Finishing a wood floor

[Shawn Siegrist]

I recently posted about Pre-Finished hardwood flooring, after much debate I've decided to go with an unfinished floor in either maple or hickory. In the past I've used the Varathane Polyurethane finish on floors and I've like the results but I'd like some advice on what to use to maximize the durability of my finish.

I like the look of waterlox and it's my go to finish for most of my woodworking projects, how is it for flooring?

Is there any benefit to using the waterlox first and then the varathane poly on top?

Is there a better finish or combination of finishes out there to use?


Thank you in advance!

Shawn

[Dick Holt]

Shawn,
I refinished my living room and hallway floors this past summer. I used Varathane floor finish. I put down four coats as recommended and love the way it turned out. I used the satin finish and really like the way the grain shows through. The other floors in my house are finished with Minwax satin, and it obscures the grain compared to the Varathane.

Dick

[Ryan Hellmer]

I've used both oil and water based poly on floors and will say this. On really white wood floors like maple and hickory prepare for a lot of amber from an oil based finish. That said, I wouldn't use water based again, the finish is very hard and very clear. I prefer a bit of color from my finish and the waterbased stuff was slick to the point of being dangerous to walk on with socks.

Ryan

[Joe Angrisani]

I'd give some thought to going with the Bona product line. I have been VERY pleased with Bona Traffic Satin Finish. It's a two-part water-based product that is ABSOLUTELY SIMPLE to apply evenly. Dries lightning fast. Use the two-part "Traffic" product; I have no experience with the new one-part stuff. And using the Bona spray cleaner and pads leaves a dog-muddied floor streak-free with about as much effort as it takes to push a broom.

You can find Bona locally or on Amazon.

[Steve Meliza]

My wife liked the color Waterlox S/F gave the test area of our red oak floor, but wanted a film finish. I brushed on two coats of Waterlox Poly over the S/F and she liked that and it is what we would have used had we not had a pro come in to do the sand and finish. They used Glitsa Gold which is a Swedish finish that is far more durable than poly and we need all the durability we can get to stand up to our 120lb dog. Note that Waterlox Poly uses soybean oil so it goes on very clear and supposedly will stay that way and help keep the floors from turning yellow with age.

I can echo what was said about the color of water borne finishes. As I installed the new wood I sealed it with a coat of water borne to protect it till it could be sanded and professionally finished and the resulting color was sickly and pale, we hated it. Hickory has some color of its own, but water borne on Maple would be white as snow.