Finishing Red Pine Floors

Other than not looking as dusty and matte as the floors above we definitely maintained that au naturale look.

Finishing red pine floors.

If you prefer to keep your floor in pristine condition pine isn t the best flooring material for you. The pine will develop a slightly darker patina with age and exposure to light. Four things to look for in heart pine flooring. Most people prefer a clear oil finish.

100 year old pine floor refinished photo credit. Old heart pine has an attractive natural honey color so a stain is seldom necessary. The most natural but least water resistant film finish is shellac. Although in my opinion 4 coats of satin polyurethane makes the very best finish for a pine floor there are many alternatives.

It dries very fast so 2 3 coats can be applied. Ryan used an air nailer to nail the boards in place. Even today it s still a popular option for. You can buy heart pine flooring in a variety of widths and grades.

As you can see from the photo above right the more porous springwood stains considerably darker than the dense latewood giving the boards a distinct zebra striped look. For you purposes at least 5 6 coats of shellac can be brushed or rolled on to a well sanded pine floor. The flooring installation and finish process for video haters. Stain it or leave it natural and topcoat it with an oil or varnish.

And we are thrilled. If you need to apply one however it s best to prepare the wood by brushing on wood. For the best results clean the floor first with a duster or vacuum to remove any lingering dirt or debris. We chose yellow pine unfinished flooring from lumber liquidators sand floors with an orbital sander rented locally.

This process is detailed in this post. Pine shows wear faster than many wood species and you ll usually need to stain and finish your new pine floor yourself. To finish a pine floor which is basically plywood that is purchased and finished from large sheets you need to use stain varnish or oil. Prior to the development of polyurethane finishes in the 1960s wax was the hardwood floor finish of choice and had been so for hundreds of years.

Red oak and white oak floors absorb stain more uniformly but be aware that there is a difference between the density of earlywood or springwood and latewood of these species.