Finishing a Floor Tips

Finishing Tips for a Fabulous Floor

Remember how great it looked when you had new flooring installed in your home? Unfortunately, without some preventative maintenance it is possible that your floor may become damaged and dirty in a relatively short period of time. Applying a good floor finish is one preventative measure that can be used to help ensure your floor will retain its beauty for years to come.

Just as there are numerous types of flooring, there are probably twice as many different finishes available and it can be difficult to decide which one is the best choice for your floor. Naturally your first step is to see what types of finishes are exactly intended for the type of flooring you have. Many times if you have the floor professionally installed they will have suggestions for what works best with the floor. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, if you are unsure about something ask them to clarify it and see what they suggest for the floor. Likewise, just because they installed the floor it does not mean you have to limit your choices to their suggestions. It is always a good idea to do some research for yourself and find the best products for your own needs.

There are some basic procedures that are applicable to all types of floor finishing. If it is a new floor be sure to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for preparing the floor as well as getting information about which types of finishes are suited to your floor. One point that is brought up continually when discussing various ways to finish a floor is preparation before cleaning. The surface should be free of all dirt, oil, grease and anything else that may have settled on the floor.

Hardwood flooring is beautiful and can be an expensive investment, so you want to make sure the finish that you choose not only keeps the floor looking good but also helps protect your investment through many years of use. One way to finish hardwood flooring has become more popular through the years and that is “Surface” wood floor finishers.

This type of finish is durable, water-resistant and requires a minimal amount of maintenance. Surface finishes are blends of synthetic resins that remain on the surface of the wood and form a protective coating, available is high gloss, semi gloss, satin and matte. However, you should be aware that finishers for hardwood flooring are not perfect. If you are expecting a “table top” or flat surface type of finish you may be disappointed because with the many different types of grains used in flooring make it virtually impossible to have a completely flat surface. Also, no matter how careful you try to be when applying finish, there is almost always dust in the air and that dust will fall onto the freshly applied top finish. You should also keep in mind in spite of the term “hardwood” some flooring will still indent under high heel shoe traffic and any finish that is applied will not prevent these dents. Having rubber heel taps placed on high heeled shoes will help keep the denting to a minimum.

Basically you need to remember that preparing the floor itself is the number one way to help ensure that the finish will come out as planned and continue to protect it for years, and lots of foot traffic, to come.