How to varnish cover the wooden floor

• wood species. Wooden floor, built of oak, beech is desirable to handle using varnishes that have an elastic composition;

• operating conditions. Most varnishes have a predominance of a certain property over other indicators, so it is worth choosing a varnish with either increased moisture resistance, or a high degree of wear resistance, etc.;

• varnish compatibility with the surface to be treated. The rocks of exotic trees quite often slow down the hardening process, so it is worth initially taking care of surface treatment with additional cutting soil;

• the possibility of subsequent renovation of the coating with another compound. Some types of varnishes, when layered on each other, can significantly spoil the appearance of the coating by the appearance of cracks, bubbles and other troubles. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to know exactly what composition the surface was treated with before, or to perform a thorough cycling of the floor;

• type of room. For the bathroom, the kitchen is ideal for varnishes on a polyurethane or urethane-alkyd base, which have a high index of moisture resistance and wear resistance. For children it is necessary to stop the choice on the lacquer coating, which is based on water. For the corridor, the living room you need to look for varnishes that provide high resistance to abrasion.

Thus, it is worthwhile in advance to take care of full awareness of these issues, even if you have to call the seller of the purchased home to clarify some issues.

Types of varnish, their characteristics

The variety of varnishes intended for the coating of wooden surfaces differ in many ways, therefore, faced with the need to choose, there arises quite a reasonable question, which varnish to cover the wooden floor.

Based on the composition for the treatment of wooden surfaces are suitable:

1. Polyurethane varnishes, the basis for the production of which is polyurethane, are characterized by high moisture resistance, as well as increased strength, which allows them to be used in rooms with very high humidity levels. Under the influence of moderate deformations, the elasticity of the varnish prevents the appearance of cracks on parts of a complex configuration.

Advantages:

• resistance to most both organic and inorganic acids;
• possibility of introducing additional dyes, allowing to change the initial shade of varnish;
• high degree of adhesion with any materials;
• no deformation when exposed to ultraviolet rays;
• resistance to abrasion, mechanical damage;
• ability to withstand extremely low to very high temperatures( -50 to +100 ° C);
• drying speed;
• ease of application;
• coating durability.

Disadvantages:

• slight release of toxic substances during application and curing of varnish;
• is quite high cost.

2. Acrylic varnishes are produced on a water basis, which indicates an environmentally friendly material. However, a low moisture resistance prevents flooring in rooms that require frequent wet cleaning. In the process of working with acrylic varnish, it is necessary to ensure the humidity of the room within 50% for uniform curing of the coating. At the same time to increase the strength to mechanical action, to shorten the drying period of the applied layer of varnish helps the addition of hardener, although the environmental friendliness of the varnish will noticeably decrease.

Pros:

• is quite acceptable strength and elasticity;
• when applied and hardened, the shade and the texture of the flooring do not change;
• is absolutely incombustible;
• high adhesion to wood;
• good spreadability over the surface;
• is relatively high cost.

Cons:

• the service life depends on the intensity of movement on the varnished surface and the microclimate of the room;
• dries long.

3. Polyurethane-acrylic lacquers significantly lag behind all characteristics from polyurethane varnishes, due to the inclusion of acrylic elements. However, polyurethane-acrylic varnishes are quite suitable for flooring in a room with a low level of patency at a very affordable price.

4. Alkyd varnishes are a mixture of alkyd resins with solvents of organic origin, as a result of which such varnishes are considered to be a completely ecologically pure composition. However, most varnishes are used with the addition of hardeners, which reduce the drying of the coating from 3 to 1 day, which causes a sharper smell, which requires the respirator to be equipped during the application to the surface.

Advantages:

• good moisture resistance, wear resistance;
• resistance to some acids, most detergents;
• resistance to ultraviolet;
• is rapidly cured;
• a short operating period.

Disadvantages:

• decrease in varnish layer during evaporation of solvents;
• essential oils released during application and before solidification form an unpleasant odor in the room;
• need to be constantly ventilated until completely dry.

5. Urethane varnishes are produced both on a water basis and on the basis of resins of synthetic origin, which significantly affects the environmental friendliness of the material and the need to use a respirator during the application of the composition to the surface.

Advantages:

• resistance to burnout;
• moisture resistance;
• high elasticity;
• incombustibility;
• is relatively high abrasion resistance;
• chemical resistance;
• curing speed( about 12 hours);
• affordable price.

Disadvantages:

• release of toxins until solidified.

6. Urethane alkyd varnishes have absorbed all the advantages of alkyd and urethane groups, forming an improved in performance qualities composition.

Compared to alkyd varnishes, urethane-alkyds have:

• greater strength to mechanical damage;
• increased moisture resistance;
• increased wear resistance.

Disadvantages:

• price, an order of magnitude higher than the cost of both urethane and alkyd lacquers.

7. Nitrolac, based on the combination of nitrocellulose, volatile solvents, plasticizers and resins, is a rather toxic composition. In this case, the properties of nitrolacs depend on the resin introduced into the composition, which affects certain parameters. Most often, lacquer is used as a primer in front of the main lacquer coating, because it perfectly clogs the pores of wooden surfaces, giving it excellent water repellent characteristics.

