Engineered Flooring Related Questions
Oil penetrates deep into the wood and brings out the true beauty of both the colour and grain as well as providing protection for the floor. In addition to providing a natural look, oiled floors lend themselves to being spot repaired in the event of surface damage.
Most oiled floors require an additional coat of oil or Hardwax Oil, a mixture of sunflower, soybean and thistle oil, carnauba and candelilla wax after installation. This is micro-porous, water-repellent, dirt-, wear-, and stain-resistant against wine, beer, cola, coffee, tea, fruit juices and milk; it will not crack, flake, peel or blister.
Lacquer is normally a polyurethane coating which is applied to the surface of a wooden floor by brush or roller. The polyurethane covers the pores of the wood and forms a hard, resilient coating which protects the wood from dirt and moisture ingress. A good quality lacquer will protect a wooden floor for anything from 12 months to 6 years, depending upon the amount of foot traffic.
Lacquered wood floors are very easy to care for. For everyday cleaning a broom, vacuum cleaner or micro-fibre mop may be used to remove dust and loose debris. For wet cleaning the floor should be misted from a pump spray bottle to avoid it becoming too wet and dried using a micro-fibre wet head. Do not use conditioner, cleanser or steam mop on a lacquered wooden floor.
Oiled wood floors are very easy to care for. For everyday cleaning to remove dust or loose debris a broom, vacuum cleaner or dry mop is all that is required. For more thorough cleaning, damp mop using a diluted oiled wood floor cleaner. In public places where the footfall is greater, oiled wood floors may be damp mopped on a daily basis and should be treated regularly with a maintenance wax. This may be applied to the most heavily used areas or to the whole floor, spreading it with an electric, single-disc buffing machine with a beige pad. Maintenance wax need only be applied to residential flooring when the wood begins to look a little lifeless.
Yes. All timber floors change over time. The coating system, when exposed to natural light, will alter somewhat after installation. Generally, darker colours will darken and lighter colours will lighten further. This is generally not noticeable as the change is so gradual.