We put Waterlox sealer and Waterlox satin on our white pine floors. Generally, I did about 200 sf at a time, had window fans exhausting air from the room for at least 4 hours after finishing each coat (and pulling in fresh air from a room elsewhere). At that point, 4 hours after finishing a coat, the floor had cured enough that I could put on booties or socks (not shoes) and walk on the floor without leaving any footprints to turn off the fan and close the window. The floors were not tacky at all at that point. Even so, I always waited at least 24 hours before applying the next coat. The floors now feel hard and slick walking on it in socks, and leave no marks when walking on it in clean shoes. It sounds like your installer just tried to rush things a little, in addition to not ventilating and letting shoes on the finish too soon. He didn't allow each coat to cure sufficiently before applying the next coat. But given time, the finish will cure anyway. Like the Waterlox person said, to fix it now you must first let it cure for a couple of weeks. Actually, at that point your problem *may* have gone away. The satin will continue to flatten in sheen and that alone may cause the footprints to disappear. If not, Waterlox is very forgiving and another final coat of satin, properly cured and allowing nothing but sock feet on it for 4 to 7 days after the final coat like the directions say and the floor will look great. Even better - I ended up putting on 2 coats of sealer and 3 coats of satin on the floors because the big knots in white pine took more Waterlox to get a little sheen to them, and you can tell a favorable difference between 3 coats of satin and 2 coats of satin on the soft pine. 2 coats are fine, but 3 look even smoother and softer in sheen. Fixing the mistake may be a blessing in disguise!

I love it!! I saw the pictures of your original top and I agree - it looked like a perfect wood floor on top of an island. I know that is the look a lot of people like and want (while they fret over the littlest fingernail scratch or wine glass without a coaster) but I personally love the rustic, distressed look. And you can feel comfortable actually *using* it! Bold move, great job!

I did our Waterlox countertop several years ago and found that much of the streaking that initially panicked me disappeared as it cured. Waterlox does take a LOT longer to set up than other finishes and if you've done several coats, each one seems to take longer. I left fans running in our kitchen for about a week with three coats. To avoid fibers, I used a lambswool applicator and used it on something else first to get any stray hairs out. If you use a cotton rag, definitely put it into pantyhose. For other finish projects, I've moved to microfoam rollers--foam brushes leave streak marks. I think with WL, one thick coat laid on in one straight application (no rubbing, touching up or blending) and left to sit for three days is probably your best bet.

OK, so here's what I ran into with the low VOC formula. Here's my email to Waterlox and their reply (which came quickly): Dear sir or maam, I hope you can help me figure out what is going on with an ongoing issue with a Waterlox project. The same problem has now happened twice. I'm working on a butcher block-type counter (new). I used a wood conditioner, then stained it (General Finishes water-based stain and conditioner). After allowing the stain to dry for 24 hours, I applied a coat of Waterlox. I am using a natural bristle brush. I allowed the first coat to dry for 72 hours (didn't have a chance to get back to it before then). I very lightly sanded (1000 grit) a few areas that had some dust issues, cleaned off all the dust with a dust-free rag with mineral spirits, and applied a second coat of Waterlox original (low VOC). As soon as I was putting it on, it became clear that some areas were finishing quite differently from other. There is a large swatch (1 foot by 2 or more feet) plus a few other patches, where the finish is almost sandpaper-like. Like I said, this showed up while putting on the coat, not just when it dried. This is the same thing that happened with my first attempt, but in that case I thought perhaps I had applied it wrong (I used a staining pad) and didn't allow it to dry enough in between coats (I allowed 24 hours). I sanded the counter down to bare wood and started over, but the same problem seems to have happened again. What can be going on? More importantly, is there any way to salvage this? If I have to start from scratch again, I'd rather do it now than after I spend a lot of time and money applying more Waterlox. I just wish I knew what was going on so that I can make sure it doesn't happen again. Thank you for your help. Erin Waterlox's reply: Erin, Thank you for using Waterlox and for writing to us today. My guess would be that all the spots that you sanded lightly are the spots that have the film wrinkled. With the VOC compliant product, if you spot sand or sand any areas of the surface, you will need to wait a minimum of 12 hours to 24 hours afterward to let the oil under where youâÂÂve sanded dry out / harden / cure. What happens when you âÂÂopen upâ the film is that it opens up and gets attacked by your next coat of finish. You will want to scrape off the areas that had the affect and let the areas dry out for 24 ��" 48 hours, then re-coat. Kellie Hawkins Schaffner Vice President Waterlox Coatings Corporation Basically, I started over. It turned out OK in the end (and this was for a desktop and counter for my office at work so both surfaces get heavy use), but it was a lot of hassle. Hope that helps a little. If that doesn't sound like the issue maybe you want to try emailing them to see if they can help.