floor varnish - waterbased or solvent

hi everyone

We are having our jarrah floor boards sanded and re-varnished in a few weeks and I'm trying to work out whether to go with solvent based polyurethane or water-based.

I have read in a few places that the solved-based ones aren't so good for you and can release toxins for some time even after completely dry.

(Eg http://www.house-paint.com.au/ecom/f...sh-timber.php3)

Also that solved based polyurethane has been banned in Europe.

I'm happy to pay a bit extra for the water-based polyurethane, but I've spoken to several different floor sanding professionals and gotten mixed reports about whether they are as durable as the solvent-based.

I've searched this forum and the net but couldn't find any solid info.

Does anyone here know if the water-based ones will be as strong? Or do I need brand/product names before anyone can tell me.

thank you for your help :)
shona

Hi Shona,
Just FYI...

I'm about to do my floor with "Bona Traffic" see website www.bona.net.au I can't compare it to solvent based finnishes but I believe its one of the most durable water based ones out there, its used for comercial purposes as well - shopping malls etc...

I tried to find comparisons between the 2 systems i had no luck... water based seems to be new school and solvents been around for ages... the drying times with water are a plus...

Bona Traffic looks great on Jarrah.

Look on my link below for an example.

Bona Traffic and Feats Watson's water based are both very hard wearing and you should choose based on the look you want rather than the durability issues.

If you look after your water based finish it will last just as long as any other.

Hi Extracare, do you remember if the traffic used on those floors was the satin or matt?

I agree you should consider the look you want but wear is equally important if you have special requirements, we have young kids and 2 dogs so i wanted the most durable and we don't particulary like gloss finneshes on cypress so it worked out well...

BTW, I have Bona traffic "invisible protection" so hopefully the timber should come out with quite a natural look, being cypress its going to be quite light colour and after doing some sanding yesterday alot of the boards have quite a light red tinge to them so that should be a nice subtle contrast... will be interesting to see what it comes out like, *should* be putting the bona down on saturday so will be posting some pics after then...

G'day Shona.

Give Bosch flooring a call.
They have offices in Myaree and Wangara.

They have a huge showroom at both locations with large sample floors with the different finishes on the same timber types so you can see what difference the finish makes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigCal

Hi Extracare, do you remember if the traffic used on those floors was the satin or matt?

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Hi Cal,

Those pictures are Satin. Matt is VERY matt, satin has a decent lustre but is still a long way away from gloss.

With kids and dogs the best option is probably 2 coats of gloss 2-pack poly (Wattyl or Polycure) with a top coat of satin (Polycure SuperSatin).

hi i to am about to get my floors done they are old jarrah 82mm end matched boards and one small area has recycled boards where the laundry used to be .
i was thinking of using the bona traffic on it .i am after a satin finish ?
as the boards have a lot of gaps between them and i do not want to get them all filled as i here that they will only pop out in a short time ,i think a satin /mat finish will be better suited to the look i am after ?
Any thoughts or pics
sorry for hyjacking the thread .

Hi Jags, the gaps are another reason why we decided a matt finnish would be good, we're not going to get the complete glassy look of hi gloss unless we did a lot of filling, our boards are 25-30 years old and alot of 1-3mm gaps in them... also cypress doesn't look so good in gloss IMO. I'm only filling 1 gap between boards and its about 6-7mm wide! is huge! I'm going to use a flexible sealant for it.

The pics of traffic in extracares signature link are quite good...

Now im a bit concerned about "Matt is VERY matt" i have already bought the product tho and I want a natural look anyway so hopefully we'll be right... I'll post some pics when im done Jags - which with any luck should be saturday arvo...

In regards to what finish is of greater quality, i would say both of them. In regards to the toxic release after wards that is totally not true. Once the product has dried min 12 hours after the last coat, the windows should be opened and the remaining fumes will clear in a few hours. The toxic purfume fumes from airfreshers are much greater then all floor coatings.
The only thing that i would say about water base it has a slit misty haze to it and the gloss level is not as high as polyurethane. But about from that both products are excellent. If you need further advice you should give the guys at image flooring a call, i worked with them for a number of years.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shona

hi everyone

We are having our jarrah floor boards sanded and re-varnished in a few weeks and I'm trying to work out whether to go with solvent based polyurethane or water-based.

I have read in a few places that the solved-based ones aren't so good for you and can release toxins for some time even after completely dry.

(Eg http://www.house-paint.com.au/ecom/f...sh-timber.php3)

Also that solved based polyurethane has been banned in Europe.

I'm happy to pay a bit extra for the water-based polyurethane, but I've spoken to several different floor sanding professionals and gotten mixed reports about whether they are as durable as the solvent-based.

I've searched this forum and the net but couldn't find any solid info.

Does anyone here know if the water-based ones will be as strong? Or do I need brand/product names before anyone can tell me.

thank you for your help :)
shona

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Strike, this might be my last post. I've just finished putting the 5th coat of a solvent based polyurethane on the jarrah/vic ash stairs and I was a bit lax with the protective breathing apparatus if you understand what I mean.

just getting the last coat of bona Satin traffic apllied to my jarrah floors as i type this thought i would leave it up to a professional as i know my limitations and have seen the difference between a DIY job and the pro (except for the job Big Cal did that look hot )

as mentioned the matt from bona is very very mat hence the reason i went for the satin from what i have seen the floor looks great the guy doing it could not even see where i had replace the boards where the laundry used to be , once it's all done i will post some pic

paid $2800 for 92 m2 and thought it was money well spent .

Rob

Hi Rob - cheers , definitely looking forward to seeing some pics of your floor... that satin will look sweet, we're happy with the matt remembering our traffic requirements but i bet the satin gives it another level of wow...

Hi Shona, I have the same issues as you and will not use polyurethane. It's on the way out for good reason. You can try the above recommendations or Livos, Tung oil, or China wood oil. I'm leaning towards Tung oil although the floor I saw with it was lacking a bit of lustre. If your worried about toxicity generally, all building products must have a MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) but you have to ask. Some websites include these, like FeastWatson

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bnpenty

... and will not use polyurethane. It's on the way out for good reason.

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bnpenty,
You used a similar statement in a previous thread and I asked why you believe it so and what evidence you have to back that up ... but you did not answer it.
Is it just a personal preference/believe, or is there actually (factually) a major shift away from solvent based finishes.
I would also like to hear from professional floor finishers and see what they say on the issue.