Hello, all.
My first post here -- looks like there is some great knowledge and helpfulness on this forum.

I have been searching for an answer to this, but to no avail. I am having my hardwood floors redone (white oak), and our contractor recommends StreetShoe. After talking it over with him, and reading all about StreetShoe (and similar 2-part water-based products, like Bona's), I am very enthusiastic about this finish -- especially for its low VOC/water-based composition and its superior durability.

That said, we do not want the natural look of white oak -- we want to apply a stain. Specifically, a reddish-brown color -- ideally something along the lines of Minwax's "Gunstock" stain. We want a deep rich finish/color, like we would get if we applied polyurethane over that. For the stain, second and third choices are "Cherry" and "Sedona Red".

The floors are currently sanded clean, look great, ready for stain. The problem we have is related to color. The contractor applied Gunstock to a test board, wiped it off after a few minutes, gave it an hour or so, then applied StreetShoe over it, and the color completed washed out. There is no hint of even the slightest reddishness left. If you look at Gunstock, it has a good deal of red in it. In fact, there is now not even much sign of having been stained. Here's where I need your kind assistance/advice. What is going wrong? Is it necessary to let the stain cure for 24 hours even on the test board? I understand that a sealer is generally recommended, but not all contractors use a sealer when applying a stain under StreetShoe, and could this be the cause of the color loss?

As another data point, the contractor also applied Minwax "Cherry" stain to another part of the test board. This color did not disappear under the StreetShoe, but it looks quite weak/anemic.

So, is this the nature of the finish, of our particular combination of materials (white oak, oil-based Minwax, water-based StreetShoe, lack of sealer), or something else? I would really prefer to avoid polyurethane, but unless we can get this sorted out, that will have to be the solution.

Thanks in advance for all advice/ideas/comments on the matter!

if you are using street shoe you will need to use a sealer we use the emulsion and we also use the min-wax stain. The floor may need to be water-popped to get the color darker. If you do not use a sealer the street shoe will not adhere to the stain and the floor will fail I have seen this several times. You will also need to make sure the floor and sample boards are sanded with the same process to achieve an accurate sample.

Id ditch the waterborne sealers all together if you want a rich oil-like look you need a oil based sealer before your waterborne top coats. Water sits on top and looks a little opaque sometimes, oil will penetrate and give you some depth and much richer color. emulsion is kinda in the middle hybrid type finish gives some color not as much a oil but better than str8 streetshoe. bona drifast sealer witch works excellent under streetshoe is one combo I have several guys currently using and have used for the last five or more years with zero failures. Failures in finish adhesion are typically application and or dry times that were not adhered to. If you put finish on top of stain thats not dry it will peal like a big bannana. Cant rush dark colors especially if your water poppin and using minwax.

waterborne finish will bond to damn near anything. Thats why when waterbornes first hit the market they wanted you to use some sort of acrylic sealer to prevent panelazation and sidebonding. Floors finished with waterbornes were moving in giant panels because the finish had glued the board seams together, not a good thing per say. try this one day take two boards coat them with some waterborne and lay them face to face in a cross or x and let them dry. Now try to pull them apart, the board fibers will tear before the finish lets go!

Sounds to me like the test board was not sanded. However, I have never personally used Streetshoe. However, I have put Bona traffic over stain many times with no issues. As the other guy said, it may also be necessary to water pop the floor to achieve a deeper color.

Thanks, all, for the responses. It does sound like it was a problem with the test board and how the test was conducted. Correction: I had stated things in reverse -- it was the Cherry color that completely washed out, but the Gunstock was still visible as reddish color on the wood, but very weak/anemic. Again, probably an issue(s) with how the test was performed.

On to the project, we have now applied stain (Minwax, color "Gunstock") to the floor. Looks good right now, letting it cure. The floor has absorbed the stain nicely. And a slight change in plan: the goal now is to apply a coat of Emulsion (made by the same company, Basic Coatings, that makes StreetShoe), followed by two coats of StreetShoe.

the reason the stain is washed out looking is caused by the use of satin waterbased poly ie the flattening agent in the satin polyurethane finish, always use gloss waterbased polyurethane for the first coat or two it bonds better to the stain and gives the stain more body. in future use only dura seal stain not miniwax as this stain is designed for furniture and has very poor drying times and therefore problems with bleeding. also its a good policy to stick within one finish system to avoid finish faliure use complete bona systems or a complete basic coatings system and beware not all waterbased sealers are compatible with waterbased polyurethanes.

WARNING......water based Streetshoe finish is inferior by far to any oil based poly. I had my done professionally (3 COATS) on brazilian cherry and it wore off COMPLETELY in 4 years. High traffic areas such as under a roller office chair wore through to bare wood in a 6 foot area within 6 months! Got no satisfaction from the manufacturer. Not even a visit by the rep. Good luck with this product.
Based on my experience I would not use any water based product.

the color washed out because the stain was not dry and it is possible the board was not sanded properly or at all
and the color was not depicted accurately.

Street shoe is a great product, however, it must be used over a sealer; even when staining.

oil base, waterbase,moisture cure..whatever it may be be..all will where out under a rolling chair in constant use.

you should pay for the extra coat and get the 4th coat..
generally it is 2 sealer 2 finish

1 sealer and 3 finish even better..
Nothing great about emulsion in my opinion..used it for years..nothing special there

Netsolution,

Can't help to comment on your post/reply:
Under a roller chair you should use a heavy duty area rug, can't blame the finish not to stand up to ABUSE. Commercial floors sometime need to be coated every 6 months, sounds like your floor needs that also that often! Most Oil based Polyurethanes would not stand up to that abuse either, most will wear thru just as well.

Johannes.

You should have soft rubber castors on those chairs. No one warranties that otherwise.

I was taught, you only need a sealer if you are going natural, no stain.

This floor is stained, so no sealer is required. The stain is closing the pores, that soak up finish.