Pros:

• high strength;
• fastness of setting and drying;
• low cost.

Cons:

• low weather resistance;
• coating the wooden floor with varnish requires increased efficiency;
• high fire risk;
• the need for frequent renovation of the coating due to the peeling of the varnish after a short period of operation.

8. Oil varnishes containing oils and resins of vegetable origin, organic solvents, are divided into lean, fatty and medium. All types of oil varnishes differ in their performance and application. As a varnish for a wooden floor, the price of which is not very high, medium oil compositions are ideally suited.

Advantages:

• high elasticity of the coating;
• good electrical insulation;
• moisture resistance;
• relative hardness;
• are highly amenable to grinding;
• reasonable cost.

Disadvantages:

• in the process of curing, it is necessary to observe the immutability of the microclimate;
• drying time;
• when applying varnish, the natural texture of the tree is partially concealed.

9. Epoxy varnishes represent a compound of epoxy resins with organic solvents, hardeners and other additives, forming a toxic composition. At the same time, the release of harmful substances into the atmosphere occurs even after curing the coating for 3-4 days.

Pros:

• high protection against moisture;
• resistance to mechanical damage, chemical attack;
• curing speed;
• low cost.

Cons:

• low weather resistance;
• when using a varnish, a respirator is necessary;
• being in the room during the release of toxins poses a serious health hazard.

10. Alcohol paints are represented by the combination of various kinds of resins with ethyl alcohol, forming a rather liquid composition. Typically, the first two layers act as a primer, penetrating deep into the structure, with the application of each coat of varnish preceded by a thorough grinding of the already applied layer. Thus, the surface of the wooden floor is brought almost perfectly smooth.

Advantages:

• is not toxic;
• ease of application;
• drying speed;
• low cost.

Disadvantages:

• low level of moisture resistance;
• relative abrasion resistance.

Based on the foregoing, the modern market is filled with a variety of varnishes suitable for coating wooden surfaces, so it is not difficult to choose a suitable varnish, both on the financial side of the issue and on the set of required performance characteristics.

How to paint a wooden floor with

lacquer The high-quality varnish of a wooden floor is carried out in several stages, incomplete non-observance of which can lead to an irreparable mistake.

Surface preparation

1. Clean the room of all furniture on the floor.
2. To hammer strongly nails protruding from the floor, to remove detached chips.
3. Damaged boards must be replaced immediately with new ones.
4. Putty fill even small cracks.
5. Disguise nail or self-tapping holes with a mixture consisting of sawdust in combination with joinery glue and leave until completely dry.
6. If necessary, remove resin with any solvent.
7. Sand the floor to a level surface using alternately sanding from coarse to fine-grained.
8. Thoroughly vacuum the floor.
9. If there are defects, repeat the grinding process and vacuum again.
10. Rinse the floor with a little addition of non-aggressive detergents and leave to dry.

Primer for flooring

Before direct surface varnishing, the entire floor is best primed using, for example, nitro-lacquer, to avoid darkening the floor surface when applying varnish or poorly cured due to the possible inhibitor content in the wood. In addition, the primer is necessary for better adhesion of the varnish with wood and increase the moisture-repellent quality.

After the primer layer has dried, you can proceed with the direct application of the varnish.

Painting of wooden floors with varnish

Floor coating with varnish is made:

• at a temperature of 20-25 ° С;
• with a brush with artificial pile, preventing molting;
• bare feet, leaving the least traces;
• using a microfibre cloth to remove footprints from the surface before applying the lacquer directly;
• from the far corner to the exit.

Procedure:

• apply a coat of lacquer by following the arrangement of the fibers, carefully spreading the composition over the surface;
• wait for curing and sand the coating with a large nazhdachkoy using circular motions;
• vacuum clean, wipe the floor with a damp cloth and allow to dry;
• apply a second coat of varnish;
• after 2 weeks, to obtain the ideal coating, the surface can be polished.

Useful advices

1. You can save the brush or roller during the drying time of the next layer of lacquer using a cloth soaked in a solvent, then remove the ragged brush in a cellophane bag and tie it properly so that the solvent does not evaporate.
2. The appearance of whitish ripples on the lacquer coating indicates the accumulation of moisture. To solve the problem, the area must be treated with a solvent and then varnished again.
3. You can get rid of the bubbles on the surface of the applied varnish layer by running the sharp end of the brush along the board.
4. The swelling of the lacquer layer upon hardening is removed by grinding followed by lacquering.
5. If the varnish does not cure for the time indicated on the label, then it is possible:

• varnish is incorrectly selected with respect to the surface to be coated, it means that it is necessary to increase the air temperature in the room;
• , a lower amount of hardener is added to the composition than indicated on the package, so the applied layer must be ground and applied a new varnish coating;
• at high humidity - it is necessary to strengthen the ventilation.

So, when asked how to cover the wooden floor with lacquer, you can answer that this is a rather complicated process that requires a lot of time and effort, but the final result is worth such diligence.