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Painting/varnishing oak floor boards


oldgit72
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I am shortly going to be painting some old oak floorboards and would like to know of peoples experience of products on the market. I am looking for something hardwearing that leaves the character of the original wood, not too bothered about covering knocks and scratches as I think this enhances old boards. Any recommendations please?
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Hi Oldgit72, we just had our old floorboards sanded down and the artisan used a mixture of linseed oil about 10 to 20% terebenthin (?) I believe acts as a drying agent and he used a little bou de noix which is a dark tint just to add some colour. I think the linseed oil will enhance the colour on it's own but we wanted ours a little darker.

I have read negatives and positives about this particularly about the drying time which does take a few days. This is what the artisan wanted to use so I agreed and I must say I am quite pleased. He put two coats on and once all the work (painting etc..) is done, I may put a final coat of wax on it.

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We have just painted some floorboards with a water based floor paint from the Bricomarche in St. Jean D'Angely. Presently Euro29 a tin and nice to apply. Impossible to say yet how it will endure but it looks good after two coats and the brush and roller clean under the tap! Very happy so far, a relatively good French paint experience...
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I'd echo WJT's suggestion: our menuisier said about one-third terebinthine (NB not essence de terebinthine) and a small quantity of siccatif, which substantially improves drying times.

Put it on when warm - that is, heat it in a saucepan to improve penetration, but don't boil it. Apply with a brush to get lots into the wood, and then rub it in with a cloth so you don't get sticky patches.

However, on old oak it will quite certainly make the wood a lot darker, possibly even almost black, and you may not want this - try out just a little bit first to see.

It produces a lovely finish, and if you like the smell (some don't) it adds something to the ambience! It gets fainter with time, of course.

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[quote user="WJT"]

Hi Oldgit72, we just had our old floorboards sanded down and the artisan used a mixture of linseed oil about 10 to 20% terebenthin (?) I believe acts as a drying agent and he used a little bou de noix which is a dark tint just to add some colour. I think the linseed oil will enhance the colour on it's own but we wanted ours a little darker.

I have read negatives and positives about this particularly about the drying time which does take a few days. This is what the artisan wanted to use so I agreed and I must say I am quite pleased. He put two coats on and once all the work (painting etc..) is done, I may put a final coat of wax on it.

[/quote]

Essence de térébenthine  = Turps

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Some friends used linseed oil but it looks a bit patchy and i'm not sure I could live with the scent, does it linger? I've got some water based stain which I picked up from Aldi for a silly price, 12.99 for 5 litres. It's made by Baufix, we have tested it on some ceiling beams and it looks fine. I wasnt sure however about it's hardwearing properties on floors.
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[quote user="LEO"][quote user="WJT"]

Hi Oldgit72, we just had our old floorboards sanded down and the artisan used a mixture of linseed oil about 10 to 20% terebenthin (?) I believe acts as a drying agent and he used a little bou de noix which is a dark tint just to add some colour. I think the linseed oil will enhance the colour on it's own but we wanted ours a little darker.

I have read negatives and positives about this particularly about the drying time which does take a few days. This is what the artisan wanted to use so I agreed and I must say I am quite pleased. He put two coats on and once all the work (painting etc..) is done, I may put a final coat of wax on it.

[/quote]

Essence de térébenthine  = Turps

[/quote]

Not exactly. My bottle of "essence a la terebinthine" says it is a "formulation hydrocarbonee a 50% mini de terebinthine pure gemme". You are better off with the terebinthine pure gemme, which is 100% turps, if you are concerned about what you are using in the house. The smell of linseed oil does linger though. Some people like it.

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I would highly recommend  Fiddes Hard wax oil -. The hard wax oil is easily applied by brush, if you need to do a patch again in the future you just reapply - no need to take off the whole room - and in our home it has been inside the front door for five years and it still looks fine. Comes in various finishes. Take care if using other oils - some make the wood go orangey. I would countenance against varnish as you have to strip the whole floor if patches get worn. The Fiddes hard wax oil finish is lovely. pb

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Apologies to Leo. My bottle of "Terebinthine pure gemme" says that all it contains is "essence de terebinthine".

I think the "a la" and "de" distinction here must be the same as the one between "made with" and "made from". That ghastly drink "Sunny Delight" is made with oranges (and water, and a lot of sugar), unlike proper orange juice which is - or should be - made from oranges and nothing else.

It is worth noting that there are two similar products, though, and the "pure gemme" one contains only turps (distilled from tree resins).

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[quote user="oldgit72"]I am shortly going to be painting some old oak floorboards and would like to know of peoples experience of products on the market. I am looking for something hardwearing that leaves the character of the original wood, not too bothered about covering knocks and scratches as I think this enhances old boards. Any recommendations please?[/quote]

 

Why paint them? Seal them with linseed oil and white spirit 30/70.

Add walnut water if you want some color.

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I do ours with Danish oil - first coat thinned with white spirit and 2 more coats thereafter. Looks good, and in my experience will last well, although of course that depends on how much the floor is walked on - lots of traffic means more regular oiling!

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