Painting Wood Floors
Hardwood floors have a beautiful natural color and display interesting patterns formed on their surface. They exude warmth and have a special appeal. However, the naturally beautiful hardwood floors may also be painted to add depth to the room and make it more colorful. Painting wood floors to give rise to works of art is quite popular and the hiding/veiling of the natural patterns, swirls and colors under paint is not really considered to be sacrilegious.
It may also be that your wood flooring has faced considerable wearing and needs to be worked upon. In such case too painting may act as a fast and inexpensive way to cover up marks, imperfections etc. in the flooring. Painting also helps in enhancing the life of the flooring.
Preparation for painting wood floors
Before painting any hardwood flooring it must first be ascertained that the floor surface is clean and dry. Sweeping thoroughly or washing of the floor so as to ensure that no hair, dust particles and the like lying on it. Seams, dents or large holes, if present in the wood flooring, need to be filled up with plastic wood fillers.
Thereafter, the floor needs to be primed. Sealers are made use of in the priming process to at least partly hide the wood grain that may be observable through the paint. Urethane or varnish finishes on wood need also be sanded
Carrying out the painting process
Since oil resins bind well to the hardwood surface, oil paints are considered to be appropriate for hardwoods. Besides, oil paints also harden and dry quicker than water based paints. While painting, remember to always paint in the direction of the wood’s grain. Make use of quality latex floor paint for a satin finish and a latex, alkyd or polyurethane floor paint for semi-gloss or gloss finish.
See Also
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Old Wood Gets New Life as Reclaimed Antique Flooring
Where some might see a crumbling old barn or a dilapidated factory, Don Carlisle sees an opportunity to preserve history and beautify a home at the same time. Carlisle’s Stoddard, N.H. based company has been reclaiming antique wood and turning it into new floors for nearly 40 years.
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