Hi all. We are having heart pine floors (10 inch width, random lengths) installed throughout most of our new home. The plan for the finish is one coat of tung oil followed by 3/4 coats of a water based poly in a satin finish. Relevant info: We have babies and a large yellow lab. Do you agree with this plan? Thanks, Katie PS-The floors are already in the rooms acclimating & we know about face nails. Thanks.

Gaps are there for a reason. Although plywood will not expand and contract much, these are tested and true methods of subfloor recommendations used before installation of hardwood flooring as per the National Wood Flooring Association. 1/8" is more preferred between plywood but not a cause for alarm. Best to have a minimum thickness subfloor of 3/4" but will depend on joist spacing. Probably safer to full spread glue and nail or staple on such a wide plank skipping the felt or rosin paper.

Shellac's solvent is denatured alcohol (or, um, real alcohol if that's handier.) If that doesn't work try mineral spirits or turp - it might just be old-fashioned varnish. Or you can have both, in serial layers. Oh, the joys of old houses! Either way, you'll know pretty quickly because the paper towel you rub the solvent on with will get sticky when you have a match between the product and the solvent. Do the tests in an out-of-the-way spot, naturally. It would be fab if it's shellac as it's much easier to lift than paint. The issue with paint is that it gets deep in the grain and between the boards and trying to sand down below it for total removal can result in sanding too deep. Believe it or not some of us actually still use shellac on floors. It has many adavantages: it's natural (it's made from insect secretions, which may or may not cheer you up!); it's almost completely reversible (as you will find if that's shellac on your floors, you'll bless who ever put it down); and it's touch-up-able as new coats actually dissolve the coat below. It is uncommon now and many (trades)people never having worked with it consider it too tricky to apply so there is much recommendation against it. It is not as durable as poly, though, and it is particularly vulnerable to water. (Though you can wax it - with well-buffed paste wax - to increase its resistance to water. It's very old-fashioned. I don't think it's as fouly stinky as poly. I like the softer, less plastic-y look to it, especially when waxed. It probably takes longer to apply (more coats) than slapping on some poly, which may be partly why it fell out of favor. Casey usually chimes with good advice about buying it dry and recommends not buying it at big box stores because their stuff is not fresh. One buys the shellac flakes in various tints and mixes with alcohol in situ. I think it is harder to apply when it is very hot and humid. At least I have more problems with uneven drying which can lead to a cloudiness. (Not fatal, but requiring another coat.) Try Googling about this. If you get beyond the anti-shellac propaganda, you'll find info and Youtubes of people who have done it. HTH L.

White washing a wood (pine) that has TREMENDOUS amounts of tannin (the colours that make wood the colour of wood) in it can lead to a floor that loves to turn PINK. Heart wood pine is extremely valuable. It is rare...and it is expensive. Especially if it is wide plank. We will need a photo of the floor, and not the banister. I personally would look to a white table rather than changing the colour of the flooring. If you want to cool down the flooring, you might want to look at changing to a water based finish rather than an oil based finish. The ORANGE comes from the oil or solvent based polyurethanes. These cheaper oil based products (the things that stink up a house for 30+ days and cause migraines) naturally turn orange. If you coat a piece of white paper with them, it turns the paper orange. We call this 'ambering'. Before you look at white washing, please look at using a water based polyurethane from Bona or Loba. These finishes are clear and COLOURLESS. That is to say, the colour of the RAW WOOD will be maintained. They will NOT turn orange. It is possible that this is all you are looking for. A classic Scandinavian Modern home has natural wood toned floors and white walls with plenty of glass and chrome. The furniture is then used to add colour. The Scandinavian wood is often finished in the water based finishes simply because it is illegal to use the oil based finishes in Europe. Indoor air quality is heavily regulated in Europe...which means most of the N. American products are impossible to buy over there. Go ahead and find some 'raw' wood used for your floors. See how you like that colour. A water based finish WILL keep that colour. I would prefer that over a pink floor.