the floor on your own.

Light scratches will affect the finish, but not cause damage to the wood itself. Tami Mason, writing for SFGate, says you can simply reapply a floor cleaner and finish. Apply the cleaner, then wipe it away with a clean cloth and allow the area to dry before adding the finish.

You should be cautious about this method, though. The home improvement professional Bob Vila says waxes and floor polishes can cause a floor to appear dull and discolored after multiple applications. Once this condition occurs, it will take more effort to remove the finish and restore the floor to its original appearance.

Some restoring materials are designed to refresh the appearance of the wood, but should not be added to laminate or factory finished floors. You may also have to reapply the material every few months.

When a scratch has made it down to the wood, you might simply hide it with a matching color. Jane Hoback, writing for the National Association of Realtors' home improvement site HouseLogic, says crayon-like wax sticks will let you disguise the whiter mark of a scratch. You can even try out your artistic skills by mixing different hues to match the appearance of the surrounding floorboards.

Before you add this coloring, you may need to take steps to buff the scratch out. Mason recommends starting by rubbing wire wool over the scratch, or easing it out with several applications of increasingly fine grade sandpaper. Always work in the same direction as the grain of the wood.

Deeper scratches should not be sanded down, since this can noticeably lower the level of the floor around the damage. The better way to repair this kind of scratch is to fill it with wood putty. Use a plastic putty knife, since a metal one can cause more scratches.

Once the putty has set, gently sand it until it is level with the floor. Once you have removed the dust and grit from this area, apply a finish to reseal the area. Hoback recommends using a lambs wool applicator for the finish, since it will keep air bubbles from forming.

You can also get into a few different habits to keep scratches from affecting the floor. Vila recommends keeping doormats handy at your home's entrances, or asking people to take off their shoes when they come in. Sweep the floors once or twice a week to remove any pebbles or other debris that might leave a scratch.

Putting felt protectors under the legs of your furniture will prevent them from scratching your floor when they are moved around. You might also put down throw rugs in areas that see frequent foot traffic, keep dogs out of areas with hardwood floors, or keep your pet's nails trimmed.