Hi everyone,

I’m in the process of refinishing an old floor.
I love the natural characteristics and feeling of the wood and preserving that "organic property" is one of my main goal. But I'm also looking for great durability.

I've been looking into different brands and products and the problem is all the same: plastic look. The finish renders a texture on the wood that makes it look like... not wood!
I'm sure you know what I'm talking about.
I have been looking at products from Basic, Bona, Glitsa, etc. but with the samples/jobs I've seen, it's always the the same problem: it makes the wood look "fake" to me - smooth plastic texture and sometimes cloudy or "sandy textured smooth".

Now I don't know if the plastic film thing is common to all polyurethane products. Or perhaps it's the way that it was built.

I was hoping for a WB product but the important thing for me is to get my hands on a product that will be great at protecting the floor while preserving the natural characteristics of the wood as much as possible. I'd love for the floor to feel like wood. Non-yellowing is also important and gentle to my wallet as well.

Maybe I haven't seen the works of the pros but I have yet to see a new floor installed and finished that looks good (to me). Is it related to modern products? Is it a consequence to more durability provided by these products?

I've read about products like Osmo and Treatex but the results don't seem all-around convincing. (are they the same company?)
--> How can pure oils really be durable and scratch resistant? Am I missing something?
In the same range I assume there is Bona Naturale which looks very good (looks like oil and you can feel the wood) but it blows our budget a little bit and I'm not too sure about what the company claims for durability, although Bona has a reputation to maintain I guess.

There is also Bona Traffic matte (IP) - the company claims: "Bona Traffic Matt gives a clear natural finish that provides 'invisible protection' with more of the look of an oiled floor."
Now again I wouldn't see how the sheen would so much change the plastic feel results I've seen from the satin version of their finish, but maybe I'm wrong.


Your help and suggestions would be most welcomed.
Thanks!
Gabriel

I think you will be most happy with the look of an oil finish, or oil and wax combination.
These finishes will result in appearance you desire, and are not all that "high maintenance" you might think.
The application of additional oil in heavy walking areas, supplimented with a full rec0at every couple of years would suffice.
Oil finishes are not really "scratch resistant" as you may have read but are easily touched up with a bit of oil on a rag as needed.
If you top coat with wax, you will then have a protective coating on the oil but will need a different maintenance plan. Periodic buffing to restore the shine using a cleaner/wax combo product will be needed and perhaps a full strip and re-app of wax every few years.

hard wax oil is what your after dont put it on to thick {wax on wax off}

Hi guys,

Thanks for your answers.
Well... I have had a pure oil floor a few fears back and I found it to be not resistant as required. Although yes, it's the way to go for the look I was hoping but it doesn't offer the durability I was aiming.

There must be a product that contains resins that doesn't yield the dramatic plastic effect I talked about?
Older floor finishes for instance didn't have that problem. You could see there "was something on the wood" but not to the same degree of floors nowadays.

Essentially I'm looking for the product that will be closer to the preserving the characteristics of the wood while being quite resistant.

I REPEAT "hardwax oil {matt}"

Thanks Russ for the suggestion. It looks like an interesting products but I don't think this is what I'm looking for.

From what I gathered, the hardwax oil is similar to the products I mentioned in my first post. Pure oils with wax.
And from the comments I've heard the results are a mixed bag. Needs to be redone frequently on high traffic areas.

I was looking for a product that could be comparable to the protection offered by a poly product.

There must still be some resin-born products out there that don't yield the drastic plastic effect I'm trying to avoid.

You may want to look into these Synteko floor oils. These are popular in Europe, where the "natural" look is admired. I have not used them so have no opinion. There was a poster here years ago who said good things about them.

http://www.synteko.com/en/products/floo ... fault.aspx

you should really check this stuff out of someone who knows how to apply the product properly. The reason people are giving mixed results is because they are not applying it properly and don,t understand it. they are basically just a natural oil with a harder wear level {wax} and alot more resistant to stains than just oils, Its that good you can take a boiling hot pan of the cooker and put it on the floor and it won,t mark it, don,t be mistaken for the old wax floors with plenty of maintenace

unfortunatly it hasn,t taken of in the states YET

You should try pallman magic oil 2k
you can get it in the states

www.efloor.eu/182-olej-na-podlahy-pallm ... l-2-k.html

Hi guys,

OK. You're making me consider these products again...
Am I right to assume that these products in the end are about the same thing and will resist about the same to wear and such?

There is Osmo, Treatex, Magic Oil 2 K, Synteko... I also heard of a product called Velvit Oil. Any better ones?
The only one that seems different is Bona Naturale.

Also could you tell me how do you think those oil/wax products will compare to the wear resistance offered by high-end modern poly products like Bona Traffic and also older alkyd finishes?
I don't expect them to be as wear resistant as these two-component poly products. I'm just hoping for an authentic perspective on things.

Sorry that I'm so skeptical about those oil/wax products. It's just that if those products are so good, I don't understand why do most people keep putting plastic on their beautiful hardwood floors...

gabriel the problem you have got is that your looking for a product which every manufacture has been trying to make ever since wood flooring began. from what i gather you want a product which keeps the flooring looking as natural as possible giving the best protection possible. The problem with polyurethane floors is they will never look as good as they do when there first done, I am a big fan of the look of bona traffic matt, it looks natural and offers great protection. The beauty of a matt polyurethane finish is that it absorbs the light rather than satin which the light bounches of it. The beauty of a hardwax oil floor is that you can maintain the floor and keep it looking as beautiful as the day it was done and it looks natural and offers the brillant protection plus if you get a mark {deep scratch etc}in the floor you can repair it on the spot without having to do the whole floor again.

gabriel I hope this helps

Anyone mention Rubio Monocoat yet?

Thanks for your comments Russ.
I'm gonna try to see how the matte traffic product look like.

I think I will do some tests with different products and see what I like. This is gonna be the only way.
Do you guys have any recommendations for a resin product the would perhaps be less "plasticy" than most polyurethane products?
An alkyd based product?


The rubio product seems interesting. Thanks Stephen. They state it is different from the hardwax oils. Is that really the case?



Any other comment on the product? Or opinions compared to the other hardwax products?

I have not used it myself but there are many others in the states who have and liked it. Plus it's been used in Europe for quite a few years. I hear scratches are easily repaired as well. I wish I could do my floor with it but I have a waxed floor.