Whitewashing new hickory hardwood floors

3 years ago

I am almost done installing the new floor. 3 1/4 hickory over oil based primer sealed advantech. I would like to bleach the entirety of the floor first ( I think) followed by white washed finish. I have tested oxcilic acid as on some pieces of the wood then nuetralized it with mild borax/water solution, and rinsed well. maybe too well.

The bleached pieces of wood have turned a very light orange.

So I am under the impression, I should be using a hydrogen peroxide/caustic soda bleaching process instead. I have 12% peroxide and need to pick up the caustic soda, so anyadvice here would be great. I have read that 50/50 vinegar water should be used to nuetralize the peroxide/caustic soda bleach.

Assuming the peroxide/caustic soda bleacing method is the way to go here are my questions regarding bleaching and preparing.

1. Bleaching,

A. how long should the peroxide/soda solution be allowed to work for?

B. how many rounds of bleaching should I plan for?

C. should I expect to see a color change like the oxcilic acid test?, and if so, is there a way to prevent this from happeneing?

Finishing.

A.I have read about water popping the wood to even out the grain and allow for a more even acceptance of stain. Should this be done before, after, or in between sanding grit steps?

B. I believe I will use the Bona products made specifically for white washing floors, is there a better option?

any advice is appreciated!

Thanks!

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Comments (5)

PRO
G & S Floor Service
3 years ago
Process of elimination, make samples of all the process, choose which is the best end result. You maybe wasting your time with the bleaching. Have you tried applying only the finish? Which finish are you planning to use?
Timothy Winzell
3 years ago
You could make a solution of lye but unless you have a chemistry background you may not get the strengths right. You'd be better off buying wood bleach that's guaranteed to work and self-neutralizes. http://www.woodkote.com/

On their SDS page it lists part A being 20% to 30% H202 by weight and part B being 1% to 5%.

We always do two coats, letting the first dry before applying the second. We rarely neutralize, the exception being on White Oak when it exhibits a yellow or green tinge after the bleach dries.

We use Bona DriFast White, followed by a coat of Classicseal and two coats of Mega HD or Traffic. We don't abrade after bleaching but do so after the sealer and first urethane per Bona instructions.
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Hickory is BUSY. It ranges in colour from pale butter yellow through to WALNUT BROWN. It has 5-7 DISTINCT yellow/brown colours. If you have purchased hickory to WHITE WASH you have chosen one of the worst woods to work with. It has SOOOO much colour!

I love Hickory because I love BOLD. Bold and bossy! Cheeky-sassy floors that bosses everything in the house. It is the DIVA of wood. It demands to be seen. And trying to 'bleach it' into a corner is like trying to tame a wild stallion by banging two pots together. It just ain't going to go your way.

Think of it this way:

If someone has JET BLACK hair and they want to go BLONDE, they have to get serious about stripping out the colour to get a WHITE strand of hair (chemically lifting the colour out of the SHAFT of the hair). After the first BLEACHING you realize what UNDERTONES are making up the 'jet black'. Some people have 'blue' in their black. That means their hair will turn bluish-green after 2 bleaches. Oh dear. That's not going to go blonde...easily.

Other people have red in their black (called deep chestnut...like hickory's deepest brown). They strip it a few times only to find PINKY ORANGE. Oh no. Not ANOTHER colour to get rid of??? Wow. This is MORE work than I thought!

And then there are those who have brown based blacks...and those turn BRIGHT ORANGE after 2 bleaches. And THAT'S where you are right now.

You have chosen a floor with some of the HEAVIEST COLOUR VARIATIONS on the Continent. To white wash this wood, you need to LOVE pink and orange and lavender and cinnamon and salmon. And you have to LOVE wood that looks like it has been bleached within an inch of it's life ('cause it has been....all the life will have been ripped out of it...and the damage cannot be reversed).

If you insist on going with a 'wash' then just paint it white. It will save you HUNDREDS of dollars and WEEKS of effort. I hate painted wood floors but sometimes there is just no other way to do it.

Painted Hickory? It's like strapping Aretha Franklin into a sound-proof box and telling her to 'sing' her way out!
Nancy Mandilakis
2 years ago
SJ McCarthy -- What do you think of Hickory hardwood flooring with Stonewash color? We're going with Hickory... trying to lockdown the color...

Hope you see this post!
SJ McCarthy
2 years ago
If you like it then go for it. But do not be surprised when the finished floor is still busy. Hickory is famous for wild colours.

Whitewashing new hickory hardwood floors

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G & S Floor Service

Timothy Winzell

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