Rift only, white oak- finish and finish order ???

12 years ago

I am nearly done laying a beautiful rift only white oak floor from Graff Bros in a kitchen/dining reno. I saw a recent thread where someone got slammed for saying she was going to finish her hardwood BEFORE cabinet installation. Before reading that, I probably would have done the same thing because my cabinets will all have a furniture leg where you can see under the decorative edge about 4".

questions:

What order do I sand, stain, finish, install cabinets? We are doing this project ourselves, so the only contractor will be the cabinet installer.

I am considering the Waterlox with a satin finish. I am hoping for a chestnut colored floor (not too dark, or light). I am trying to avoid the gray/green look that often happens with white oak. Any thoughts? Anyone have pictures of a white oak floor with Waterlox?

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Comments (9)

woodfloorpro
12 years ago
Install, sand, stain - 2 coats finish. Install cabinets & trim out room, touch up and apply final coat(s), move in.

You have a flat floor with some protection underneath and have the opportunity to repair the small blemishes that are sure to come from the cabinet installation. Plus you have far less chance of damaging the cabinets.
idrive65
12 years ago
Anyone have pictures of a white oak floor with Waterlox?

I believe ccoombs1 has qtr sawn white oak with waterlox, you can do a search for her pics.
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ngifford87, my use case is much lighter than yours - I don't have kids or pets (it's all older adults here). If you haven't already done so, you should check out Mommy to the Max's blog / more specifically, check out the reader comments on her Loba install there may be some relevant comments for you. https://www.mommytomax.com/natural-looking-white-oak-floors/ Also, check with your regional Loba rep - our rep, Adam Morin, was extremely helpful. He even made a visit to my home during the floor installation phase and showed me the different Loba products on some of my wood floor samples. Adam recommended the installer (very important to find a trained and experienced Loba installer). Back to answering your questions: The finish has been very strong with no issues on delamination or peeling/uplift. It has been resilent to food and household chemical droppings/spills. No stains at all (I have wood floors in my kitchen). I'd say it is a tougher finish than the Bona commerical finish I had on my previous floors. I've had no need for touch ups. It is very easy to clean (I use the Loba spray product and a bona mop). I don't allow shoes in my home - so, it's bare feet, socks or house shoes only. Workers must wear shoe protection or take off their shoes/boots. I don't believe shoes would be a problem for the finish, it is just so much easier to keep the floors clean when people aren't tracking in dirt and grime. Do know that this Loba finish leaves a slight feeling of texture from the wood - it is not a glass smooth finish. I like the finish and feel of the finish quite a bit. I've had some very slight fading - which is only noticeable when furniture or rugs are moved. I waited almost 1 year to put down a rug in my front bedroom. After a few months, I lifted the rug up and I can see a very, very slight difference between where the rug is and the rest of the wood floor. I also had a Chilewich door mat at the entrance and there is a very slight difference there as well. I do have a lot of large windows in my home / and the front door has large glass inserts. Possibly it is the Loba product or it could be the lighter color (and no stain) - or maybe it's a combination of both. Again, I don't believe anyone coming into my home would see the difference (somewhat looks like a slight shadow on the floor / if the Chilewich mat is moved) If you don't rearange your furniture or rugs often, I'd say it isn't an issue. BTW - I have seen MUCH, MUCH worse fading on other wood floors (e.g., sunlight rays burn-in. None of that happening on my floors). All finishes do fade when exposed to lots of sunlight, I expect. I'm very, very pleased with my Loba floors and would definitely use the product again. If going with the same Loba product, I recommend 3 coats vs 2 coats (I have 3 coats on my floors).
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bry911, I watched that same video last night. I was amazed that his third experiment was successful and gave me hope. At the end of last year when I questioned the finishing guy, he said he is going to hand-sand to remove the top-coat. And I doubt he/they will try to educate themselves. So I am going to put something in writing and send it to the owner to sign-off that if the finisher sands through the veneer, is not able to do an adequate job of color blending, or causes any other irreparable damage that all the doors be replaced with matching wood. Perhaps that will make him pay attention. They did do a good job for the most part. The biggest errors have resulted from the owner trying to take shortcuts and rush the installers. When the fridge panels had to be repaired (but were replaced instead), the installer told the owner that he needed to replace the large pop-up door above the fridge at the same time. But the owner didn't want to do that. That door is such a different color than the other two batches of wood. If it had been replaced then it wouldn't stand out visually. And then the finishing guy wouldn't have applied the whitewash trying to mask the differences. But, 20/20 hindsight and all that. Here are a couple of other pics to show the whole design. The doors above the cooktop have the Blum Aventos Lift Up System with Servo-Drive. And the niche in the island has floating quartz that is supported with hidden, inset support brackets. I did a lot of research to find out if that was a possibility and then found a custom stone installation company that had done something similar before. They were more than willing to take on that aspect of the project.
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kaib
12 years ago
TP; see my post under "A Few Comments About Waterlox", perhaps now on the second page. The photo shows a bit glossy, as it was taken with the first coat of satin which had not yet dried in.

