Posted this over in Breaktime, but figured there may be some good advice avaialble overhere as well.
We are going to be putting down a river pine plank floor. River pine is pine logs that sank in the rivers 50 – 100 years ago during logging operations. They now being recovered for flooring etc. See http://www.logsend.com/FAQ.htm for more info.
We will be using 8″ planks, and with no air conditioning in the house, humidity can vary dramtically over the course of a year. This means that we expect to have cracks appear an disappear between the boards.
We are trying to decide on a finish. We have kids & dog, so we need a finish that is resitant to staining (grape juice, puke, etc) and can be easily cleaned. We’d like to avoid the “plastic” look that we see on some polyurethane finished floors.
We love the look of the pine floors found in turn of the centry homes, which I suspect were finished with an oil finish of some sort.
Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks
Replies
Wow. I won't offer any advice but I'd love to see it when you finish.
Caleb, I use a coat of Watco danish oil which helps to bring out the depth and color of the wood and then topcoat with 3 coats of satin polyurethane. The satin is said to be not as durable as gloss however I can't say I notice, in terms of durability, any difference and I installed new oak floors 7 years ago and have a dog and a cat and the floors are still in excellent shape.
I like the satin because it has very little sheen which reduces the "plastic' appearance of a polyurethane finish yet offers excellent wear resistence.
I'm sure you will recieve some information on using 2 gloss coats for durability and one satin on top to help cut the sheen but I dont really think that is necessary.
If you are finishing this yourself use a high quality lambswool applicator and let each coat dry for 24-48 hours before a light sanding/screening and applying the next coat.
Try the oil and poly on a scrap and see what you think.
Good luck. J.P.
"I'm sure you will receive some information on using 2 gloss coats for durability and one satin on top to help cut the sheen but I dont really think that is necessary."
This process isn't done for durability, since the wear shouldn't be allowed to go further than the top coat. Repeated coats of satin will give a 'muddy' look to the floor.
IanDG
Ian, I agree with you on the wear versus durability however I have not noticed any difference in the clarity of the finish between gloss and satin poly. I can only speak for my own experience, and my floors do not have a muddy appearance and I used the same process I described in my first post.
J.P.
The lower sheen finishes scatter light reflected from the surface -- repeated satin coats do not have the same transparency and clarity as gloss.The difference is slight but perceptible.
IanDG
I agree with the finish being slightly less transparent.
If you don't like poly, then wax and buffing is another option for a great looking floor. But it will require regular maintenance.
Caleb,
Polyurethane doesn't work well on ordinary pine floors because it forms a stiff brittle film over the relatively soft wood. In high traffic areas the compression and denting of the wood will cause the poly to separate from the wood and flake off. If river pine is as hard as oak, using poly is probably OK, but if the pine is softer than oak, a varnish would be the better finish.
I would contact the supplier of the flooring for their advice, they should know how to put a good durable finish on the floor.
Wide board floors are appealing in theory, but because of the wide gaps that form between the boards, and the dirt build up in the gaps, they generally don't look nearly as nice after the first year as a narrower board floor. If you have very large moisture swings in your climate you may even have problems keeping the tongues engaged in the grooves. I always try to talk people into going with narrower boards because they will probably be happier with the result in the long run.
John W.
Caleb, for starters, the fact that you're using "river pine" shouldn't be a concern. Unless the logs were recovered from an estuary where they might have picked up some salt, once the wood is kiln dried it should be as stable as any other pine of the same species.
The bigger concern is your comment about living in a climate with wide swings in humidity and the fact that you want to use wide planks. While most of the pines are actually more stable than are many of the hardwoods used for flooring, such as maple and oak (especially white oak), you will still experience gapping joints in dry weather and perhaps some crowning or cupping when it's humid.
As for a choice of finish, if you really like the look of late 19th century pine floors, there's nothing wrong with using the same technique they did...which was typically just shellac. If fact, in your situation it might be one of the better options, since the film it produces is not as brittle as most of the harder varnishes. And while it doesn't have quite the wear resistance, it's easy to repair in that alcohol liquifies it quickly so that additional coats bond well and actually "relevel" somewhat with previous coats. Also, I suspect part of the look you like in that old turn of the century flooring results from the shellac, which adds an amber glow that modern crystal clear varnishes don't.
And finally, with wall to wall kids and dogs, I think repairability is a far more important feature than starting off with a finish that might have slightly better wear characteristics in a kinder environment. No matter what you put down, the chances that you'll be able to avoid periodic maintenance of that floor fall somewhere between slim and none.
Just dropping by to say thanks for the advice, and feel free to keep it coming.
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