I am still trying to decide on finishing a hickory floor myself or having someone do it. I'm definitely going to do the install, and want to do the entire job. I am planning on using 4 or 5 inch wide hickory, covering about 600 sq ft.

I have read many posts on here, about how the water based poly is the best way to go, hardest, clear, etc. I want natural wood floors, no stain. I'm wondering if I do it myself, what finish product should I use? I've seen many recommendations of Bona Traffic, but near as I can tell I won't be able to buy it as a diy type.

Thanks for any help.

Ron

While Bona Traffic is a great floor finish, it is a waterbased finish and these finishes are more difficult for the novice/DYIer to apply. Why? Because they dry fast and you need to get them down quickly without puddles and flaws at the proper spread rate. OMU (oil-modified urethane) is much easier and user friendly. It's also much less money but it does smell so you need to wear a respirator. Your hickory floor would look good with an OMU finish as they have more color. If you're going to use a waterbased finish, I'd recommended using a neutral stain first to bring out the natural color of the wood then apply your finish.

What products/brands would you recommend, that can be obtained by a diy?

We have white oak floors in our current house, it was finished with an oil based product, and it turned much more brown than we expected. We like light colored, natural wood, if that affects your recommendation.

Ron

anybody can buy traffic just not everyone can put it down and at 90.00 bucks a gallon you need to know what you are doing. oil poly will amber as mentioned and personally would try to talk you out of sanding and finishing a hickory floor especially if you want the floor finish to go waterborne. A dyi will be lucky to turn this job out in 4-5 days buy the time you rent all the rigtht equipment and buy supplies you might be surprised what the difference might bein paying someone to come in and knock it out in two days.

Sorry, I saw on the bona website that traffic was only sold to professionals, and I couldn't find it on the internet for sale anywhere (I haven't tried locally), so I took that statement as truth. I should have checked around more I guess.

Part of the attempt to do it myself is price, but part is just that I am doing lots of work on a lakehouse, and want to do all I can myself. I'm doing lots of other stuff that would be easier to have someone else do (like plumbing and electrical), I don't mind putting in the time and effort, and I want to be able to claim that I did a lot of the work.

I may figure out that it will be more cost effective to have someone do it. If not, would traffic be something to consider, or something to definitely stay away from? On the hickory, are you saying I should have a professional do it due to its hardness, or just in general you recommend a professional for finishing? I'm usually pretty anal about all my projects, I take my time, and usually have good results. But, on the other hand, I don't want to make a huge mess either.

Ron

Installing, sanding and finishing hardwood flooring is unique among the many construction trades. One needs to be a master finish carpenter, a excellant painter, have a knowledge of moisture migration, subfloor framing, knowledgable of the many different wood species characteristics, etc. It really does entail very many different skills, special tools and skills to put it all together for the end product to perform properly. It would be folly to suggest that by answering a few questions on a message board that one could obtain all the information required to pull off a successful install, sand and finish hardwood floor. If you are set on DYI, then perhaps pick up a book which will have more detail. As a flooring pro for over 25 yrs., I'm still learning new ways to do things and solve problems. My previous suggestions still stands. Hire a pro if you can. If not, then practice on a small, insignificant room with the flooring in it. Don't expect fabulous results from yourself. As hard as I try on every floor to produce a flawless product, I can always find a few flaws here and there. And I'm really good at what I do. Perhaps consider a factory finished floor. I just installed a Sheoga #2 common grade hickory floor for a client. The finish and fit were top notch. There are alot of short boards. This is usual with flooring nowadays. She was very happy with the floor and if you want a rustic looking hickory floor, I highly recommend this floor. Ken sells it here on this site.

Ron,
If you want to give it try yourself then the finish I would suggest would be "Parks". Most waterbornes are very difficult to apply but Parks water is easy as pie, I would certainly apply a few more coats than with other water bornes as its thinner, but very easy to apply for a first timer. Just have realistic expectations no matter which one you choose, Parks will not perform like traffic so theres a trade off if you insist on doing it yourself. DIY finishes are not as durable as ones designed for professional use.

You can get Parks waterborne at Home depot rental centers. about $32 a gallon.