If you are getting a new timber floor installed, or an existing one floor sanded and polished, you’ll need to decide on the finish for your timber floor. A timber floor polish or coating seals your floorboards and offers protection from spills, scratches and general wear and tear. But with so many different types of timber floor finishes on the market, how do you determine which finish is the right one for you?
In this blog we take an in-depth look at the different types of finishes available, along with a handy floor coating selection chart to help you make an informed choice. And if you have any questions along the way, please reach out to our team for expert advice and guidance!
Why do I need a timber floor finish?
As timber is a natural product, all timber floorings require a protective coating to preserve the wood. Without a finish, the surface of your timber flooring can warp, crack or even start to ‘dull’.
Other factors, such as temperature and humidity changes can also cause the wood to expand or shrink, but a floor finish can reduce how much the wood responds to climate changes.
Timber Floor Coatings
With a long history dating back to 1982, NS Timber Flooring have completed 25,000+ timber floor sanding and polishing jobs across South East Queensland, so you can be confident that we’ll help take the confusion out of choosing the best coating!
Here’s what you need to know…
Timber floor finishes can be grouped into four main categories:
- Penetrating oils and waxes
- Oil-modified urethanes (UMO’S), and
- Polyurethanes – solvent-based
- Polyurethanes – water-based
Performance parameters such as durability or resistance to wear and tear can vary significantly within a category as well as between categories. And the good news is, that refurbishment coats can be applied for each category as and when you need.
5 Types of Timber Flooring Finishes
- Penetrating Oils and Waxes
Colour: These are blends of natural oils and waxes that penetrate the timber surface to provide a rich colour, enhancing the timber grain and natural characteristics. These finishes are generally recognised as the ‘traditional’ or ‘natural’ finish due to the subdued look.
Curing: Curing in cold weather is slow and this may require consideration.
Maintenance: Some hardwax oil finishes require additional maintenance coats to replenish the surface. A repair wax is buffed onto the floor to achieve this.
- Oil Modified Urethanes (UMO’s)
These spirit-based solvent-based coatings combine an oil with a smaller amount of a urethane.
Gloss: Gloss levels vary from high gloss to satin.
Colour and curing: All UMO’s darken with age and their slow curing in cold weather needs to be considered.
Cost and durability: These mid-range cost coatings are often selected as they are of intermediate durability, are not prone to edge bonding and are isocyanate free. As such they tend to hold a moderate share of the market.
- Polyurethane – Solvent-based
This coating type provides the highest durability and film build of all coating types as well as the highest gloss levels.
Gloss: Gloss levels include Gloss, Semi-gloss, Satin and Silke matt.
Application and curing: There is a strong solvent smell on application and due to the isocyanates present additional precautions are necessary until the coating has cured.
- Polyurethane – Water-based
Take care selecting a coating from this category as there are wide range of sub-categories meaning properties (and performance!) of the coating can vary quite a bit.
The good news is though, some water-based polyurethanes are arguably as good as the solvent-based equivalents in terms of durability and NS Timber Flooring can provide recommendation on which ones may serve you better.
This coating type can provide high durability and has a less strong smell on application compared to solvent-based ones.
Gloss: Gloss options range from Gloss and Semi-Gloss to Satin, Matt, Extra Matt and Invisible/Natural. Note some darken less with age.
Curing: Water based polyurethane is quick drying.
Cost and durability: These high-end coatings are often selected due to the absence of any strong solvent smells on application and because they are very durable. They are also very popular among installers due to the lower environmental and personal health impacts over solvent-based coatings.
Timber Floor Coating Selection Table
The following table outlines the types of finish available and lists various properties of each.
Source: NS Timber Flooring Guide
Choosing the right finish for your timber floors might seem overwhelming at first given the wide range of floor coatings available on the market – and their different properties. But it doesn’t need to be stressful. At NS Timber Flooring, our in-house colour and stain design capabilities allows us to work directly with our customers, designers and architects to design, match and produce staining options that achieve the desired floor. In addition to in-house colour, our floor stain visualiser can help show how a room can change its whole appearance simply by changing the floor colour with a fresh coating.
If you would like to book an in-house colour consultation or need assistance with choosing a floor coating, contact us on (07) 3881 1158 or send us a message online.
