Waterbased vs Oil base finishes
Not all finishes are created equal; even in waterborne or oil base products. Some finishes in both categories can be either really good or really bad. when shopping in a store most home owners will look at a waterbase or oil base product and say to them selves...." Wow I can get 3 gallons of this product for $30 per gallon or that 1 gallon for $100 per gallon. I think I'll get the 3 gallons" Why because they feel that it all the same and they are getting a better deal. Well guess what they didn't; they bought the cheapest finish that will last the least amount of time. Or if they higher a professional did you ask them what finish they are going to use, by the name and brand of the product? Did they try to get all the information on that product before the job was done? Did they ask for past customer references before they are hired?
Waterbase finishes can be very good, some even come with warranties and Aluminum Oxide like the prefinished floors. They have high solids of 30% or 31% Urethane in them. These are the higher quality products. There are also some waterborne products that can give you the look of an oil base because they have oil resins in them and age just like a oil base product; even being a waterborne product. Then there are those that are mostly acrylic and not a urethane and these will not last as long.
Oil base finishes are also very good; as long as they have a high level of polyurethane in them. These usually cost much more because they have little to no alkyds in them. Alkyd is a filler used in the place of polyurethane to increase the solid content of the finish. So not all oil base products are created equal. Some finishes can be 100% Polyurethane and some can be a blend of Polyurethane and Alkyds. As long as there is a little Polyurethane in a product, it is called Polyurethane.
Sealers are important - find out which one is used. A good foundation is the key to a great floor. Every company has a finish system it should be followed. Never intermix companies products. No company will honor a job if more than one company is used. If you use XYZ stains - then use their sealers and their finishes. Mixing the companies is the worst thing because they may not all work with each other. If you are told they will - then call those companies and see what they say. I can tell you Not ONE will agree, You do it at YOUR OWN RISK. They test their products with their product and Never anyone else's.
Lets not forget about the VOC laws throughout the country. Some areas are 550 VOC, 450 VOC and 350 VOC. Depending on the VOC's will depend on how the smell is afterwards. The lower the number the longer it takes to dry, the longer the dry time the longer the smell. The exempt solvents in the lower 350 VOC can extend the smell in an oil base finish. The best advised I can tell someone to help remove the odor is.....Finish dries best with exchange of air. The rooms that are done should have a fan in the window facing out; so it can pull the air out of the room to the outside. Then in another window another fan pulling clean air in to the room/s. A ceiling fan will only move the air around in a room and not move it out, so they are useless. Air conditioners and heating units have filters and the odor can penetrate these filters and pass the smell throughout the home, so these should be turned off. Filters then need to be changed. Bed coverings, drapes and cloth anything can also hold the odors of an oil base finish and should be removed before hand or washed later.
Spend some time and effort to know what you are buying before you buy it or find out what products are going to be used before you hire the person to do your floors and do your research.
A gym finish looks great on a gym - NOT because its a better finish- but BECAUSE Street shoes and sneakers are never allowed on a gym floor. These floors only allow sneakers that have never been worn on the street, sidewalk or outside the building.
High gloss finish dulls down quicker and looks older quicker, semi-gloss will look newer longer than high gloss but Satin will look better longer because it is already dull and it takes longer for it to start looking bad. Doesn't matter water or oil do the same thing. Be mindful of your floors if they start having white scratches they can be fixed easily. When they start to turn grey or go black it's time to do them again. I always recommend high traffic areas get recoated once a year (ex. kitchen, family rooms, main first floor hallways). The upstairs usually will last longer, not as much company walks through there. EVERYTHING Scratches steal, blacktop, bricks rocks; nothing is impervious to scratching expect it. It will happen! I do not let anyone walk on my floors with shoes on, you come in take off your shoes, I don't want those rocks you picked up scratching my floor. Have walk off mats at each doorway from outside, sweep regularly and vacuum once a week to avoid damage to your floors. Clean them with a good cleaner not some junk from the big box stores. No oil soaps or waxes, what ever companies finish is used; use their cleaner.
Call the finish companies you choose to use on your floors before you agree to the products being used. Make sure that what the contractor say they use is in writing, Follow up by making sure and go to the jobsite when they are coating in the floors. Do Some research on the products, do your home work.
People spend so much time investigating what kind of car, television, phone they are going to get and these things last a short time. Yet when it comes to their floors they only look at price. Then expect that something they use everyday and abuse every day should be wonderful and never have a problem. Don't look for the most expensive or the cheapest.....look for the one that will give you the most information on what they use, past references and do they stand behind their work.
Great place to start http://www.hardwoodfloorsmag.com/resourcebook/ or http://www.nwfa.org/
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