St. Catharines and area hardwood flooring

Archive for the 'Staining' Category

Stained with poly still on floor

Thursday, December 9th, 2010

I made a mistake. I thought I only needed to ‘rough’ the finish of my floor before staining. I stained it with a good bit of poly still on the floor. Not it looks bad. How do I fix this without starting over?

What are the risks in going darker?

Thursday, July 1st, 2010

I want to stain my hardwood floors darker than the natural color I have now. What are the risks in going darker? Will it show everything little speck of dust? The floors have never been stained, only waxed.

Big white spots on DIY stained floor

Thursday, December 17th, 2009

We sanded and stained and polyurethaned old wood floors. There were really dark spots from old stains on some parts of the floor. We sanded them as much as we could. After we stained the floor, and put on the polyurethane, we now have big white spots on some parts of the floor.

Blotches on maple stain job

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

Our maple floors have been sanded to the bare wood (light). The stain was applied by a professional. There are dark streak marks, hand prints, spots and splotches over sections of the floor. Continue to stain or sand again and put clear varnish?

Two stainless spots

Thursday, August 20th, 2009

I just had my floors refinished in a dark red oak. After the second coat of poly, I noticed that the workers buffed out the stain in two very visible sections of my floor. Is there any way to fix these sections? One of them is about 6 inches by 18 inches and the other is about 6 inches by 8 inches.

What is the best way to match the floor?

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009

We are now ready to change the stairs and rails. What is the best way to match the floor? What stain and varnish are the best for this very busy area, and what method should I use to apply the products?

Stain/finish when it’s cold?

Thursday, June 4th, 2009

y house is warm, but knowing heat rises and the floors are still cold, would it be best to wait for a warmer day before applying stain and polyurethane?

Sticky stained floor

Wednesday, August 13th, 2008

We stained our hardwood floors in the living room. The can of stain said it takes 24 hours to dry. It has been 3 days now and our floors feel sticky. How do we fix this?

Staining fir floors

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008

We are refinishing our fir floors. We have used a dark stain called jacobean. The color looks great. Now we have put a satin polyurethane on, and it has appeared to make the tone more of a red color.

Dark stain line where the applicator first/last touched the floor

Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008

I recently sanded my Red Oak floors and prepared them for staining. They looked amazing before the stain hit the deck. I applied DuraSeal Medium Brown with a Lambswool applicator, following the instructions from the container. I did about a 10 sq. ft., waited about 6 min., and tried to wipe off the excess. Every time I wiped (again with the lambswool applicator), I got a dark stain line where the applicator first/last touched the floor.

Going dark or staying with a natural color

Wednesday, August 1st, 2007

I’m torn between going dark or staying with a natural color on my parquet floors, 700 sq. ft. 1 bedroom apt. The apartment faces North and West so it gets good afternoon light, but I’m worried dark floors will make the rooms too dark? Dark floors would suit the wall colors. Any advice?

Custom dark stain

Wednesday, July 18th, 2007

We are building a house and we’re trying to find a dark stain that will compliment our modern interior. We most likely will have a 4″ or 5″ Oak plank or a Walnut. I looked at the Ebony stain, but it seems to have a green tint. We also mixed Jacobean with the Ebony and it still shows a bit green. Can you recommend a deep, rich, dark brown stain color for us?

Light or dark wood flooring

Wednesday, July 11th, 2007

I must decide on light or dark wood flooring. I love the look of the darker wood, but I have been told that scratches look blaring on darker wood. Is this true, and how do you maintain them?

Stain and polyurethane compatible? And pricing…

Sunday, June 3rd, 2007

Is there a way to tell if the stain and polyurethane are compatible? I have heard that sometimes using ones that are not compatible will cause it to flake? I had a quote from a gentleman to lay about 1200sf and finish a total of 1500sf for $3700 with H**** brand stain or poly– I am not sure. Is this a good or bad price?

I’d like a dark stain. Is there one you can recommend?

Sunday, April 22nd, 2007

I’m about to stain a redwood floor I have just prepped. I’d like a dark stain. Is there one you can recommend?

Stain stairs same color as floor?

Wednesday, April 11th, 2007

We are going to have our main floor, oak, sanded and stained a darker color than it currently is. What do we do with the stairs? Leave them the lighter natural color? Or stain them darker to match? Then do we paint the banister a chocolate brown to complete the look?

Getting rid of lap marks

Wednesday, April 11th, 2007

I have just finished staining my pine floor. I used a wood conditioner and then used an oil based stain. I did this in two parts, and now I have lap marks. How do I get rid of these?

2 Colours don’t match well

Saturday, April 7th, 2007

We have a brand new maple hardwood, factory stained a dark brown/reddish colour. Our stairs are also maple and stained by the home builder, chestnut brown. The 2 colours don’t match well and we want to find out how to find a better match and restain the stairs.

Stairs darker than floors

Saturday, April 7th, 2007

I have natural cherry wood floors. Today I got them sanded and polyurethaned, and now the stairs that we’re previously done looks darker. They have never been stained and contractor says they used oil based poly w/ high gloss. Why doesn’t it match, and can it be fixed?

Lap marks

Wednesday, March 28th, 2007

I recently installed and finished a hickory floor myself. The install was tough, but it came out great. Sanding went well, but finishing left streaks and blotches (did an oil modified sealer then water based urethane). I wasn’t happy, so I resanded the floor back down, and this time did a water based sealer and then water based urethane. No streaks, but I do have the occasional lap mark where I needed to turn the t-bar around when dragging the puddle of finish. Any ideas on how to get rid of these? I have 1 coat of sealer and 2 coats of urethane. I am thinking of screening\sanding them down with very fine (300-400 grit) paper once the floor is cured for a few weeks. Any advice? And yes – I just found your Q&A, and you are right: leave the finish to the pros – it took me three tries to get the floor to where it is now!