I used 1/4 Cabbots Gunstock with my first coat of Wlox and am very pleased with the results. Come to think of it, it is also Graf Bros, 4" white oak, rift/qtrd stock. Nice stuff....
clg7067
12 years ago
I'm so jealous! I really wanted a rift cut white oak floor. But because of cost and Waterlox drying time (and smell), I've order some cheap BR-111 engineer flooring. Still waiting for delivery.

Enjoy your floor!

Oh, a couple years ago I posted on a professional hardwood flooring board about white oak and Waterlox and they said it would be beautiful!
typeprof
Original Author
12 years ago
Kaib, I read your post from before about Waterlox, it sounds great. A couple questions...I have an open floor plan and will finish the whole first floor. Since we are living on one side at a time (sounds like fun, eh?) I can only do half. There is a logical break for where to stop, but from your experience do you think they will blend together when I continue on with the second half? I'm not sure if this is a great idea, but I dont have another option.
kaib
12 years ago
I can tell you what I know and what I think I know.

I know you cannot mess Waterlox up without making huge errors (even they are correctable). As I was doing my sample boards I tried to apply too thickly, too thinly, leave dust on and create bubbles with a brush. The dust sanded right off with a very light 100 grit rub, bubbles rarely happened, too thick seemed not to matter (up to a point) and too thin is a non-issue.

I researched some fine posts here for over a year - and I think I know the following: If you're forced to stop a finish (as I also may be), the best place would be the obvious door, room change or shodow line...in our house, that would be the end of the Island going further into the great room.

I'd be inclined to tape off there for an abrupt stop. When time comes to begin the next area, I'd yank the tape, feather the line with 100 grit and finish out the second area. You may notice it, but nobody else will - the biggest thing in my mind is the stain/Waterlox ratio - keep it constant by shaking the stain well always and measuring constantly (I also wouldn't use held over stain for the second run, buy a new can).

I think we'll both be fine with a break. I also will do it at a junction between two dissimilliar (sp) boards.

We will be forced to install cabs before the floor goes down. As the Graff is 5/8", I will underlay the cab footprint with 5'8" ply, leave it proud of the footprint and then come back with a rotozip and cut it beneath the toe kick (this implies I will use shoemould). No issues here, and this insures that the floor, when done, will not have appliances and work traffic.

If ever we sell and new folks want to re-do the Island or cabs, the new owner will, of course, hate me...
Rudebekia
12 years ago
typeproof, have you chosen your stain yet? You mention a chestnut color. I am about to refinish my 100 year old white oak floors and am thinking about staining them medium color. Right now they are a lovely old amber color (haven't been refinished for at least 20 years) but I'm worried the sanding will turn them light gray and I don't want that!
typeprof
Original Author
12 years ago
Marita, I am still in a tizzy about this as I have to live in the house at the same time and it needs to be done asap. I think I will start a new post and see if anyone can help me!
Mom In mass
3 months ago
Hi! im thinking of doing solid white oak vs. an engineered or hybrid floor. How did it turn out? Pictures???

Rift only, white oak- finish and finish order ???

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woodfloorpro

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Rift only, white oak- finish and finish order ???

Comments (9)

woodfloorpro

idrive65

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clg7067

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