Help - I need advise re finishing my floors!!
Help! I am refinishing the old wide plank pine sub-floors (147+ years old) and have had a number of flooring guys come in to give me quotes and talk about the refinishing process. Needless to say, I have received a number of different views on process, timing and products to use. Some time frames seem…
Help!
I am refinishing the old wide plank pine sub-floors (147+ years old) and have had a number of flooring guys come in to give me quotes and talk about the refinishing process. Needless to say, I have received a number of different views on process, timing and products to use. Some time frames seem very aggressive (start to finish – done in 4 days!) and I’m more interested in getting it done RIGHT opposed to fast. Inconveniece is NOT an issue.
The Brownstoner community’s input in greatly appreciated!!! I’m sure someone else has gone thru this too!
Thanks!!!
General refnishing process:
Repair
Sand
1 application of stain
Wait till stain dries
Apply sealer
Wait till sealer dries
Apply 1st finish coat, light buff, apply 2nd finish coat, light buff, apply 3rd/final finish coat
Rejoice!
Questions:
How much time should I allocate to let the stain dry? I plan to use Minwax Jacobean or Ebony.
Is a sealer necessary? Or does it depend upon the stain/brand that is used (i.e. already has a sealer in the stain)? If so, how long till the sealer dries?
Which is better – water or oil finish? I’m interested in durability and look, less concerned about the smell. I’m going with a satin finish.
We just had 2 rooms and a hallway refinished. We were told we only needed 1 coat of oil poly. because the professional type used was so thick. The floors do look beautiful but after reading comments am afraid that the finish will not last. It has been a week today since they were done and the house still smells very strong. Any thoughts?
Hi,
Just to add my two cents… We are also based in the UK and finished a sub floor of the same era. We were given some advice regarding stain that retrospectively was essential in getting the perfect finish. In one room, we followed the instruction on the tin and allowed a 2-3 hour drying time (took three coats, one of which we left overnight) and in the other room we did as my father recommended and left the stain 1-2 days in between staining. And the difference was remarkable. We were so much happier with the 1-2 day room as somehow, the stain seemed to penetrate the wood better allowing for a much more settled, richer colour (ultimately it took three coats as we were going for a very dark finish). Just a thought – good luck, they will be beautiful.
I am a floor sander in UK with 10 years on tools experience.
The Standard over here is 1 – 2 coats of stain (depending on how deep you want the colour) and 3 coats of a good quality polyurethane waterbourne seal. Companys such as bonakemi, Blanchon, Carver all import world wide and are top quality. They are clear varnishes and come in finishes of matt – satin/silk – gloss.
Drying times on stain vary, just go by the directions on the product you use for drying time. The varnishes are usually re-coatable in 1 hour, You will need to lightly sand between coats with a 120 grit sandpaper until smooth as the water in the varnish will raise the grain a little (even if you have used a solvent or spirit based stain).Be careful not to hit the stain beneath the varnish. Do not sand down your final coat.
Polyurethane varnished finishes can not be buffed down to smoove out or take away any missed dust. They will smoothen right out over time with use.
Anymore questions visit my website and contact me from there
http://www.countyfloorsanders.co.uk/home.html
If you don’t mind the odor, go with oil-based poly, IMO.
We refinished our red pine floors and just laid on the poly after sanding. Looked great; i wouldn’t want to stain them unless I was going for an ebony look.
If I had had more time, I would have put down one coat of blonde or amber shellac before the poly.
As for stains, finishes, sealants and the like, there is a lot of color in these old pine floors that you cant see when the flors are raw. Sample some options. You may find you have a lot of color already and you may want to do a natural finish.
Are all the old pine floors I see in places actually subfloors? What kind of ‘real’ floors were usually laid on top of them? The red-oak or the parquet you see in other places? I thought the federal houses had pine floors and the victorians had parquet/oak.
stain will dry plenty over night. if you’re staining, then no need for sealer and 3 coats
of poly is more than enough.that simple. floors are not a complicated process. 5-6 day
process depending on the size.
I have really good advice for you: relax. I’ve done three floors of my house gradually over time, most recently the third floor last week. Three different contractors. All three did a great job. All three were pretty cheap, relatively speaking. Who cares how much this or that they do, or how long they say it takes to dry? Focus on what’s important: get references, and check them. If they have happy customers with gorgeous floors, then don’t get caught up on who said what during the walk-through. It ain’t brain surgery.
dry times are relatively short if the stains and finishes are water-borne ( or solvent-base, for that matter)
oil based stains and finishes will take 24-48 to dry, and that could depend on the temp and humidity.
a cross-linked water borne can be as durable as a coventional oil varnish.