It is the final coat, they are only putting 2 coats of poly down. That’s what they said was all that was needed.

two coats of oil base poly in one day is not good, unless there is a product available that I do not know of. Would have to read the TDS file.

Thank you for your feedback! They did the second coat 17 hours after the first coat. The project manager told me they follow “national hardwood flooring standards” and told me the second coat can be added after 12 hours. I’m just not going to let them do anything more until tomorrow. I wish we had known before signing the contract that they should use 3 coats, our mistake for not doing more research before they started. The floors do look great so far, but they were so messy getting stain on walls and baseboards in a lot of places. Here are a few pics, this is Duraseal Heritage Brown with satin finish. The one pic is after first coat of poly after 17 hours, the other is right after putting down the second coat.

Depends on the brand they are using. Bona Woodline is a 12-16 hour dry finish with 2 coats minimum recommended. If, they used this product and the condition is right. There is nothing to worry about.

get information on the product they used and read the TDS file.

You initially neglected to mention that the floor was stained before the poly, though your pictures show it. That's important because most stains function as a sealer, and two coats of urethane finish are required over the stain. It appears you have the required amount of finish so there's no need for alarm on that issue. The floor people are responsible for protecting your floor while finishing up the trim and paint. Trust them to do their job.

I apologize for not mentioning the stain. Most articles I’ve read say 3 coats of oil based poly is standard/recommended, I didn’t realize stain is considered as one of those coats. This is the first time we’ve had hardwood floors so I’m still learning. Thank you for the feedback.

Most oil poly finishes are quite similar in usage and coverage. Here's a TDS from Bona Woodline oil poly. https://www1.bona.com/globalassets/catalogassets/bona-woodline-poly-tds.pdf

At the bottom of the first page you'll see where it addresses the recommended number of coats.

Good luck with your newly finished floor.

Thank you Timothy. Unfortunately it isn’t Bona, we were told it would be duraseal or minwax, but they actually used PoloPlaz. I guess I’ll just have to hope it holds up. Next time I will know better to get every detail and get it in writing. :(

Which Poloplaz product?

Supreme is what I was told.

You're fine with the dry time with Supreme. Too bad, they did not give you a choice between Supreme and Primero. Primero is the better of the two. Faster cure time. Poloplaz has there own stain line, also.

Poloplaz is a sub company of Velentus. Which owns ABSCO and Sampson. All same quality product. Of the three, Poloplaz is easiest for roller application.

I figured it was unlikely you were getting Bona urethane. I provided that particular link because their info is easy to find and share. Every oil poly I can think of is similar in application.

Now you can focus your efforts on the things you can control to keep your floor looking great, like frequent cleaning, walkoff mats inside and outside entry doors and floor protectors on furnishings.

Thank you for your time and advice! It’s much appreciated. The floors look great and I’ll be getting floor mats today. Will they not cause issues with curing (was told no rugs for 30 days)?

Different finishes have different stipulation, but yes there is generally a waiting period.

Floor mats??? Today??? Uhhhmmm...when did you plan on adding them to a freshly finished floor?

You must:

Stay AWAY from rubber (black stuff that looks like tires), latex (man-made that looks creamy in colour) or rubberized man-made products (squishy, grabby, stuff).

The PLASTICIZERS in these products (are made from petroleum products = bad...very, very bad) are what cause a horrible chemical reaction (can stain a HEAVY yellow/orange).

Now for the 'coverings'. I usually suggest area rugs after 6 MONTHS. Not because of the curing but because of the FADING. Most local woods (except cherry and maple) get LIGHTER as they age. The most fading is done after 6 months (a full summer). Once the floors have been allowed to fade EVENLY (no area rugs) you can then add area rugs without fear of LARGE rug-shadows.

I would slow down a little with your design choices. You can wait until Halloween before you put down area rugs. You might want to take the time to RESEARCH what you can and cannot use on wood.

Just a suggestion.

I’ve done research, but found some conflicting information, which is why I am here asking questions. This is the first time I’ve heard of waiting 6 months before putting down area rugs on refinished hardwood, I’ve only read to wait 30 days. Thanks for the suggestion, back to researching.

Ok so the floors were finished and there were many issues (edger marks, bubbles, streaks, waving and chatter). The project manager agreed it wasn’t up to standard and had the contractor redo them (not the original crew subcontractors, apparently they quit prior to even starting our floors).

Anyway, the new crew sanded and stained the downstairs (duraseal heritage brown) and have yet to poly. I looked at the floors today and there are edger marks in lots of places, actually more than before. The PM of the flooring company said they will be corrected but didn’t say how or by who. Will this require a resand and restain or spot fix? I’m so frustrated. :( Thank you in advance for suggestions and advice.

Not much to add- obviously you know this is bad. Let them correct it... With a dark stain on oak some of this is bound to happen and be corrected with a scraper and some skill fairly easily. Unfortunately it doesn't seem that they are hiring the best people...

Thank you Hallett & Co., they have zero skill. They did attempt to fix it, but it looks worse than it did the first time. They left seams where they didn’t sand everything down to bare wood, along the walls and transitions into rooms. They promised it would blend. I’m so stressed. The project manager won’t respond to our calls/texts. He had said if this wasn’t “perfect” he would have another contractor fix it. At this point I’m thinking we need a different flooring company to fix the floors. Anyone have recommendations for the Nashville TN area?

These are just a few of the areas showing where the floor still had the previous finish and it definitely does not “blend” as promised.

Wow. I don't think I've seen anyone try it That way! Now we know why!

Send photos in an email with a 'respond when read ' requirement. And tell him/her that you will give them until the end of the week to find a professional flooring company to correct these mistakes.

If you do not hear back from him/her with the name of the pro/company, you will assume they have abandoned this part of the contract and will find your own pro - at their expense.

All of this must be in writing and with the 'notify when read' alert. This will indicate, for your records they received the document.

Those dark areas represent two coats of stain? If so, these guys do not know how to blend in stain. Stains are diffiuclt to blend in. But, this result is not acceptable. They know better.

The areas that are darker were because they didn’t sand those areas during the redo, they only buffed them for the final coat of poly, from what I understand. We sent photos to the PM (before they stained!) of them leaving those areas instead of sanding the entire floor and he assured us it would blend “seamlessly”. I really hate this because the crew did work hard, but the crew leader is the one that told them to not sand everything. He will not be getting paid now which will probably mean the workers won’t get paid which truly sucks IMO. The PM finally responded saying they’ll be there Monday morning to fix it. We replied saying it needs to be a different crew, the best they have and to have his manager contact us as they began the floor refinishing a month ago and now we are having to pay an extra month of mortgage and utilities in our current home.

Regarding the current state of the floors, it appears they need a complete sand and finish correct? I’m not sure I trust anyone they send out to only fix those areas. They also sanded so deep in a hallway it’s about an 1/8” difference from where they had left the previous finish. (3rd photo)

Thank you all for your advice.

They can spot fix the darker areas. They should have known better and not have applied a second coat of stain there. It would save them all this trouble.