Wood Floor Finishes
Applying wood floor finishes, is an easy process, but can sometimes be tricky.
Even professional flooring contractors will sometimes cringe, when it comes time for
applying wood finishes.
A few things you should know about your wood finish, before you start coating your
wood flooring.
There are many different wood finish available. It can be a soft finish
like stains and sealers. Or hard wood floor finish such as polyurethane wood
finish, tung-oil wood finish, wax, etc.
Choosing the best wood floor finish isn't easy, with such a large selection, which one
is right for you?
You must ask yourself:
What's the look your after or like?
What type of color?
How much does the finish change as it ages?
How much time do you want to spend on cleaning and maintaining them?
How much time can you spend being away from your home, while the work is being
done?
How long will the wood finishes, last with your specific lifestyle?
Ask yourself the above questions, and you'll be able to narrow your decision on
choosing the best wood floor finish for your money.
Tip: Invest in a high quality top coat finish. Your money will be well spent in
this area.
Types of Wood Finishes
Sealers
Sealer - Use this finish for decks, porches
and if it's recommended by the manufacture for use with a polyurethane wood finish, on
hardwood floors.
Wood floor
sealers are a
soft finish with little amber and some are
highly flammable.
Do not smoke and turn off all pilot lights, when using this wood finish
product.
They're primarily used as a first coat prior to applying polyurethane finishes. Be sure
that the sealer you chose is
compatible with your polyurethane you're applying. If
they're not, your polyurethane finish coat will
break down and either
delaminate(blister) or chip and flake. Resulting in a system failure, money
wasted..
This normally occurs within 3 yrs., after it's been applied.
Most home owners will use this wood floor finish, when they're putting their home on the
real estate market.
Stain Wood Finish
Stain and
Aniline Wood Dye Stain - Use this wood finish, when you want to add a specific
color to your hardwood floors, to match your interior design.
Stains are a
soft wood finish, mask off surfaces that you don't want to get color
on, an reduce clean-up time.
Due to exposure to dirt and oil, a stain wood finish coat is vulnerable to damages. Stand
alone stain coat with
no top coat, can turn grayish in color, over time, as it
absorbs dirt and moisture.
Add durability, by top coating with a
high quality durable wood floor
finish, to protect your color from scratches and wearing off.
There are
other methods of getting color onto your wood flooring. You can use
Aniline wood dye stains to get a more
vibrant color and modern look, such as an expresso wood finish.
Or
white-wash, you simply use latex paint, then dilute with water and apply like
stain wood finish. You can use other paint colors, to get a more
extra ordinary
and unique look, have fun with your interior decorating ideas.
Tung Oil Wood Finish
Tung Oil Wood Finish - This wood product is mostly
found on furnitures, but are also used to protect floors, to achieve a natural wood
look.
Tung oil is durable, has an amber appearance, and is
easy to apply.
With Tung oil wood finish,
the more you apply, the more durable it will be. Your
final sanding pass should be a high grit, 120 or higher.
Apply several coats up to five or more, to achieve a durable surface. Although,
easy to apply this wood floor finish requires a lot of work to complete.
When
applying tung oil use a large oil paint brush. You can also
use a lambs
wool applicator, just make sure there's no loose fibers.
You want to
apply with the grain of the floor. Apply up to
3 or 4 coats before
screening the surface with
220 grit sanding strip and maroon buffing
pad.
After you buffed the floor,
vacuum, clean and tack, then re-coat.
Repeat process until you've achieved your desire sheen and look.
Note: the more coats you apply the shinier your wood floor will be, when using a tung
oil wood floor finishes.
Polyurethane finish
Oil-Base Polyurethane Finish and
Water based wood finish- These
two wood floor finishes are
used commonly throughout in many homes.
On hardwood floors and furnitures, polyurethane finishes are
very durable, an easy to
work with.
Recommended amount of coats are
3 polyurethane floor finish for oil base wood
finish and
1 sealer and 3 polyurethane coats for water based wood finish. With
high end wood finishes you can
apply less coats. This will protect and make your
wood flooring
last longer under proper care and maintenance, compared to the low
end stuff.
These wood floor finishes are
available in oil base and water base. You could find
these at any home center near you.
Moisture Cure Wood Floor Finish
Moisture Cure Wood Floor Finish - This is
a
high quality finish. Its durability is
much greater than regular
polyurethane
finishes, along with the odor.
Very important to
have good ventilation when working with this wood finish.
This is a great finish to use in conditions where the
air is very moist.
The speed of
curing depends on, how much humidity is in the air. The
higher the
humidity, the more rapid the dry time.
Moisture cure wood floor finish will
outlast a traditional polyurethane finish.
Ask a flooring supplier near you, if, they carry this product.
Swedish Finish
Swedish Finish - This finish is
also known as an
acid finish or acid cure. This is the toughest finish on the market,
making it
illegal in some states. Like my state of Massachusetts, so I haven't had the
satisfaction of using this product. Although, I heard you can get it in our neighboring
state of Connecticut.
Hard wax Oil
Hard wax oil or Natural oil are penetrating oils and waxes, which penetrates and protects. A tough finish,which is comparable to polyurethane finishes. Most finishes can be coated and completed in one day, depending on mfg. Hard wax finishes have a cure time, of around 10 days. It is easy to apply, usually with a trowel or buffer. And tons of work to clean off. You will need extra rags, pads and time. Although, penetrating oil has been around for a while. It is still unfamiliarized by a lot of home owners.
These are the most common
wood floor
finishes, used today for on-sit refinishing.
Choose the best wood floor finish, that meets your everyday needs. And you'll have a
beautiful, long lasting wood floor.
Visit our
Gallery to see how your hardwood floors
will look like, with the different wood finishes. Then come back and
learn how to
apply your preferred wood finishes.
Too much to handle? Have Questions about a product?
Contact
us for your project.
G and S woodfloors Lynn,Massachusetts
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