I'm not done yet- we need to talk finishes.

This post is part of an ongoing series of posts that go over the different options in hardwood floors. The idea is that you can get educated by someone who knows what they are talking about but is not trying to sell you anything. :)

The finishes available on hardwood floors might be the clicher that helps you make your decision. I will go over them one by one for you.

1. Acrylic Impregnated – I thought I would start with my personal favorite. I put acrylic impregnated floors in my last house and was EXTREMELY happy with them. If my budget would have permitted- I would have them again. So- what is it? "Acrylic monomers are injected into the cell structure of the wood to give increased hardness and then finished with a wear layer over the wood." I posted last time about the hardness of the different species. For instance- maple has a rating of approximately 1800 PSI's- with this finish, the acrylic (and the stain) is "forced through the wood"- it "impregnates" the wood. If the wood has a dark finish, you can see (from the side of a sample) that the stain goes deep into the wood, not just on the surface. This has several advantages. #1- scratches would be less noticeable becasue the color is not just surface deep. #2- more importantly-the acrylic has hardening agents in it, making a maple floor with 1800 PSI's naturally- even harder. This type of flooring is used frequently on a commercial level. The floor that I had is from Hartco- from a series called "Pattern Plus 5000" This same type of floor is in most "Gap" stores that I have been to- as well as a number of other retail establishements. It can also be installed in a number of different patterns- which is cool. You can get it with an aluminum oxide finish on top of it (they call it the Permion finish) , (I did- and for residnetial use I would recommend it) or not- commercially- it would not have the aluminium oxide, becasue they like to buff it. This is the floor that is used in some of the "Sports Authority" showrooms where shoppers try out their Rollerblades. It is a great finish! This is the flooring in the photo.

2. Aluminum Oxide – particles added to the polyurethane finish to increase the abrasion resistance of the wear layer. This has become extremely popular on the better grades of hardwood floors. I am not a big "Pergo" or laminate floor fan. However- it was the best thing that ever happened to the finishes on hardwood floors. The laminates came onto the market with their "aluminum oxide finish"- which was far superior in durabliity to the urethane that was found on most hardwoods at the time. It wasn't long before the hardwood floor folks figured out how to put this finish on their floors as well. Aluminum oxide is extremely tough. It is used to polish diamonds- it is fabulous!
4. Ceramic – Advanced finish technology that allows the use of space-age ceramics to increase the abrasion resistance of the wear layer. Comparable to Aluminum Oxide- our thanks to NASA- this is up there with velcro and ice cream dots as good stuff!
5. Polyurethane – A clear, tough and durable finish that is applied as a wear layer. The nice thing about a floor with a polyurethane finish- is this: When the floor gets wear and scratches- you can have a "screen and re-coat." Here- professionals would come into your home and first rough up your floor with a buffer that has a "screen" on it- (it looks like a window screen)- this does not actually penetrate the stain. Then a new layer of polyurethane is applied. Unlike sanding an engineered floor- this can be done many many times since it does not actually go into the wood at all. Some of the new floor finishes are actually too hard to screen effectively. (There are other types of urethane finishes- water based- moisture cured- oil modified- these are some different options for a custom finish- but I will have to admit- I am not an expert on them- sorry- ask your floor guy)
6. UV-cured – these floors are finished at the factory and the polyurethane finish is cured with ultraviolet lights instead of using heat. When everyone was changing their finishes to aluminium oxide- my favorite longstrip company- Kahrs- looked into it as well. They determined that their finish that they were already using was better. They use the UV cured finish. Is it better? I don't know- but it is VERY good. I would definitely recommend it.

7. Wax. Like you may remember- wax was the thing in the 70's- but - like everything good- it came back. What's good about wax you ask? Well- for one- the look. A waxed floor gives you a beautiful matte finish. Martha Stewart is a big fan of wax finishes- or so I've heard. What else? You can fix it yourself. For a screen and re-coat of a urethane floor- you need a professional. But- If you have a wax floor- just rent a buffer and take a Saturday- you can take care of it yourself. I recently purcahsed a kitchen table with a beautiful distressed finish- it is a wax finish. It is great- I love it for these reasons.